I have a newer home, (3 years old). 120 volt, w/ circiut breakers. In my master bedroom I had a fan and vacuum plugged into one outlet. I turned on the 12 AMP vac. and the circiut blew. I reset the circiut, and went back to cleaning. I now have 3 outlets in that room that have no power! I have checked the GFIs in both the master and guest bathroom, both are fine. I have also reset the circiut several times. WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?
2007-01-24 01:34:23 · 4 answers · asked by rotorcop2 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
Is the outlet that you originally had the vacuum in now working? If so, it sounds more like a loose wire than anything else. It is possible that when the overload happened, it caused a problem in any of the outlets between that point and the breaker.
That is quite unusual, but possible if a wire was not secure enough. It is possible that it was secure enough that a low amount of current could get through, but a high amount caused the little amount of wire that was touching to overheat and burn away.
Granted, it would be very difficult to make that happen, even if it was your goal, but it could happen accidently. Especially when installers use the push in wire feature instead of screwing the wire down. Personally, I always screw the wire down. It takes more time, but it is more secure.
My first step would be to shut off each breaker in the box and then turn the breaker back on. That way you are 100% certain it is not another breaker. I don't think that will help, but it is quick and easy.
Are you skilled at working with electricity? If so, I would remove the outlet each outlet on that circuit and test the voltage. You can shut off that breaker and see which outlets are dead. Turn the breaker back on and test each of the outlets that was dead with the breaker off.
Is it possible that the dead outlets are still on a different breaker but extremely unlikely. Did the GFI breakers reset? That question is important.
If you have not found the problem by now, make sure the GFI breakers are not wired backwards. The fact that they reset is a good sign, but the old style can be reset, even if hooked up backwards, i.e. load vs line.
2007-01-24 01:54:08 · answer #1 · answered by DSM Handyman 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It depends on the wiring in your house, 3 PC's with 3 monitors and 3 sets of speakers, etc... could draw to much power from that particular outlet and could cause a circuit breaker to trip. I would recommend contacting an electrical contractor and having them inspect the wires before you try it. They may be able to isolate that circuit and prevent any serious damage.
2016-05-24 04:03:29 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You may have something in an adjoining room same wall causing the problem, such as a space heater.
2007-01-24 03:50:24 · answer #3 · answered by D.B. Cooper 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
check your fuse or circuit breaker
2007-01-27 04:02:07 · answer #4 · answered by jerry 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋