Electrical problem

[user 7704]

My son's room has blown the breaker 5 times in 2 weeks. I have unplugged all unnecessary appliances like fan, fish light, etc. This morning the breaker wouldn't pop back on so I hooked his tv and satellite box to a utility cord and plugged into bathroom socket. Works fine and didn't blow that breaker.

Any ideas or do I need to call professional before house burns?

Thanks.

 

[Jayson]

Our house was built in 1984, so we had to have a few circuit breakers replaced by an electrician. They were just old and worn out like me. I would call a professional.

 

[lonewolf]

Electrics are one thing I dont mess about with, the consequences could be disastrous, call a professional and be safe.

 

[Proud Prepper]

My son's room has blown the breaker 5 times in 2 weeks. I have unplugged all unnecessary appliances like fan, fish light, etc. This morning the breaker wouldn't pop back on so I hooked his tv and satellite box to a utility cord and plugged into bathroom socket. Works fine and didn't blow that breaker.

Any ideas or do I need to call professional before house burns?

Thanks.

Is anything else plugged into the outlet the TV and Sat box was plugged into?
It could be a loose or bad outlet.

 

[user 7704]

Is anything else plugged into the outlet the TV and Sat box was plugged into?
It could be a loose or bad outlet.

I have checked and cant find anything. When I get home I'm going to unplug all outlets and see if was a bad extension cord or fan.

 

[Jayson]

The solenoid spring in electro-mechanical circuit breakers weakens with age. That happened to ours. The contacts on older breakers also tend to corrode and get pitted. I’d still get a pro to check it out.

 

[Proud Prepper]

Check the exstentions cords, breakers, outlets, its rarely an electronic or appliances, except for those that have heating elements and thermal fuses.

 

[user 7704]

Check the exstentions cords, breakers, outlets, its rarely an electronic or appliances, except for those that have heating elements and thermal fuses.

Thanks for your help

 

[user 7704]

The solenoid spring in electro-mechanical circuit breakers weakens with age. That happened to ours. The contacts on older breakers also tend to corrode and get pitted. I’d still get a pro to check it out.

Thanks

 

[Helen Back]

Pretty straight forward. Breaker, wire, outlet. The wire is not really a concern unless you think it has been gnawd on. I would replace the outlet first. Extension cords in the house should be avoided if possible in my opinion (NEVER on a floor/space heater).

You can pm me if you want me to walk you through it.

You could get one of these and test the outlet first. Everyone should have one.

Klein Tools GFCI Receptacle Tester-RT210 - The Home Depot

 

[user 7704]

Pretty straight forward. Breaker, wire, outlet. The wire is not really a concern unless you think it has been gnawd on. I would replace the outlet first. Extension cords in the house should be avoided if possible in my opinion (NEVER on a floor/space heater).

The extension cord was for his tv, satellite and DVD. 3 plugs so I had to use extension

 

[Helen Back]

Power strip like this, with protection. If the breaker is 15A, 14g wire, like this is ok, but if the breaker is 20A, you want one with 12g wire.

OVER-LOAD GUARD 4-Outlet Box-C664502001 - The Home Depot

An electrician will charge you at least $100 for a simple swap of materials. I can talk you through it if you want. I prefer you have a few basic tools, so for less than half the cost of an electrician, you can have tools and knowledge for the future.

 

[Illini Warrior]

already mentioned - circuit breakers go bad >>> especially if you blow them a few times

you might have a combo problem - initially tooooo much crap plugged into a couple of mutually wired wall plugs - and now you have a bad circuit breaker (???) ...

sounds like you don't have an electrical load inventory for your circuit box - doubt that your son's room is the only room on that particular circuit breaker - find out what else is on that circuit and try eliminating those switches/lights/plugs >> process of elimination to see if it's actually the breaker - especially be concerned with anything like an outdoor plug or light exposed to the weather

 

[Brent S]

If you don’t have any tools, especially a meter, then it’s likely best to call someone. If you buy an electrical meter then you can test each device and eliminate them one at a time until you find the issue. To test the breaker you need to open the cover on the electrical panel while it is energized. If your not comfortable with that then it’s worth calling someone. We work in hot panels almost daily, it’s not rocket science but you do need a basic idea of how to be safe. One thing to start with is unplugg everything on that circuit and see if the breaker still trips. If not then begin plugging things back in one at a time and waiting to see if it trips again. That may at least lead you to where the issue is. 90% of most of the electrical issues we repair are from loose connections that begin to spark and burn the connection. Easy to fix, but hard to find sometimes.

 

[Schattentarn]

My son's room has blown the breaker 5 times in 2 weeks. I have unplugged all unnecessary appliances like fan, fish light, etc. This morning the breaker wouldn't pop back on so I hooked his tv and satellite box to a utility cord and plugged into bathroom socket. Works fine and didn't blow that breaker.

Any ideas or do I need to call professional before house burns?

Thanks.

Unplug everything, all outlets using electricity on that breaker (possibly more than just his room). If you are unable to reset the breaker, you either have a crossed wire/grounded wire possibibly as a result of rodent damage OR you have a bad breaker. I have one which refused to reset once. I contacted an electrician and he said to blow it out. He meant blow or used compress air to blow on the breaker itself as a leaf or dirt or something could have lodged in the breaker and is preventing it from moving. I did this and it worked. The breaker was just stuck by a bit of dirt/foreign object.

 

[user 7704]

Unplug everything, all outlets using electricity on that breaker (possibly more than just his room). If you are unable to reset the breaker, you either have a crossed wire/grounded wire possibibly as a result of rodent damage OR you have a bad breaker. I have one which refused to reset once. I contacted an electrician and he said to blow it out. He meant blow or used compress air to blow on the breaker itself as a leaf or dirt or something could have lodged in the breaker and is preventing it from moving. I did this and it worked. The breaker was just stuck by a bit of dirt/foreign object.

The breaker reset after I plugged tv and satellite in another room. The light is working fine. I have some compressed air and have had tr I uble with squirrels eating wires and making nests in the rafters, etc.

 

[Schattentarn]

Do you know the amperage of the breaker in question?

 

[Digout]

If you've had trouble with squirrels chewing on your wiring, I would get an electrician in to check it out from Go to whoa.

 

[Dave2001]

Call a certified electrician IMMEDIATELY!!!!! You can burn your house down!!!!

 

[Dave2001]

Unplug everything, all outlets using electricity on that breaker (possibly more than just his room). If you are unable to reset the breaker, you either have a crossed wire/grounded wire possibibly as a result of rodent damage OR you have a bad breaker. I have one which refused to reset once. I contacted an electrician and he said to blow it out. He meant blow or used compress air to blow on the breaker itself as a leaf or dirt or something could have lodged in the breaker and is preventing it from moving. I did this and it worked. The breaker was just stuck by a bit of dirt/foreign object.

Call another electrician, that was BAD advice!!

 

[user 7704]

Update...... I bought a surge protector and so far all is good.

The cheap extension cord he was using had been chewed on by.......Leon (?)

He could have been badly hurt, but I'm guessing it was unplugged at time of chewing.