Mike Dolt Enterprises
Mike Dolt Enterprises
User: kbrandt, Location: arizona
Asked on: Friday, March 25, 2011 at 5:41 pm EDT
Answered on: Tuesday, May 14, 2024 at 3:18 am EDT
Question: Hi guys, maybe you can answer this problem and what was going on at this house.Lady called and no power in a couple rooms. House is 50 years old. O.K. went over and checked the panel, handy man put 2 #12 on one 20 amp breaker, seen it before no big deal.Well when I turned the 2 breakers on that were tripping they held for about 20 seconds and tripped both, one sp with one wire (which had nothing to do with the breaker that was losing power or tripping) it tripped first and then the other sp with 2 wires tripped about 5 seconds after the first one.Took amp reading on all 3 wires and read maybe 1 amp on 2 of them and the third which was on the same breaker with another wire that had one amp and it read 53 amps. House is all gas.Took the wire reading 53 amps and added a breaker to make it legal and it cleared everything and then read maybe one amp. Everything started working correctly and no problems since then.Why was I reading 53 amps when it was on a sp breaker with another wire and then when I put it on its own breaker work fine.They were not the same phase either.Can someone tell me what was happening here.Thanks for any feedback.
Possible Explanation
The high amperage reading (53 amps) on one of the wires could indicate a short circuit between the wire and a grounded surface (e.g., metal conduit, electrical box).
What was likely happening
The wire reading 53 amps was in contact with a grounded surface, causing a massive current flow. The shared breaker with another wire couldn't handle the high current demand, leading to tripping. The tripping of the first breaker (with the shorted wire) caused a voltage imbalance on the other breaker, causing it to trip as well.
Adding a dedicated breaker
By adding a separate breaker for the shorted wire, you isolated it from the other circuit.* This allowed the other circuit to operate normally without being affected by the short circuit.
Why they were not on the same phase
Although not mentioned in the question, it's likely that the two breakers were not on the same phase for safety reasons. Placing circuits on different phases helps balance the load and prevents overloads on a single phase.
Conclusion:
The problem was likely due to a short circuit on the wire reading 53 amps. Adding a separate breaker for this wire resolved the issue by isolating the short circuit and allowing the other circuit(s) to function properly. Flag for review