What is the problem with my garage electrical circuit?

Question

I've lost power to everything in my garage. Never did it throw the breaker "off". I replaced the breaker first & this worked for about 2 weeks then everything died again. I replaced all receptacles. When I turned the breaker on the lights would flash off & on 3 or 4 times then stay off, again without tripping the breaker. I checked the receptacles with my beeper/tester & there is an indication of power. Could there be a ground fault or short? Exactly how do I go about troubleshooting this problem as it is driving me nuts? Thanks in advance for any responses.

Answer 1

There is no ground fault. The safety breaker would have tripped.



The live side may be OK but the neutral sounds like it is loose. The current has no return path. I bet you'll find a junction that wasn't tightened up enough and now it has become open circuit. Look for the signs of soot marks where it was sparking!

Answer 2

.It sounds like you have an intermittent connection in the feed to your garage. I'm not clear on whether both the lights and receptacles go off together, or it's just one or the other.



Electric code says that lights and receptacles have to be on separate circuits and have separate breakers, so if that's your case and you loose both the lights and receptacles at the same time, the problem pretty much has to be in the breaker panel. Look for corrosion or other irregularity on the panel back plane.



If your garage has its own breaker panel, there could be a loose connection between the garage (subpanel) and the main panel that feeds it.



If both lights and receptacles are on the same breaker (which they should not be), look for breaks or loose wire nuts in the wires between the the breaker and the first light or receptacle. Flexing or stress can cause breaks in a wire inside the insulation so it might look OK. Also wire nuts can appear tight but still have one wire that did not "catch" inside the spiral.



An intermittent or high resistance "open" can overheat and cause a fire. If your problem isn't immediately evident, I'd call an electrician.

Answer 3

You already have some pretty good answers, especially those referring to a loose connection with the neutral. Since you changed the breaker and it worked for a couple of weeks, I suggest you may have manulipated the neutral in the panelboard when you were changing the circuit breaker without realizing it. Find the white wire that exits the sheath with the "hot wire" that you changed the breaker on. Make sure it is lugged tightly under the neutral buss. It may not be in the panel and doesn't necessarily have to be on the neutral conductor. If it were a short it would trip the circuit breaker. I think loose and arcing connection either on the "hot" or neutral. The circuit does not have to be confined to the garage. There may be outside receptacles or even receptacles in the house that are on the same circuit.



There is no NEC article that requires receptacles and lighting to be on separate circuits in a residential garage. Lighting may not be on bathroom receptacle circuits if the circuit provides power to the receptacles in another bathroom, nor may small appliance circuits in kitchens be attached to lighting. For general lighting and convenience receptacles elsewhere in the house they may be on the same circuit.

Answer 4

I would start with the panel and make sure the common (white wire) is screwed tight on the bar. Also check the black (feed) on the breaker. Make sure it is pushed on tightly to the buss bar. Is the slots in the panel full. Look at the panel door and it will tell you not to use a breaker in certain slots. Some people try to get a breaker on the buss bar when there is no room for it and it is loose Make sure you have the correct breaker. Test the breaker with a tester to make sure you have power. Now go to the first outlet in the circuit and make sure all the wires are tight on the outlet. Leave it hanging and go to the next one and so forth. If this is in the garage it should have a GFCI breaker or the first outlet will be a GFCI. If it is try the reset button. Ask more if nothing is working.

Answer 5

"Electric code says that lights and receptacles have to be on separate circuits and have separate breakers"





Briggs,



Please cite the article and section of the code for this. I am not aware of any such national requirement for residential construction.

Answer 6

*MIght* be a loose connection or broken wire, maybe at the first fixture that is "off", or the wiring between. You may also wish to check that there are no copper-to-aluminum connections.