Hi, I am currently renovating a living room dining room area. I was done for the day and in the process of cleaning up. I had a compressor connected to an outlet on one side and was using it to blow off saw dust off my miter saw. No other tool or light fixture in the area was on. I then plugged a vacuum cleaner into an outlet on the opposite side of the room which is on a different circuit. I proceeded to vacuum for about 20 minutes. When I was done I went to turn the dining room light on but it did not come on. After a while, trying to figure out what was going on, I checked to see if a circuit breaker tripped and found that none had tripped. After some further checking I came to the conclusion that everything on that circuit was not working. Here are my questions:

1) Does a circuit breaker trip when it fails?
2) Is it possible for a circuit breaker to fail after you have stopped using anything on that circuit including lights?
3) What do you suggest I do to correct the problem?

Thanks,

Robert

Is it possible that the breaker tripped but you can't see it? In other words, did you manually shut off the circuit breaker and then attempt to turn it back on at the panel? Also, are you certain there are no sub panels?

Morrowrj

Also in some older boxes here are two or three physcial fuses ( large) that are normally under the plate of the pannel. Sometimes one of those can go bad ( normally in a much older box)

But yes, often you have to turn each breaker off and on and see about resetting all of them and you find one that you missed.

You can check to see that all of the wires are tight and properly connected, to the breaker in the pannel box.

Also, you can sometimes run your finger down breakers with slight pressure, it will expose a breaker that is tripped but not "Thrown". Resetting breakers can not hurt.

Is it possible that this is a GFI circuit through the kitchen?

Thank you all for your answers.

I did check each circuit breaker visually as well as turning each off and then back on. Still none tripped and still no power. Also checked to make sure there are no loose wire connections. This is really odd as nothing was on or connected to this particular circuit when the power to it went dead.

Robert

I would use a volt tester to verify all breakers have power out. Some fail, but don't indicate.

To all who have responded, here is where I'm at.

Picked up a new 15 Amp circuit breaker. Checked to make sure the new circuit breaker is a good one. Located the circuit that is out and replaced it with the new one but still no luck. Also checked the old circuit breaker I replaced with the new one to see if it works and it does.

Checked for loose wiring again and made sure everything was secure. Is it possible that for some reason I'm not getting any power to the circuit breaker? If so, how would I go about checking or is it time to call an electrician?

Also, is it possible the outlet I was using burned out (however, no smoke, no smell, no nothing) and if it did would it kill all outlets and light fixtures on that circuit?

Thanks,

Robert

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Stratmando

I would use a volt tester to verify all breakers have power out. Some fail, but don't indicate.

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I agree with stratmando, use tester to verify power coming out of breaker, You can buy a $5-$20 tester or another breaker, A tester is cheaper than an Electrician.

If you don't use a voltage tester to check breakers and outlets, you will need to call in an electrician.

Can you give me some idea as to what kind of tester I should be asking for? Are these testers used at an outlet or right at the breaker?

Voltage tester, basic ones has two wires, with probes on the ends, you can test an outlet or put each probe against the bare wire and check for voltage. With it, you can put the probes on the wire going into the breaker and then to a ground to see if there is power going into the breaker and then test the wire going out of the breaker, and do the same at each point along the circuit.

A "Wiggy" is commonly used by electricians, They will show 120, and 240. Y
You can ge a cheap multimeter at K Mart or Auto Parts store for about $20-$40, not only will it show 120 and 240 household stuff, but Boats, Cars, Electronics(DC voltage) Plus they have a continuity test(resistance)Commonly called a Multimeter. Will save you Money.

Will look into getting one tomorrow.

Thanks

Good morning to all.
Okay, here's where I'm at: I know for sure all circuit breakers work including the one that feeds the line where nothing works. On that line there are 2 hall lights, 1 foyer light, 1 porch light, 1 dining room light, 1 outlet that works of a light switch and 6 other outlets. With the exception of the one outlet the compressor was connected to everything else was off and nothing connected to any of the other outlets. The compressor did not cut out I simply stopped using it, although it was still connected. Nor did the compressor come on at anytime from the point I stopped using it to the time I went to turn on the dining room light and I discovered my problem.
What I did to determine if the circuit breaker was working is I switched wires with another circuit that I knew was working. When I connected the wire for the circuit in question to the circuit breaker I knew was working none of the fixtures and outlets mentioned above worked. This seems to indicate to me that the problem lies somewhere between the circuit breaker along the wire for that circuit and everything connected to it. Knowing all this, what could the problem be? Any and all suggestions/recommendations would be appreciated. By the way, I replaced the outlet the compressor was connected to just in case it had a problem but still nothing.
Thanks,
Robert

I am not sure what type of construction your home is or if you have attic access, but do you think you could attempt to trace the wiring from your panel box to the failed lights? I am wondering if perhaps there could be a fuse and or even a damged wire in this circuit. This will not be easy, but the only way to figure it out will be to "chase" the spot where you lose power. Since you verified power on the load side of the breaker, you will have to trace that wire to the next outlet,junction box or connection point and check for voltage there. Then you will have to continue along the run until you can find the problem.
I don't know of any "easy" way to do this.

Morrowrj

Assuming that you have power coming from the breaker to the circuit in question, the problem could be with one of the outlets having a loose or broken connection, cutting power from those downstream from it. The push in connections are especially prone to this.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Dr D

... the problem could be with one of the outlets having a loose or broken connection, cutting power from those downstream from it. The push in connections are especially prone to this.

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Yes, check the outlet that the compressor is plugged into. I ran into this problem in a house and after several hours of checking many devices, I found a wire under a terminal screw that had some insulation (less than 1/8 inch) captured under it. The end of the wire was touching the metal so it worked for about 10 years but finally oxidation took it's toll and it went intermittent for several days then dead. As stated above, push-in connectors are very bad. Don't use them. In my opinion they should be illegal, although on a recent purchase of a reputable brand that I don't normally use, they actually are better than they used to be.

You have isolated the circuit and know every thing that is connected to this circuit but still have an open! To test the breaker for power use a voltage tester from the screw of the breaker to ground you will have 120 volts, there is more then one conductor used to create this circuit make sure the power is off then go to the first item on the circuit and check all of the connections also at the panel be careful while working with the neutral conductor other circuits may be tied to it, and it will make up light up.

Dad, please do not reply to a question older than month or so.

This question was posted 2/9/2008 and is almost a year old.

This thread is now closed.