Recently I purchased and moved into a 1982 mobile home. Both bathrooms and possibly the dishwasher are on the same 15 amp (I believe that is correct) breaker.
One day when beginning to work on the mobile home my father was flipping the light switch(s) in the 1/2 bath to see what they went too that's when it tripped the breaker. (1 switch to light fixture and 1 to recessed fan in the ceiling)
We checked the breaker and it seemed as though it was bad (spongy wouldn't stay on). We replaced it and still no electricity, but breaker doesn't trip now.
The breaker box says GFI bath on the panel but I do not know if it is still GFI and have found no reset.
I have since discovered the hallway outlet and the outside outlet (on opposite sides of the wall from one another) do not work either.
I have replaced all light fixtures in both bathrooms and checked all junction boxes that I can see for loose or burnt wiring, and found the outside outlet rusted.
Thank you in advance
2006-08-18 14:51:35 · 11 answers · asked by sweetestinok26 2 in Home & Garden ➔ Do It Yourself (DIY)
Problem solved...it was the GFI outlet that needed to be reset. I think it does stem back to the recessed fan and when my father flipped that switch. Only solution I know of is to either replace it (don't have the money) or cap it off and tape off the switch. Any other suggestions. Thank you again for all the help.
2006-08-18 16:16:16 · update #1
wow lots going on here. get your dad to do a connectivity test to make sure you dont have breaks. use a volt ohm meter on the ohm setting with the tone to make sure they are connected. and you may want to go up to a 20 amp with the dishwasher on it. and the breaker should be GFI or the outlets if not replace them for safety reasons. your house wont burn down but its just a nice thing to have and its code. and if the outside outlet is rusted then that maybe acting as a ground and tripping the circut replace that and get one made for outdoors with a cover.
2006-08-18 14:59:55 · answer #1 · answered by gsschulte 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First, get yourself a voltmeter and check your voltages in several places.
1) Check it first at the breaker. Put the hot lead on the hot(black) wire right where the wire exits the breaker. Put the other lead to ground. If you dont have 120 across the 2, the breaker is the problem. Verify that it is the right breaker, wired correctly, etc. I would think that is the problem.
2) check it at all your fixture leads.
Narrow down where the voltage loss is and you have the problem.
You could also have an arc fault somewhere in your wiring(before it hits the outlets) If thats the case, its rip out walls time.
Oh, by the way, I would rewire the whole kit and kaboodle. You need separate circuits for all that stuff, and you will be miserable if you dont get that taken care of
Definately DO NOT put a 30A breaker on that line...You can overheat the wiring(14 ga. wiring has a 15A ampacity, and if you run 25A through it, it can overheat and start a fire.
2006-08-18 15:05:39 · answer #2 · answered by rheins2000 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It sounds like the GFI has been changed out for a regular breaker.
Get an electrical wire chaser (it sences electrical current) and start at the breaker box and trace the wire ,oftin there are hidden junction boxes and shorted or loose wiring there.you may have to remove paneling or wall to get to them sometimes under flooring. maybe try disconecting the rusted outlet as that may be the problem (at least a cheap trial) and that shows signs of water damage (you know how water and elect. don't mix well).
2006-08-18 15:09:39 · answer #3 · answered by Robert F 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Read all previous answers. This is definitely one of those situations where you should call an electrician. It could very well be a simple fix and you are charged a service call plus material. If it isn't a simple fix ,you are still better off with the electrician if you don't have any experience with wiring. With all due respect to people trying to help, you have been getting some very bad and incorrect advice. An incorrect fix could have unpleasant results. Good luck and spring this time for the professional.
2006-08-18 15:24:02 · answer #4 · answered by steven a 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
have you contacted an electrician in your area for help?
first thing i would do is try and trace all the wiring. don't rely on what the breaker box says/labelled, the previous owner may have changed stuff around, and didn't bother to update the panel directory to reflect the changes.
I would turn everything off, then carefully turn on one breaker at a time, using a voltage tester to check each outlet to see what each breaker turns on. when you are all done, figure out what outlets are burned out, etc.
you probably want to get a plug-in tester too to check for open neutrals/open grounds, hot/neutral reversed, hot/gnd reversed etc.
2006-08-18 15:07:10 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Do not change to a bigger circuit breaker! That is bad advice...your wiring cannot handle more current...you could cause a fire, and it is illegal to do that.
IF the circuit no longer trips, forget about it..Ground faults trip occasionally for no apparent reason.
If it continues to trip, you have a loose ground wire somewhere in the circuit. Open each box on the line, check all the screws .. make sure they are tight and the ground wire is in place on each. Good luck
2006-08-18 18:22:27 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
With a 15 amp breaker the #14 wire is too close to capacity to carry load on ckts that have since been coded to separate and larger conductors # 12 awg. the lights and receptacles need to be separate. Call someone that can qualify to work on something as hazardus as this situation.
2006-08-18 15:12:01 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the breaker stays (spongy) that means that there is still a fault on the line or to many things are running at the same time. What my dad(licensed electrician) would do is to disconnect everything then hook -up each one individually to see where the fault lies. A voltage tester would come in handy too.
Hope this helps. Tell me if it works out.
2006-08-18 15:09:24 · answer #8 · answered by Doogle 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
go on craigslist, find the city or listing nearest you and offer 'other favors' to any electrician who can come fix the problem. if they come over and can't fix it, they go home and you pay nothing. if they come over and fix it, you 'return the favor' somehow. it's how a lot of single women in my area get things on their 'honeydo' list done. :-D
2006-08-18 15:43:05 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
put in a bigger breaker box and put each item on it's own circuit breaker
2006-08-18 14:57:43 · answer #10 · answered by wil_t52 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋