Tripped breaker

What It Means

A circuit breaker is a switch in your home's breaker box (the electrical panel) that cuts power to one circuit when that circuit is in trouble. When it trips, its handle moves to off or stops partway between off and on, and the lights and outlets on that circuit go dead. The Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) says the usual cause is an overload, meaning too many appliances drawing power on one circuit, and it counts overloaded circuits among the major causes of home fires.

How It Sounds at Home

• "The kitchen outlets just died again."
• "Every time the space heater and the microwave run together, the breaker goes."
• "Which switch in the breaker box is the bathroom?"

The Breakdown

How to reset it, following ESFI

1. Unplug or switch off the appliances in the rooms that lost power.
2. At the breaker box, find the breaker whose handle sits at off or partway between off and on.
3. Push that handle all the way to off first, then back to on.
4. Buhata's own suggestion: plug things back in one at a time instead of all at once, so the circuit isn't loaded up again in one go.

When to stop and get help

ESFI and the U.S. Fire Administration list every item in the first four rows as warning signs of an electrical problem.

Short version to try today. Buhata's own suggestion: walk to your breaker box and check that the circuits are labeled, so the next reset takes seconds.

Good to Know

Flipping a breaker handle is the only part of this job for a homeowner. Never take off the panel's cover or touch the wiring behind it; that work belongs to a licensed electrician. ESFI says a breaker that keeps tripping may point to a more serious problem, and it also suggests having a qualified electrician inspect a home that's more than 40 years old or has just had a major appliance put in. NFPA's electrical safety guidance adds that AFCIs and GFCIs, the breakers and outlets that guard against fire and shock, should be installed by a qualified electrician.

Related Terms and Categories

• GFCI outlet

  An outlet with Test and Reset buttons that shuts off power in a fraction of a second when current leaks where it shouldn't, to protect people from shock.

• AFCI breaker

  A circuit breaker that senses dangerous electrical arcing from damaged or worn wiring and shuts the power off before a fire can start.

• Fire escape plan

  A household's agreed way out in a fire: two exits from every room, an outside meeting place, and a drill practiced at least twice a year.

• Smoke detector testing

  Pressing a smoke alarm's test button once a month to make sure it sounds, and replacing the alarm 10 years after the date it was made.

• Licensed contractor

  A contractor who holds the license your state or local government requires for the kind of work being done, which you can check before you hire.

• Fire extinguisher

  A handheld tank that sprays an agent to put out a small fire, labeled with the classes of fire (such as A, B and C) it is approved for.

Home maintenance and repairs