Thank you! I was able to track down my breaker that would not reset problem to an outdoor GFI outlet that had gone bad. I installed a new heavy duty GFI and we're back on!
Breakers that have been carrying a load close to its rating over an extended period tend to get weak and trip at a lower current than they should, particularly if they've been tripped more than a couple of times. Good example is a 1500 watt space heater, a TV and some lights running for a while and pulling 14.5 amps on a 15 amp circuit. The breaker runs hot and becomes weak especially if the contact with the bus is poor or the internal contacts have pitted. You should never load a circuit more than 80% for more than 3 hrs continuously.
A breaker that will not stay on is bad or there is a dead short. An old school method of finding a short is to connect a lamp socket in series with the breaker & circuit, and inserting an incandescent or dimmable LED bulb. The greater the load, the brighter the bulb. Full brightness = a short circuit. When the short is repaired, the bulb goes out or is dim. The same test can be done with a fuse panel by screwing a bulb in the fuse socket unless tamper proof aka type S fuses are used.
The power went out on one of my circuits. The breaker did not trip. This is a 100 year old home and this circuit is probably overloaded but I don't believe it's ever tripped. It's NOT a gfi. Could it be a breaker? How do I test it?
It also depends where you live and if you have an old house because some old Breakers you can't replace you have to replace everything which is absolutely ridiculous
Sometimes you can find aftermarket breakers that are still made, but not always. Zinsco breakers are a good example. And yeah if not, you have to rip out the whole thing.
Do you know what it means if there is a red light that keeps blinking even when you reset it? My fridge breaker keeps tripping in the apartment I live in. No other appliances are in use when it does.
I live in a rented house. In the 5 years I've lived here, I have this one circuit that, until the last couple of months, has tripped maybe once or twice. This is when I tried to use my microwave and toaster at the same time. So I made sure not to do that (I also have a mini fridge on the same outlet) anymore. But the last couple of months, it got to the point where I couldn't use the microwave at all without it tripping. It seems like it's getting more sensitive. Do you think this would be a sign of the breaker being bad? It's pretty obvious the circuit is overloaded, but I don't really have any other place I can put the microwave (I actually replaced it with a toaster oven, thinking it would draw less power but it still tripped today while toasting something). It's really annoying and frustrating.
I'm not getting enough power in any of my receptacles to run my refrigerator. Lights and fans work. Hooked a meter up to the breaker box and almost every receptacle and all the readings are coming back fine. Any help would be appreciated. Ty.
So I have a few outlets on the same breaker. A couple of the outlets, cause my lamp to go dim or flicker occasionally as of recent. I checked with a different lamp and it does the same thing across the different outlets. Could it be a bad breaker?
@@TopHomeowner ended up being a line the broke some how in the switch box. And it shorted the rest of the line going to other fans. Thanks for the video 👍
Hi sir, I will shamelessly ask for your opinion in my case of a possible breaker fault at my home, would you please kindly tell me your opinion and what do you think about the situation is? So, yesterday our electricity suddenly gone off on 11AM hot day, then I tried to go reset the breaker on and off after 24 hours as I suspect that it can be just a brownout from our electricity provider or we got cut off, While I tried to check, and flick the circuit breakers and it's switches, there's just one light flickering while main switch is on, weak light and flickering.. My uncle and I is confused because we thought the connection is completely cut off according to the electricity provider business center but there's that one weak fickering bulb in our kitchen and or bathroom, depends on what we switch on.
@@TopHomeowner It is still mystery for us why there's that one flickering light, but I do suspect that our electricity provider can control how much power they can give us, as oppose to just completely shut off the connection. We have our electricity back because we paid the remaining balance back, but here I am no good food til 30th. Haha. Thanks for replying, Sir TopHomeoner.
![How To Install A New Circuit Breaker DIY [AVOID Electrician]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ZsxZCrBt-L0/mqdefault.jpg)
Thank you! I was able to track down my breaker that would not reset problem to an outdoor GFI outlet that had gone bad. I installed a new heavy duty GFI and we're back on!
Breakers that have been carrying a load close to its rating over an extended period tend to get weak and trip at a lower current than they should, particularly if they've been tripped more than a couple of times. Good example is a 1500 watt space heater, a TV and some lights running for a while and pulling 14.5 amps on a 15 amp circuit. The breaker runs hot and becomes weak especially if the contact with the bus is poor or the internal contacts have pitted. You should never load a circuit more than 80% for more than 3 hrs continuously.
A breaker that will not stay on is bad or there is a dead short. An old school method of finding a short is to connect a lamp socket in series with the breaker & circuit, and inserting an incandescent or dimmable LED bulb. The greater the load, the brighter the bulb. Full brightness = a short circuit. When the short is repaired, the bulb goes out or is dim. The same test can be done with a fuse panel by screwing a bulb in the fuse socket unless tamper proof aka type S fuses are used.
Great tip... thank you!
i dont understand.
The power went out on one of my circuits. The breaker did not trip. This is a 100 year old home and this circuit is probably overloaded but I don't believe it's ever tripped. It's NOT a gfi. Could it be a breaker? How do I test it?
It also depends where you live and if you have an old house because some old Breakers you can't replace you have to replace everything which is absolutely ridiculous
Sometimes you can find aftermarket breakers that are still made, but not always. Zinsco breakers are a good example. And yeah if not, you have to rip out the whole thing.
Do you know what it means if there is a red light that keeps blinking even when you reset it? My fridge breaker keeps tripping in the apartment I live in. No other appliances are in use when it does.
I live in a rented house. In the 5 years I've lived here, I have this one circuit that, until the last couple of months, has tripped maybe once or twice. This is when I tried to use my microwave and toaster at the same time. So I made sure not to do that (I also have a mini fridge on the same outlet) anymore. But the last couple of months, it got to the point where I couldn't use the microwave at all without it tripping. It seems like it's getting more sensitive. Do you think this would be a sign of the breaker being bad? It's pretty obvious the circuit is overloaded, but I don't really have any other place I can put the microwave (I actually replaced it with a toaster oven, thinking it would draw less power but it still tripped today while toasting something). It's really annoying and frustrating.
I'm not getting enough power in any of my receptacles to run my refrigerator. Lights and fans work. Hooked a meter up to the breaker box and almost every receptacle and all the readings are coming back fine. Any help would be appreciated. Ty.
Will a reverse hot/neutral outlet show bad breaker if outlets are correctly connected? Keeps tripping. Nothing plugged in.
So I have a few outlets on the same breaker. A couple of the outlets, cause my lamp to go dim or flicker occasionally as of recent.
I checked with a different lamp and it does the same thing across the different outlets. Could it be a bad breaker?
Depends whats all running on that breaker
Having a issue where the breaker is on. However my ceiling fans in all my rooms won't turn on. I've replaced the breaker and still nothing. Any ideas?
Could be an issue with the wiring or a loose connection inside the junction box.
@@TopHomeowner ended up being a line the broke some how in the switch box. And it shorted the rest of the line going to other fans. Thanks for the video 👍
Andrew, what about a circuit breaker that you can't turn off? And it stays at the trip position.
Fr
Great tips!
Thanks!
but what does a bad breaker mean? will it not trip? or will it trip at the slightest thing?
Hi sir, I will shamelessly ask for your opinion in my case of a possible breaker fault at my home, would you please kindly tell me your opinion and what do you think about the situation is? So, yesterday our electricity suddenly gone off on 11AM hot day, then I tried to go reset the breaker on and off after 24 hours as I suspect that it can be just a brownout from our electricity provider or we got cut off, While I tried to check, and flick the circuit breakers and it's switches, there's just one light flickering while main switch is on, weak light and flickering.. My uncle and I is confused because we thought the connection is completely cut off according to the electricity provider business center but there's that one weak fickering bulb in our kitchen and or bathroom, depends on what we switch on.
That's odd. It could be a bad breaker, but I recommend contacting an electrician for help, especially since you don't have power to your home
@@TopHomeowner It is still mystery for us why there's that one flickering light, but I do suspect that our electricity provider can control how much power they can give us, as oppose to just completely shut off the connection. We have our electricity back because we paid the remaining balance back, but here I am no good food til 30th. Haha. Thanks for replying, Sir TopHomeoner.
Can you please make another video like this except without holding the breaker
can you put that breaker down while talking