Breaker Box Repair

Dunman Electric performs breaker box repairs for customers in Austin, Round Rock, Georgetown, San Marcos and near by areas. Doing electrical repairs is not something many homeowners deal with everyday, and breaker box repair is a job that needs to be handled by professionals. Electrical breaker switches are created to be tripped numerous times to protect the circuit from getting too hot and to steer clear of damage. However, electrical surges and also faulty breakers will often require a breaker or two to be changed. Adding outlets or lights onto an existing circuit entails swapping the existing breaker with a breaker of higher amperage. Always make sure you have a certified electrician handling your breaker box repair.

To start the breaker box repair process, we’ll first track down the bad breaker. We’ll locate a red box close to a breaker which has tripped, or use the diagram in the door of the breaker box to find the breaker for the circuit we’re taking care of. We’ll flip this breaker to the off position and test the lamp, electric outlet, or other electric item to make sure that we’ve found the right switch.

Next, we will find and turn off the main power to the home before performing any repairs within the breaker box. Generally, it is found close to the breaker box in a rectangular box with a big switch on one side and a big cable leading from it towards the breaker box. The switch is going to be pulled down into the off position and we will fit a bit of wire through its padlock bracket to make sure that it continues to be off until the repair is finished.

We’ll get rid of the screws from the front panel of the box and find the problem breaker and pry it from the box using a small flat screwdriver, prying up from the rear or outside end of the breaker until it snaps free of the rod it’s snapped onto. The breaker will be moved toward the middle of the box and pulled out securely to disengage the front clip and free the breaker from the box.

Next, we’ll undo the front and rear screws and pull the wires away from the switch. Some breakers have got square holes that the wires poke into, while on some others the wires wrap around the screw itself. The damaged breaker will be properly discarded.

We’ll choose a breaker of equal or greater amperage, based on whether we are merely replacing the original or adding to the circuit. Many household circuits shouldn’t be greater than 20 amps, aside from circuits which supply big appliances like hot water heaters. We’ll place the wires into the square punch block holes, or wrap them around the anchoring screws. The black cable goes to the front, or on the inside. The white wire would go to the rear or outside. We’ll tighten up the screws using a screwdriver.

Finally, we’ll fit the breaker back into the box, snapping the front or interior clip into place first, then pushing the rear or outside clip until it snaps securely into position. We’ll replace the front panel and put in the screws to cover the terminals in the breaker box. Lastly, we’ll flip the main switch back on to bring back power to the breaker box.