Okay you electricians

At a bare minimum for a 120V AC circuit, not only do you need the power wire to be energized you need a neutral wire. If either breaks or becomes disconnected from the circuit nothing will work in the outlet ( I have seen many duplex outlets with wires that have fallen off their connection points at the rear of the outlet). The third wire is a ground and is important but not necessary to the supply of power to the outlet, it is more important to the return of power. I am not sure how, you checked, for power at the outlet? Using a drop light will check both wires mentioned above. Move the power equipment to another location (away from the garage) and see if they will run. High humidity is usually a non-factor in power tool operation, todays tools are made to operate in the rain at construction sites.
Lastly your home is supplied with power through two wires. The voltage between these two wires is 220.V. Also incoming to the house is a third wire (neutral). The neutral wire coming into your house is supposed to go all the way back to the supply transformer for the Electric Co. (either on a pole or a ground pad mount). The voltage between either of the two power supply wires and the neutral wire is 120.V . I have seen MANY cases where the power coming into the home has the neutral wire broken. When this happens the voltage on any duplex outlet in the home can swing and may swing near 20.V on one outlet (Not enough to run a tool) and may go up to 180.V on another duplex circuit ( light bulbs become very bright and burn out as well as TVs and anything else plugged in and turned on). The incoming wires to your home are the responsibility of the power Co. if you can visually SEE (DO NOT TOUCH WITH ANYTHING) one of the three wires to your home is not connected outdoors (Usually storm damage) or even if you suspect you have this problem, STOP, turn off your appliances and CALL THE POWER CO. they will come out and check the power coming into your home, and repair their service, most likely without cost to you. IF YOUR NOT AN ELECTRICIAN AND DO NOT HAVE THE PROPER SAFETY EQUIPMENT, I URGE YOU NOT TO TOUCH ANY ELECTRICAL SUPPLY EQUIPMENT IN OR ON YOUR HOME.
 
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I think I have figured it out. The shop power is on a separate panel all by itself. I used a couple of other outlets in the shop and everything seems to work except 3 outlets. I believe a circuit breaker has gone bad. It is not tripped. I will pull that circuit breaker and match it at Home Depot and replace it. Hopefully that will correct the problem. And yes, I will kill the power from the main to do this. I have done this before so I don't think I will light up. LOL More to follow.
 
The question is, why did the circuit breaker fail? Is there a bad circuit that caused it? It bares checking before you power up again.

Bill
 
Unplug everything from that circuit and then put a light bulb in line. If there's a short the light will illuminate. Your job will be to get the light to go out.
But sometimes breakers don't looked tripped when they are. try to click it all the way off then back on to reset it.
 
Lawson Cox said:
I think I have figured it out. The shop power is on a separate panel all by itself. I used a couple of other outlets in the shop and everything seems to work except 3 outlets. I believe a circuit breaker has gone bad. It is not tripped. I will pull that circuit breaker and match it at Home Depot and replace it. Hopefully that will correct the problem. And yes, I will kill the power from the main to do this. I have done this before so I don't think I will light up. LOL More to follow.
Click to expand...

Well, not the circuit breakers. I replaced it with new, but no help. Had an electrician Buddy out and we have traced wires involved, but still have not found the problem. He will come back tomorrow and hopefully we will figure it all out. The drama continues. lol
 
very basic but easily overlooked, check the neutral wire for that circuit check it is tight to the neutral bar.
But you didn't say if the new breaker is tripping or holding?
 
Lawson,

Suggestion.... why don't you send those mistreated tools up to me. I'll give them a good home without high humidity and good electric power. I wired the garage myself!!
Bruce
 
check the recept. to see if they are back wired as they will loosen up and cause loss of neutral or hot wire. best to wrap the wire around the screws on the side. this is usually the cause. i was an electrician for 35 years and saw this many times.
 
Lawson, a couple of weeks ago I had the same problem. I was really hot under the collar over it and even called the previous home owner who built and wired this place to ask if he had stashed a secret panel somewhere. Having eliminated that possiblity along with snapping all the circuit breakers (including the main) on and off a couple of times, I finally called an electrician to set up a "visit".
This guy was outstanding! He said to go look at the GFI outlet in the shop and push those test/reset buttons. He also made a passing comment, to "be sure to move any boxes stacked up against the wall and look for any GFI's that may be "hidden".
What the heck! Was this guy ever in my shop? No! How did he know about my stacks of boxes against the walls?
Well anyway, I followed his directions after first checking the home interior GFI's to no avail. I don't learn too quickly see?
So after walking back outdoors frustrated from checking the shop, I looked back and noticed that one last box that was still against the wall. Now who the hell ever puts TWO GFI's in one shop on 110v?
Well apparently the guy who built this place did! There neatly concealed was yet a second GFI. When I hit those two buttons to check it, things came to life!!
WHOOOODA THUNK IT?
So Lawson, do you have a second GFI in your shop? Maybe this guy built your place too.
Good luck!
 
I have had a few problem here with no power.
Crawl space animal was hungry and bite into cable.
Power at pole one leg was loose only half.
And if you had power at plug grd to black you need the white wire.
Check the chain of commone white wires.
Get the test light out.
 
Lawson
Don't know when your shop was wired but , there was a time that they used Aluminum wire.
We had a similar problem in our BIG truck shop.
turn out the Ground wire in the main box had come loose / arced /or heated & cooled cycles / or what ever / it had arced so bad that we had to relocate to another location on the grounding strap.
 
If your receptacles are wired with aluminum wire and the wires are pushed in the small hole on the back side, then you have dis similar metals and have a corrosion problem, take the recptacle out and check it out, omo....:)
 
Re: Okay you electricians PROBLEM LOCATED

A good friend and fellow barner came to the rescue and located the problem in a junction box. (After quite a bit of looking and ladder climbing.) One of the wire nuts was loose. Tightened it up and BINGO.

That good friend was Kelly Thomas, Conyers, GA. A member of our local V8 Club. He posts as Kelly.Ga. I think.

I owe you a big one Kelly. And thanks to all who offered suggestions.
 
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thirt4 said:
Lawson, a couple of weeks ago I had the same problem. I was really hot under the collar over it and even called the previous home owner who built and wired this place to ask if he had stashed a secret panel somewhere. Having eliminated that possiblity along with snapping all the circuit breakers (including the main) on and off a couple of times, I finally called an electrician to set up a "visit".
This guy was outstanding! He said to go look at the GFI outlet in the shop and push those test/reset buttons. He also made a passing comment, to "be sure to move any boxes stacked up against the wall and look for any GFI's that may be "hidden".
What the heck! Was this guy ever in my shop? No! How did he know about my stacks of boxes against the walls?
Well anyway, I followed his directions after first checking the home interior GFI's to no avail. I don't learn too quickly see?
So after walking back outdoors frustrated from checking the shop, I looked back and noticed that one last box that was still against the wall. Now who the hell ever puts TWO GFI's in one shop on 110v?
Well apparently the guy who built this place did! There neatly concealed was yet a second GFI. When I hit those two buttons to check it, things came to life!!
WHOOOODA THUNK IT?
So Lawson, do you have a second GFI in your shop? Maybe this guy built your place too.
Good luck!
Click to expand...
It is required by code to have a gfi for each circuit. You apparently have two circuits or more in your garage.
 
I don,t think a GFI would have found the problem.
But here we go again someone looking out for us.
Get a chance to dead maybe take it.LOL
 
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