I went on a service call on Saturday. It was great to be able to help the client, however, this was not my favorite call. I'll explain...
I was called in the late morning by a woman that had the power go out in her bedroom. She said she had been stumbling around in the dark the night before because she couldn't get the power back on.
When I arrived she was happy to see me, I started by asking her what happened. The power went out in her bedroom. She went to the panel and tried to reset the breakers, with no luck. All the breakers were in the on position and the power was still off.
At the electrical panel I also found all the breakers in the on position. I then did the first thing my experience told me to do. "When trouble shooting always start with the easiest solution and then move to the harder more involved problems." I gently rubbed my finger on all of the breakers to see if they were indeed on. I found the third breaker down was tripped even though it was in the on position. I reset the breaker and restored power to her bedroom.
The video shows how I checked the breakers that looked as though they were on.
If she could have found the tripped breaker using this tip she could have avoided the service call.
This is a very common issue. I love helping clients, but this kind of call is not a very gratifying for me or the client. Pass this on to other home owners you know.
EXTRA TIP
You should be familiar with your panel. Don't be afraid to go out and take a look. Turn your breakers on and off, feel how they are working. You should feel a snap off and a snap on. Even try your main breaker, you may need to turn this off in an emergency. If you are afraid of your electrical panel call an Electrical Contractor to look at it with you and teach you about your panels workings. Call Ehinger Electric at 805 GET-HELP.
Thank you!
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