Happy Monday, everyone! I had mostly a quiet weekend, and since it is shark week there was no sex on the agenda. Saturday was damp and cool, so the wife and I mostly stayed in after our chores and caught up on some shows and movies we have on the DVR. Sunday was much nicer, and we got out on the bike for a little while.
The only real excitement (if you can call it that) was the dryer stopped working about five minutes after I started it Sunday morning. I ran through some usual trouble-shooting and finally wound up at the breaker box. The breaker for the dryer didn’t look like it had tripped, but as soon as I touched it the lever clicked into the middle position (between “Off” and “On.”) No matter what I did the breaker wouldn’t reset, even after unplugging the dryer from the circuit.
It seemed like the breaker was bad (either warn or burnt out) so I took to Google to see how difficult it would be to replace it. For some of you this might not seem like a big deal, but I’ve always been too afraid of electricity to do much more than plug and unplug appliances in. In fact, I generally haven’t like messing around with just about anything in the house; I haven’t had the confidence to be much of a DIYer. It’s only been in the past few years that I’ve been willing to go outside of my comfort zone on anything, even small plumbing tasks. Actually diving into a breaker box is a big step for me!
I watched some videos and read some articles by real electricians (so they claim, anyway) and saw that it really shouldn’t be that hard to replace it. In fact, it turned out the hardest part of the whole job was finding the exact breaker I need! Every video, every article, and even a few people I know advised that I use the exact same breaker (brand name and all), but none of the local hardware stores carried my brand. Finally I talked to my cousin who does some easier electrical work on the properties he rents and/or leases. He has a collection of breakers and just happened to find a used one (but still in good condition) that met the exact specifications.
I took it home and (following all precautions) took out the old one (which was in pretty bad shape) and replaced it; after turning everything back on I tested the dryer. It came on and seemed to be working fine, but the wife said she heard something in the breaker box while the dryer was running. I had her start the dryer while I watched the circuit, and sure enough I could hear the buzzing and popping, and even saw some arc flashes.
I shut the breaker off, but left it in place, and am having a real electrician show up tonight. It’s possible that I put the breaker in slightly wrong, though the way it snaps in should make the unlikely. It’s more likely that there is a problem with the dryer itself, or something in the wiring has gone (to use the technical term) wonky. Maybe a problem in the dryer caused the wiring to go wonky, and in turn blew out the breaker. I don’t know and wouldn’t even know how to begin to look at where the problem really is, but hopefully the electrician can tell me exactly what needs to be done.
So that was my weekend, and I hope you all had nice weekends as well.
The only real excitement (if you can call it that) was the dryer stopped working about five minutes after I started it Sunday morning. I ran through some usual trouble-shooting and finally wound up at the breaker box. The breaker for the dryer didn’t look like it had tripped, but as soon as I touched it the lever clicked into the middle position (between “Off” and “On.”) No matter what I did the breaker wouldn’t reset, even after unplugging the dryer from the circuit.
It seemed like the breaker was bad (either warn or burnt out) so I took to Google to see how difficult it would be to replace it. For some of you this might not seem like a big deal, but I’ve always been too afraid of electricity to do much more than plug and unplug appliances in. In fact, I generally haven’t like messing around with just about anything in the house; I haven’t had the confidence to be much of a DIYer. It’s only been in the past few years that I’ve been willing to go outside of my comfort zone on anything, even small plumbing tasks. Actually diving into a breaker box is a big step for me!
I watched some videos and read some articles by real electricians (so they claim, anyway) and saw that it really shouldn’t be that hard to replace it. In fact, it turned out the hardest part of the whole job was finding the exact breaker I need! Every video, every article, and even a few people I know advised that I use the exact same breaker (brand name and all), but none of the local hardware stores carried my brand. Finally I talked to my cousin who does some easier electrical work on the properties he rents and/or leases. He has a collection of breakers and just happened to find a used one (but still in good condition) that met the exact specifications.
I took it home and (following all precautions) took out the old one (which was in pretty bad shape) and replaced it; after turning everything back on I tested the dryer. It came on and seemed to be working fine, but the wife said she heard something in the breaker box while the dryer was running. I had her start the dryer while I watched the circuit, and sure enough I could hear the buzzing and popping, and even saw some arc flashes.
I shut the breaker off, but left it in place, and am having a real electrician show up tonight. It’s possible that I put the breaker in slightly wrong, though the way it snaps in should make the unlikely. It’s more likely that there is a problem with the dryer itself, or something in the wiring has gone (to use the technical term) wonky. Maybe a problem in the dryer caused the wiring to go wonky, and in turn blew out the breaker. I don’t know and wouldn’t even know how to begin to look at where the problem really is, but hopefully the electrician can tell me exactly what needs to be done.
So that was my weekend, and I hope you all had nice weekends as well.
Ah, home electrical work. I am glad you decided to hire an electrician. If you aren't well versed in how to do electrical work, you can burn your house down real easily. I suspect the snapping and popping is a loose wire. I hope that's all it is!
ReplyDeletePeace <3
Jay
Jay, it turns out that water has been dripping into the breaker box and dripping all down the bank that the bad circuit was on. The electrician put the new breaker on a clean port and is going to come back later to fix all the problems at once.
DeleteOh wonderful! Good that you caught it BEFORE anything more serious happened!
DeletePeace <3
Jay
Yikes sounds dangerous! Ah the joys of home ownership. Glad you're getting it fixed.
ReplyDeleteI'll take electrical over plumbing any day. This weekend was the weekend from hell. Washed my iPhone (it was time for an upgrade anyway), installed a new kitchen sink and couldn't get the drain pipes to fit without three different trips back to the hardware store, and didn't get another thing accomplished.
ReplyDeleteIt is a nice feeling to take charge in some DIY things, but you do have to be willing to retreat and call for the pro. That's why I'll let my wife wash my clothes since she tends to check pockets first!