# Room loses electrical, circuit breaker not tripped



## dmxtothemax (Oct 26, 2010)

Wnt2bsleepin said:


> We got hit by Hurricane Irene, and my and my brother's room has been losing power intermittently. The rest of the house doesn't lose any, just our rooms (Same circuit). Is it something wrong with the wiring in my house, a short perhaps? I was reading about it potentially being us losing one of our phases to the house, and that could cause some of the circuits to go dead. Any help is appreciated.


 Is it just one circuit losing power such as the lights,
Or is it more than one circuit, such as lights and recepticules ?
And yes loss of one phase could be causing your problems,
But you need to check other things first.
Find out what loads are sitting on each incoming hot line,
You should be able to find this out by carefully opening your main panel up
and looking where the wires go. BE VERY CAREFULL eyes only, no hands.
Then once you know whats what, observe if they all go off together ?
Then check for loose connections / faulty main switch / faulty main breaker.
If all seems ok.
Check for power available at main panel
when the circuits are not working.
Do all this before you call POCO.

I cant stress enough,
this is dangerous stuff to do,
If you are not 100% confident,
Then call an electricai in !


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## Dante711 (Sep 2, 2011)

On the other hand, a call to have your utility company check the incoming power to your house is typically a 'free' service though it may take them a bit to get out there with all the other repair work I'm sure they are involved in. 

I have found this type of problem to be a result of a loose connection at a receptacle typically from the use of the stab-in terminations used. 

After ensuring the power for that circuit is turned off at the breaker by using a multimeter, start pulling out receptacles on that circuit and look for signs of burning/arcing or wires completely coming out of the stab-in hole. 

Once again, electricity is dangerous. If you are unsure about this type of troubleshooting find someone who is trained to do.


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## Wnt2bsleepin (Sep 2, 2011)

It's power to everything in my room. The ceiling fan as well as all the outlets have no power. Next time it happens, I will open up the circuit breaker panel and see if there is any power to my circuit down there. That should help isolate the problem. It's kind of strange that a loss of one phase would cause only one circuit in my house to go dead.


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

You may only think that it's one circuit----Check the box or test a 220 outlet when it goes off.

Also ,removing the breaker and reinstalling it might clean the contacts ,if it's just one circuit.

If you aren't familiar with a breaker box let someone else do that --be safe. Shut off the main for good luck as you pop out the breaker.


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## dmxtothemax (Oct 26, 2010)

Wnt2bsleepin said:


> It's power to everything in my room. The ceiling fan as well as all the outlets have no power. Next time it happens, I will open up the circuit breaker panel and see if there is any power to my circuit down there. That should help isolate the problem. It's kind of strange that a loss of one phase would cause only one circuit in my house to go dead.


This is why I suggest that you open up your main panel,
And have a look at what circuits are hanging of the troublesome hot,
Then you can see if they ALL go off together,
If they do, it tells you that the problem lies upwind,
Such as faultly main switch/breaker, or a loose 
connecttion in your service line.
Or possibly a POCO problem.

But remember to be extra carefull when opening up the main panel.


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## oh'mike (Sep 18, 2009)

Another thing to check----you may have power on the circuit but no neutral---a simple tester will tell you that----


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## Wnt2bsleepin (Sep 2, 2011)

Just an update. The problem went away for a while, and I had no issues. Then it came back, once the circuit breaker did trip, and the second time (Typing it now in dark) it didn't trip. Prior to me losing power, I noticed that the lights were blinking on and off, and I promptly stuck a multi meter in the outlet. Didn't notice anything cause the power died soon after that. 

I was also on my computer, which didn't react to the blinking at all and kept running until the power gave out. Is this something that can be DIY or should an electrician be called in to fix this. The only thing in this room that I installed myself was a ceiling fan and that was about 3-4 years ago and we have had no issues until now.


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## dmxtothemax (Oct 26, 2010)

Wnt2bsleepin said:


> Just an update. The problem went away for a while, and I had no issues. Then it came back, once the circuit breaker did trip, and the second time (Typing it now in dark) it didn't trip. Prior to me losing power, I noticed that the lights were blinking on and off, and I promptly stuck a multi meter in the outlet. Didn't notice anything cause the power died soon after that.
> 
> I was also on my computer, which didn't react to the blinking at all and kept running until the power gave out. Is this something that can be DIY or should an electrician be called in to fix this. The only thing in this room that I installed myself was a ceiling fan and that was about 3-4 years ago and we have had no issues until now.


Is it still localised to one room only ?
Or did the whole house lose power ?
But I would say get an sparky to check it out !
If you doubt your abilities to fix it yourself,
And you clearly do !


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## Wnt2bsleepin (Sep 2, 2011)

dmxtothemax said:


> Is it still localised to one room only ?
> Or did the whole house lose power ?
> But I would say get an sparky to check it out !
> If you doubt your abilities to fix it yourself,
> And you clearly do !



It's still localized to one circuit, which is 2 rooms. I am unsure because I have never opened up the circuit breaker panel before. How am I supposed to improve if I don't take some risks while still being cautious?


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## dmxtothemax (Oct 26, 2010)

Wnt2bsleepin said:


> It's still localized to one circuit, which is 2 rooms. I am unsure because I have never opened up the circuit breaker panel before. How am I supposed to improve if I don't take some risks while still being cautious?


Are all the circuit/s in these two rooms coming from one breaker,?
or are there several breakers involved ?

If its all from one breaker,
Then start by using a volt meter on the relevent breaker,
whilst the fault exists, check for power on both sides of the breaker.

The output side
And the input side 

Once we know the outcome of these tests,
We can help further.

Please be very careful and use safe work practices.
A rubber matt is a good idea,
And dont touch anything else whilst doing it.
One hand on probes and one hand in pocket.


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## secutanudu (Mar 15, 2009)

Kevlar gloves are a good idea as well. Certainly can't hurt.


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