{"id":425,"date":"2018-10-02T18:05:21","date_gmt":"2018-10-02T18:05:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jpelectricalcompany.com\/blog\/?p=425"},"modified":"2018-10-02T18:05:21","modified_gmt":"2018-10-02T18:05:21","slug":"solved-what-to-do-when-your-circuit-breaker-keeps-tripping","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jpelectricalcompany.com\/blog\/uncategorized\/solved-what-to-do-when-your-circuit-breaker-keeps-tripping\/","title":{"rendered":"Solved! What to Do When Your Circuit Breaker Keeps Tripping"},"content":{"rendered":"

Learn the proper way to figure out why the power keeps pooping out in your house\u2014as well as when to let an electrician do the sleuthing.<\/h2>\n
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\"Why<\/p>\n

Photo: istockphoto.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Q: Every few hours\u2014sometimes minutes!\u2014my living room and one side of my kitchen lose electrical power. Lamps won\u2019t come on; I can\u2019t make toast or watch television. I\u2019ll check the breaker panel and, sure enough, a circuit breaker has tripped\u2026again. I flip it back on and all is well until it happens again! I\u2019m concerned about the wiring in my home. Should I call an electrician, or is there a simple DIY fix I can try first?<\/strong><\/p>\n

A:<\/strong> While it\u2019s frustrating to have to keep switching a tripped breaker back on, keep in mind that a circuit breaker<\/a> is an important safety mechanism. Designed to shut off the electrical current when something goes wrong, it\u2019s one of the best<\/em> ways of protecting your home from an electrical fire. You may ultimately have to call an electrician to deal with\u00a0whatever causes your circuit breaker tripping\u2014electrical current isn\u2019t something to mess with\u2014but a little sleuthing will help you see if it\u2019s something easily remedied.<\/p>\n

First, let\u2019s review some basics to help you understand what might be happening. Electricity from your local utility company runs through a cable directly to your breaker panel (service panel). From there, the electricity flows through individual circuits (a circuit is a wiring loop that starts and ends at the breaker panel). Each breaker you see in the panel has an ON\/OFF switch and controls a separate electrical circuit in your home. When a breaker trips, its switch automatically flips to the \u201cOFF\u201d position, and it must be manually turned back on in order for electricity to flow through the circuit again.<\/p>\n

\"Why<\/p>\n

Photo: istockphoto.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Test for circuit overload.<\/strong> A circuit overloads when more electrical current is being drawn through the wires than they can handle, causing them to overheat and trip the circuit breaker. You mention that when the breaker trips, power goes out in your living room and part of your kitchen. This indicates that a single circuit is powering multiple outlets and switches, which is probably too much of a burden on the circuit. This type of wiring configuration is commonly seen in homes more than 40 years old, before we used a lot of electrical appliances and gadgets (big screen TVs, PCs, space heaters, and powerful kitchen appliances).<\/p>\n

To test for circuit overload, the next time the breaker trips, turn off all the switches in the affected area and unplug all appliances, lamps, and other devices. Flip the breaker back on and then turn on the switches and plug in\/turn on devices one at a time. Wait a few minutes in between to see if the circuit will remain on. Each time you turn on a light or run an appliance, you\u2019ll be drawing more electricity through the wires. If the breaker trips before you turn on all the appliances, try the experiment again, this time turning on the appliances in a different order. You may need to go through the process several times to get a good idea of how many appliances you can operate at one time before overloading the circuit.<\/p>\n

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