An electrical panel is a very key component of the power supply in your home, but it can also be daunting for homeowners who do not understand how to read an electrical panel to diagnose a problem. Many homeowners avoid their panel all together in fear of messing something up.
We are here to express the importance of understanding your panel and how it can assist you in diagnosing electrical problems in your home as well as identifying if a breaker is damaged, resulting in the need for a panel upgrade.
The first step is to locate your electrical panel box. You can most likely find your breaker box in a garage, utility room, or basement. It will be mounted on the wall and it will be flush with the switches.
Once you have located your panel, open the box to take a peek inside. You may need to pop the lid or it may be a cover that swings open. From here, you will see two columns of switches that send power to certain areas in your home. These switches power each room and electrical zone. If you flip a switch on or off, it will turn off the power supply to the corresponding room or zone.
You will want to check for labels inside of the panel that correspond to each switch. The labels might be right next to the switches or on the inside of the cover. They may have numbers which correspond to numbers on each switch. You will be able to identify which switch controls the power in each particular room and area.
If your switches are not labeled, you can easily do so by turning off all of the switches except one. This will allow you to identify which room receives power by seeing what lights and outlets still work and you can then begin to label your panel on your own. You can repeat this process until you have finished labeling all of your switches.
If you need to reset your circuit breaker, open the panel and look for the breaker that is not lined up with the rest of the breakers. You will then switch the breaker to the off position. Wait a moment and then switch the breaker back to the on position. This should resolve the problem. However, if the same breaker continually trips, you may need to check and make sure you do not have too many appliances on the same circuit. You may also need to call an electrician to make sure you do not need a panel upgrade.
Can you tell which breaker is tripped in this image?
If you do have any questions about your electric panel or want us to check your panel, give us a call here at Anchor Electric!
We are always happy to help!
386-313-6211