okay, this may be hard to explain but Saturday i went to vacuum my office and as soon as i flicked the switch the power in the office went out as well as my kitchen lights which are in the room next to the office and the outlet in my living room that i had the tree plugged into...the breaker did not trip we checked it and even replaced it and it does not turn the power on...what else can it be? a burnt wire in the wall? is there a piece of equipment that can detect burnt wires in the wall? any help is appreciated! thanks
2007-12-10 05:14:47 · 7 answers · asked by Julie 6 in Home & Garden ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
yea, we checked all the breakers over and over to try to find out what circuit it was on exactly...
2007-12-10 05:26:13 · update #1
Thank you all for your good answers so far..this has been very frustrating...I also must add that this problem is a occuring in a trailer, i am not sure if that makes a difference in how the place is wired and all of the outlets we have took apart have only one wire in but none leaving the outlets...i appreciate all your ideas keep them coming!
2007-12-10 22:54:10 · update #2
I just had a smiler situation last week. As it turned out, wires in a junction box in the ceiling somehow worked their way out of a wire-nut and grounded out against the side of the metal box. It did not trip the breaker because when the wires separated the circuit was broken. Luckily I had a suspended ceiling (This happened in my basement) All I had to do was locate the box and replace the wires that burnt after they touched the metal junction box and all was good in the world again. I also decided to just replace all of the wiring in the basement so that the other junction boxes did not have the same problem.
Be cautioned, Electricity is nothing to mess around with! If you don't know what you are doing it can very easily kill you!
This sounds like a time to call a professional electrician to come in and find exactly what has gone wrong in your situation.
I wish you much luck in solving your power problem. Be carefull!
Take care!
2007-12-10 08:08:48 · answer #1 · answered by jam961 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm afraid it is time to call an electrician to help you. No there is no piece of equipment to detect a burnt wire in the wall. I would suspect a back stabbed receptacle outlet has failed. One near the beginning of the circuit. Back stabbed means the installer pushed the wires into the back holes on the receptacle instead of using the screws on the side. Quick, but very unreliable.
2007-12-10 16:44:04 · answer #2 · answered by John himself 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This is a common problem with the higher powered vacuum cleaners 12 amps or more. First turn off power and check the plug you plugged the vacuum into. check that all the wires are connected to the screws tightly. if you don't find loose or burned connections, check the plugs on either side of that plug (also the other side of the wall). You might have to check multiple plugs and switches from there towards your panel until you find a loose connection (also check wire nuts) You will find a loose connection between that plug and the panel . Most of the time its close to that plug or that plug itself.
2007-12-10 15:10:29 · answer #3 · answered by hiamp 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If your smelling sulfur, then it's the acid in the battery. It smells of rotten eggs. If you smell sulfur, if the battery is bulged on the sides, or if the battery otherwise appears to be bad, replace the battery. A $10 digital volt meter from radio shack or other parts store is the best tool for testing an alternator. The battery should read about 12.6 volts when charged and the engine off. When the engine is started, the voltage should read roughly 14 volts, usually a few tenths higher. To test the alternator under load, put all your lights on, turn on the vents to high, electric defrosters on, and other electric loads on. Then check the voltage. It shouldn't drop in voltage more then a few tenths of a volt. If it does, you need a new alternator. Note that the alternator cannot be accurately checked unless the electrical connections are clean to the battery, the battery is charged and in good condition.
2016-05-22 12:02:34 · answer #4 · answered by carolann 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Did you check to see if there is another (sub) panel in an other location. This is too many circuits to go on one flick of a switch. If there is a 100 amp or possibly 60amp then you have another panel somewhere. Are any of the breakers you checked Ground Fault breakers as they have a test and reset button on them also
2007-12-10 05:57:28 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Go reset the ground fault interrupter outlets in the kitchen and bathrooms. The bedrooms in some homes have their outlets wired in series. The breaker won't trip but the gfi outlet will and any outlet connected to it will not work. These are theoutlets that have buttons for test and reset on them
2007-12-10 05:57:00 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hopefully you checked ALL the breakers, because the circuit may not actually be on the marked breaker. Sounds like you need an electrician.
2007-12-10 05:23:19 · answer #7 · answered by Wiz 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋