GFCI

When I went over to the boat on Sunday to check on things, I found
that the de-icer was not running, and there was some ice around the
boat. I checked the electrical panel, the breaker was still on, then
checked the outlet where it is plugged in and found that the the GFCI
mechanism had popped. I reset it and plugged it in again, and it
popped immediately. Out on deck, I pulled the de-icer out of the water
and found the problem: the cord had gotten into the fan blades and
been cut. Drat!

Luckily, there is a guy local to Annapolis that services Kasco
de-icers, so I called, and he was actually working in his shop on a
Sunday. I took the rig over to him to drop off, expecting that it
would be a week or so before I could get it back. When I arrived he
checked it out, and determined that everything was OK (sometimes after
cutting a cord, water can wick down into the de-icer housing, ruining
the unit), and he replaced the cord on the spot. I made a quick trip
back to the boat and re-installed the de-icer, turned it on, and all
is well again.