We’ve all had power outages at some point in our lives. Among the most common offenders are:

  • Bad weather
  • The number of people using their power at the same time
  • The season

However, you may go to check whether the lights in the entire street have gone out and discover that just you are affected by a power outage. Even worse, you only appear to be experiencing this in one room of your house. For instance, perhaps the lights in your living room have gone out. Or perhaps all of the electrical gadgets on one wall in your kitchen have ceased working. What may be the cause? The answer is almost always your circuit breaker. Circuit breaker problems are quite frequent, and in many cases, you can resolve them yourself. However, you must use caution and examine the circumstances before acting.

We’ve compiled a list of key advice for what to do when a circuit breaker trips. Continue reading to learn how to restore electricity to your house and when to hire a professional to check for more significant problems.

Where is your circuit box?

Once you’ve determined that the power loss is limited to your home and most likely to a single room or section of a room, you should find your circuit box. This is where you will notice the problem. Your circuit breaker switches will all be in the same ON position, with the exception of the one that has been tripped, which will have been flipped down into the OFF position. Determine which switch is turned off.

Turn off appliances and turn on switch

Before you do anything with the switch, make sure all of the appliances and lights associated with the tripped circuit are switched off. This will avoid a power surge and keep you safe. After that, return the tripped circuit breaker switch to the ON position and test the appliances and/or lights. This should have resolved the issue. However, you may discover that this occurs again with the same equipment, or more broadly throughout your house. So, what now?

Is it overloaded?

It might be as simple as an overloaded outlet if specific switches continuously switch into the OFF position. Because outlets are only designed to handle a certain amount of electricity, overloading them with many objects can be disastrous. Remove some of the appliances from the outlet to check if the issue improves (this is especially prevalent if you use a lot of extensions). This might be the basis of the problem in many situations!

Check the age

Frequent circuit breaker tripping can be caused by a variety of factors, including age. While your circuit breaker board should endure for thirty years or more, if you have recently moved into a home, it is worth examining how old it is. It’s possible that it’s just out of date and needs to be replaced. The age of your equipment is also a factor to consider. Circuit tripping can be caused by older appliances, which should be replaced with modern versions that do not disrupt the flow of electricity.

Be aware of warning signs

Even before your circuit breaker trips, you may notice certain warning signals that your electrical circuit is becoming overloaded. You could have noticed that specific outlets are getting warmer, or that your lights are dimming or flickering. You could also detect a burning odor or hear a faint buzzing sound coming from your outlets. Regardless of whether your circuit breaker has tripped, all of these are severe symptoms of a larger problem that should be investigated by a competent electrician.

Do not attempt a replacement

If you suspect the circuit breaker is the source of your frequent and inconvenient circuit tripping, you might be inclined to replace it. Do not do this on your own; instead, consult a professional to determine the source of your problems and have them perform any required repairs. This guarantees that you are not only secure, but that the task is completed swiftly and inexpensively, and that you are not accumulating difficulties for the future.

Call a professional

One of the most important points to remember is that you are not an electrician. A properly certified, professional electrician will be able to more correctly evaluate the cause of your circuit tripping. If this just happens once in a while, it may be a small problem. If you find yourself flicking switches back into place on a frequent basis, it might indicate a more significant problem.

Don’t be hesitant to call an electrician in your area to figure out what’s causing your circuit breakers to trip. You might be saving yourself time, money, and possibly even property damage in the long run. An electrician will be able to help you through the safest and most effective option for you, whether you need a complete circuit breaker replacement or simply some advise.

If you’re worried about circuit breaker tripping, call ABBA Electrical in Melbourne to schedule an electrical safety inspection and more. Our experts can assist you in ensuring that your house or company is totally secure, resolving current concerns, and reducing the likelihood of future difficulties.