Why is there a Power Failure at Your Home – Explained!

14Apr
by Saalik Ahamed  
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So why is there a power failure at your home? How can you prevent such power failures? Power failures can occur due to various reasons. Accordingly, we have classified them into two external and internal factors.

This article will give you a brief idea about these types of power failures at your home and how you can prevent them in the future.

External Factors

These factors cause power failures but have nothing to do with a fault in the wiring system. 

1. Blackouts

A blackout is when the entire neighborhood faces a power failure. Blackouts occur due to various reasons which affect the power distribution. Such reasons are lightning, storms, earthquakes, damage to the wires caused by trees, animals, etc.

Man holding a torch - mr electric

How to prepare for a blackout

Blackouts can be scary and frustrating, but there’s not much you can do in these situations. Do not panic in a blackout. You have to remain calm and let your power company do its job.

You cannot prevent a blackout which affects the entire neighborhood. Therefore you must prepare yourself to face the blackout. In a worst-case scenario, the situation can continue for days, if not for hours.

Always keep a battery-powered torch or an emergency light with you. It’s better if you can keep a power bank to charge the phone in these situations. A battery-powered radio will help you listen to the latest updates on the blackout.

In case of a blackout, remove all the appliances from power outlets. This will avoid any damage in case of a power overload. It’s better if you can keep one light switched on to find out when the power is restored.

If you have a backup generator check out the instructions given by Energy Safe Victoria on how to use a generator safely during a blackout

Generator and battery - Mr Electric

Contact your power company or check their website or social media to find the details about the blackout. Here are contact details and power outage maps of some of the power distributors in Victoria.

Internal Factors

Is there a power failure in your house and not in the neighborhood? Then it is due to an internal factor. These are the situations that arise due to a faulty wiring system or a connection in your house.

1. Faulty circuit breakers

A circuit breaker will connect the electrical supply to the appliances in a specific area of the house. If you look at your electrical panel, you can see multiple circuit breakers supplying power all around the house.

If there is no power to a certain area of your house, it indicates a failure in a circuit breaker. Yes, the breakers are designed to detect power anomalies and shut down the supply immediately to prevent any damage.

 

How to prevent a power failure due to faulty breakers.

There are various reasons which cause failures in breakers, which can be serious and need immediate attention. You must watch out for the signs to identify a faulty breaker beforehand. These signs are:

  • Burning smell coming from the breakers 
  • The breaker doesn’t remain in the reset mode 
  • The breaker trips frequently 
  • The breaker is too hot to touch 

If you see these signs, unplug the appliances in that area to which that particular breaker supplies power.

Don’t try to fix it yourself. It can be dangerous. Contact your certified electrician immediately for help.

If a circuit breaker fails without tripping, it is clear that it must be replaced immediately. A certified electrician can identify any faulty breakers in your switchboard and replace them accordingly.

Does your breaker trip frequently for no reason? Then it can be a clear indication of a power overload. This will be discussed later in this article.

2. Trip switch goes off

Trip switches are fuses that disconnect the power system when an abnormal amount of current passes through the breakers. If your trip switch goes off, it could cause a power outage in your entire home, depending on your wiring system.

A trip switch would go off as soon as you plug or switch on a faulty electrical appliance. Damaged, old, or faulty electrical appliances could leak a high amount of current, which causes the trip switch to turn off immediately.

Trip switch - Mr Electric

It is a clear indication of a good electrical system, if your trip switch goes off once you plug in a faulty appliance.

How to prevent a power failure due to the trip switch.

If your trip switch goes off, then disconnect the plugged appliance and try turning the trip switch back on. If your trip switch turns on, the power outage was due to the faulty appliance. Don’t plug the device back without the advice of an electrician.

Request help from your electrician if the trip switch doesn’t turn back on.

 

3. Power overload

Did you know that your electrical system can handle only a limited amount of power? If you overload it, the system could trip or fail.

A power overload could even cause a fire if your electrical system is bad and doesn’t switch off immediately.

 

So how does a power overload occur? Your system will overload when you plug too many electrical appliances in a particular area of the house, which goes beyond the system’s capacity.

How to prevent a power failure due to an overload.

You must watch out for the signs of overload and act immediately to avoid a power failure. If there is an overload, you might see buzzing outlets, a burning smell in the circuit board, dimming lights, dull power tools due to lack of power, etc.

power overload - mr electric

Suppose you see these signs, turn off the appliances in that area of the house immediately. The fastest solution is to try plugging such appliances into a different area of the house, which is connected by another circuit breaker. 

Once they are plugged in a different area, you should not turn on all the appliances at once. Instead, turn them on one by one to identify which devices are causing the power surge.

However, this is not a permanent solution. You must recalculate the power load at your house and install new circuits to handle the new appliances. A certified electrician would do this for you.

Why you should contact Mr. Electric

First of all, it is highly dangerous to do electrical work if you don’t have the qualifications and the experience. Why should you put your valuable life at risk? On the other hand, it is illegal to DIY electrical work in Australia.

We are qualified electricians who have served Geelong for more than three decades. We have the experience to detect any electrical malfunction and rectify them immediately without putting your life at risk.

Our trained professionals are there to help you 24/7. Don’t hesitate to contact us for any electrical installation or emergency in Melbourne.