Are gfci outlets safe enough?

[Blumenka18]

Hello,
I’m buying a house that was built in 1940, but was recently renovated. I got an inspection done. The first floor outlets are grounded, but the 2nd floor and attic bedroom outlets all show open ground. The sellers put in GFCI outlets in the bedrooms upstairs. I’m wondering if this is safe enough. I know it’s safe in regards to electrocution, but I have a terrible fear of house fires and with these outlets showing open ground, I’m terrified a fire could happen.

 

[Lucien Nunes]

Lack of grounding does not specifically create a risk of fire but it does leave you reliant on the operation of the GFCI to mitigate the risk of shock if there is a fault on something connected to the outlet. Fire risk arises mainly from bad connections, faulty components such as outlets and switches that are not making good contact, and wiring that is undersized for the breaker or damaged, or with deteriorated insulation. The presence of a ground conductor could indirectly assist fire safety by causing a breaker to trip in the event of partial damage to wiring that otherwise remains undetected.

I believe the NEC considers GFCI outlets on ungrounded circuits acceptable if suitably labelled to say the EGC is not present, but obviously a ground is preferable. Perhaps a US based member can advise further? (Here in the UK it is not permitted, but we use a higher voltage and our GFCIs are not as sensitive)

 

[Megawatt]

Hello,
I’m buying a house that was built in 1940, but was recently renovated. I got an inspection done. The first floor outlets are grounded, but the 2nd floor and attic bedroom outlets all show open ground. The sellers put in GFCI outlets in the bedrooms upstairs. I’m wondering if this is safe enough. I know it’s safe in regards to electrocution, but I have a terrible fear of house fires and with these outlets showing open ground, I’m terrified a fire could happen.

With installing GFCI breakers on the circuits that don’t have grounds it is safe and code compliant.