Faulty switches/wiring/breaker switch?


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Old 12-28-11, 10:39 AM
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Faulty switches/wiring/breaker switch?

One of my breaker switches (a single; it's not one of the paired switches) is either faulty or I'm having problems in the "line" of wiring possibly. This one breaker switch controls my kitchen lights, dining room lights, and bathroom lights, and bathroom fan (the lights and fan are separate and they each have their own on/off switch in the bathroom). My house was built in 1960 so there are no GFCI switches in our house. My dining room lights, bathroom lights, and bath fan will not come on. The kitchen lights work fine. The last time the faulty ones worked was about 5 days ago. They had come on for about a day, but then went off and haven't come back on since. The kitchen lights are the closest to the breaker box, then the dining room, and the farthest are the bathroom ones. The breaker switch is not tripping itself off at all; it turns off then back on fine. Just want to get advice on where I should start before calling in a pro. I am comfortable checking this out on my own, but need help to see where I should look. I guess the worst case scenario, i think, is that there could be a short in the wiring after the kitchen lights.
 
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Old 12-28-11, 10:43 AM
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It sounds like you have a loose or a failed connection in the circuit. I would start at the last working fixture or the first non-working fixture to cut down on the easter egg hunt.
 
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Old 12-28-11, 02:11 PM
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I agree with PCBoss. The wiring in your house is in series. So, the power goes from the breaker to the first device then to the next and so on. If there is a break in the line somewhere nothing downstream can get power. Since you say it came on and worked for a while and then quit it's possibly a bad or loose connection.
 
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Old 12-29-11, 09:46 AM
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SOLVED: the last fixture working, my kitchen ceiling light, was the problem. One of the wires that had a wire nut on it was not secured well and was causing all the lights after that to stay off. Thanks for all the help! Always happy to have an easy fix!
 
 

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