Detect a Short in Electrical Wiring in a House
Houses have electrical wiring carrying power to run household appliances. These systems have circuit breakers to interrupt power if a dangerous short circuit occurs. Usually, this short circuit is in an appliance that is plugged into an electric outlet. Sometimes the short circuit is in the house wiring itself, which creates a fire hazard in the walls of the structure. Use these tips to learn how to detect a short in electrical wiring in a house.
Steps
- Determine which circuit breaker is tripping.
- Find the main electrical panel. The main electrical panel for your house is usually in a basement, garage or utility room. Open the metal cover of the panel. Do not touch anything inside the panel, as this is a shock hazard.
- Locate the circuit breaker that has tripped. The circuit breaker that is tripping because of a short circuit will have the reset switch in the down position. The tripped circuit breaker also will reveal a red marking on the upper part of the reset switch.
- Determine which house circuit has the short circuit problem. Read the identification sheet on the inside of the cover. The sheet will indicate which house circuit is protected by each circuit breaker. Find the house circuit that is protected by the circuit breaker that is tripping.
- Unplug appliances and turn off electrical devices. Unplug all appliances that are plugged into the house circuit that has been identified. Turn off all switch controlled devices, such as lights that are on the circuit that has been identified.
- Determine if the short circuit problem has been cleared. Return to the main electrical panel. Reset the circuit breaker that has tripped. If the breaker trips again, the short circuit is in the wall wiring of the structure. If the breaker does not trip again, the short circuit lies in something that draws power from the wall wiring.
- Find the short circuited appliance. If the short circuit is determined to not be in the wall wiring, proceed to find the shorted appliance. Turn on electrical devices, such as lights, and plug appliances back in.
- Do this part of the search for the short circuit 1 appliance at a time. Turn on switches and plug devices back in 1 at a time until the circuit breaker trips. The last device plugged in before the breaker tripped is the appliance with the short circuit.
- Determine whether the appliance or the socket is affected by the short circuit problem. If the problem persists when the appliance is plugged into the original socket, try plugging the suspected shorted appliance into a different socket.
- Identify a bad socket. If the short circuit problem is determined to be with 1 socket, turn off power to the circuit.
- Inspect the socket. Remove the cover plate of the socket using a screwdriver, and free the socket from the wall. Gently pull the socket out and look for loose wires that have come into contact with other wires.
- Reattach any loose wires. This can be done using a screwdriver. Reattach the socket and cover plate using a screwdriver.
- Cease your investigation if the short circuit is determined to be in the wall wiring of the structure. These wires are difficult to troubleshoot. Contact an electrician for assistance.
Warnings
- Whenever wires are exposed, power must be removed from the circuit. The voltage carried in house wiring is lethal.
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