Tripp Lite electric wiring
2 reports to CPSC, the latest made Apr 6, 2012. A report isn’t a recall.
Watch and the shortlist are kept with a free account, on every device. Your watch list. CPSC’s own search is on saferproducts.gov.
At a glance
From SaferProducts.gov, released Oct 25, 2026.
- 2reports to CPSC
- Apr 6, 2012the latest report was made
- Sep 17, 2011the earliest
- 1with the company’s comments
- Brand
- Tripp Lite
- Maker
- TRIPP LITEMakers, importers or sellers, as the reports name them
- Product
- Electric wiringNot panel boards or outletsCPSC’s product type: Electric Wire or Wiring Systems (Excl Panelboards Recept (code 4062), in Home Maintenance and Structures: Electrical Systems
Other ways the reports write the brand (1)
“TrippLite”
By month
The numbers, as a table
| Month | Reports |
|---|---|
| April 2012 | 1 |
| September 2011 | 1 |
How badly anyone was hurt
- No one hurt 1 CPSC: Incident, No Injury
- No incident, no one hurt 1 CPSC: No Incident, No Injury
As each report says it, in short words; CPSC’s own words are under each.
The reports, as CPSC published them
Reports people made to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. CPSC publishes each one after sending it to the company named, and doesn’t guarantee they’re accurate. A report isn’t a recall.
Each report is the words of the person who made it, as CPSC published them. The company’s comments, where CPSC published any, are set apart as the company’s own.
CPSC, SaferProducts.gov public database export. Released Oct 25, 2026. Updated daily.
-
No one hurt Made Apr 6, 2012, sent to the company Apr 13, 2012, published by CPSC Apr 27, 2012
The product, in the report: Power backup UPS
On 3/24/12, I purchased a Tripp Lite G1010USB UPS at Costco. I brought the unit hame and plugged it in, and connected my entertainment center equipment to it TV, [REDACTED], cable box, and [REDACTED] player. Later, while watching TV, I smelled a burning odor> I determined that the smell was coming from the UPS. I disconnected the equipment from the UPS, and disconnected the UPS from the wall power. I also disconnected the battery within the UPS. I noticed the case of the UPS was very - VERY - hot. When I opened the battery cover on the UPS, I also noticed that the battery was almost too hot to hold my hand on.
I contacted the manufacturer - Tripp Lite - via email, and detailed what had happed. I received a call back from [REDACTED] at Tripp Lite. [REDACTED] said she had talked with their engineering department. She relayed that they have had a number of complaints about odor from these units, and that they believe that there was some sort of issue involving the transformer in some units. She though it had something to do with the varnish used on the transformers.
Her solution to the issue was to take it back to Costco, and get it replace, or I could ship it to them and and they would replace it.
As I explained to her, a quick search on [REDACTED] with the term “Tripp Lite” ups smell gives about 5.2 million hits. Clearly, not all of them are relevant, but many are from people with the same complaint.
- Model
- G1010USB
- UPC
- 037332155789
- Serial number
- 2126BY0OM788000455
- Bought from
- Costco
- Bought
- Mar 24, 2012
- Where
- Leland, North Carolina: Home/
Apartment/ Condominium - Who was involved
- Unspecified
- The reporter’s relation to them
- Unspecified
- As this report names them
- Brand Tripp Lite, made or sold by TRIPP LITE
- How badly, in CPSC’s words
- Incident, No Injury
-
No incident, no one hurt Made Sep 17, 2011, sent to the company Sep 26, 2011, published by CPSC Oct 12, 2011
The product, in the report: Powerverter DC-to-AC Inverter/Charger
This concerns a DOCUMENTATION ERROR leading to incorrect 120 VAC connections.
The product is TrippLite Model 1250ULHW, a Recreational Vehicle inverter/charger.
The Tripp-Lite OWNER’S MANUAL calls for the external AC input to be wired with LINE (Hot) to the BROWN internal wire; NEUTRAL (earth potential power lead, not grounded) to the BLUE internal lead, and the source electrical protective ground wire to the Green input lead. Some engineer at Tripp-Lite must have been unfamiliar with non-US power wiring standards.
The Chinese who actually build the unit apparently never got the memo, [or, being Chinese, couldn’t read it] and instead wired the internals of the unit according to INTERNATIONAL WIRE COLOUR STANDARDS. BROWN is the earth potential power lead, BLUE is the Hot lead, and the electrical protective ground is GREEN/YELLOW STRIPE. The use of BROWN and GREEN wire insulation is tightly defined. “Hot” wires may be just about any color other than either of these two.
The consequence of transposing the input power leads is that the inverter will regularly trip any GFIC receptacle into which it is plugged. It will not connect the input power to its LOAD OUTPUT on a pass-through basis. If connected to a non-GFIC receptacle, the inverter will work but its output leads effectively will be reversed, which results in putting the Hot connection onto an output wire which is supposed to be the ground potential power return. This could increase the risk of shock if a double-insulated tool undergoes failure. Reversing the supply connections eliminates repeated GFIC trips and results in the inverter operating as designed. The stated date below is the date this was corrected on the unit installed in my RV.
This situation does not warrant a recall of product. There is nothing wrong with the product. However, it does warrant correction of the Owner’s Manual and a good faith attempt on the part of Tripp-Lite to notify registered owners that the manual they received with their unit contains an error in the wiring instructions
- Model
- RV1250ULHW
- Serial number
- 9733BY0AP699900001
- Bought from
- Amazon.com
- Bought
- Feb 14, 2011, about then
- Where
- Garland, Texas: Home/
Apartment/ Condominium - Who was involved
- Unspecified
- The reporter’s relation to them
- Self
- As this report names them
- Brand TrippLite, made or sold by TRIPP LITE
- How badly, in CPSC’s words
- No Incident, No Injury
CPSC’s disclaimer
Disclaimer: CPSC does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the Publicly Available Consumer Product Safety Information Database on SaferProducts.gov, particularly with respect to information submitted by people outside of CPSC.
Word for word, from the disclaimer in CPSC’s export.
Sources
Sources
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U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, SaferProducts.gov public database export.
Released Oct 25, 2026 and checked Oct 25, 2026. Updated daily. Public domain (U.S. Government work). CPSC asks to be credited, and that no endorsement be implied.
Reports of harm are from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), on SaferProducts.gov. CPSC does not endorse Hearth Record.