Electrical Articles
Breaker Box Basics (Main, Circuit and GFI)
Understanding Breaker Basics (Main, Circuit and GFI)
There are 3 different types of breakers in your house, main, circuit and GFI. Understanding the difference is important for any home owner who ever opens their electrical panel.
Main
The function of the main breaker is to shut off all electricity to the house if the combined load (all the circuits added together) approaches the safe limit of the electrical box or main service line. Every electrical component and wire has a maximum rated ...
How To Install A GFI (Ground Fault Interrupt) Breaker
This article is about GFI breaker installation,click here to learn about GFI
outlet installation.
Installing a GFI breaker in your main breaker box, as any electrical work, is dangerous should be done by a qualified electrician or professional. This article is for reference only and does NOTadvocate homeowners doing their own wiring.
If you have AC power anywhere close to water (outside outlets, kitchens, ...
Wiring a Ground Fault Interrupt (GFI) Outlet
This article is about GFI outlet installation,click here to learn about GFI
breaker installation.
This article is for reference only and does not advocate that any homeowner work on thier own electrical system. This should be left to professionals.
A Ground Fault Interrupt (GFI) or Ground Fault Circuit Interrupt (GFCI) outlet is designed to provide extra protection for wet areas. If does this by measuring the ...
How To Build Cat 5 Cables For Your Media Wiring
Before you install any sheet rock in a new house, addition or basement, it is always a good investment for the future to run additional wires for telephone, cable and internet. You can run cat-3 (category 3) cable for phone and cat-5 (category 3) for internet but I recommend simply running two cat-5 cables to each room in the house. Cat-5 cable can be used for either phone (up to 4 phone line) or internet Is also heavy duty so it won?t break as easily as smaller phone lines. A box of cat-5e is ...
What To Do When The Power Goes Out.
Everyone has been without electricity at one time or another. The first thing to do when the electricity goes out is to determine the extent of the outage. If you next door neighbor lost power also, then the problems is at the power source and you should call the power company.
If the neighbors on either side have power and your entire house is powerless, the main breaker (or fuse) may have tripped. The main break can trip if you overload the max current for the entire house (usually around ...
DIY Electrical Tools
Most wiring job can be done with a few inexpensive tools. The entry-level tool set should include needle nose, screw drivers, sheath cutter, outlet tester and a pair of wire cutter/stripper. This set of tools should be less than $50. The other tools will save a lot of time if you are doing more advanced projects. In addition, there are also other tools for wiring phone, cable and internet wiring.
Pliers And Needle Nose
Needle nose are the best tool for bending the wire in a loop so it can ...
How To Test An AC circuit
Before you ever touch any AC circuit, make sure that the circuit is totally powerless. Many houses have serious hidden electrical problems including outlets that are wired to 2 breakers in the main junction box. The older a house gets, the more amateur renovators (and some professionals) change the wiring and they can do some crazy things. Therefore, it is very important that you make sure that there is no power in any area where you are working. Jumpers and crossed wires can make updating AC ...
Working with electricity is extremely dangerous. The articles on this web site are for reference only and are intended for use by professional only. The writers of these article assume no liability for any use of the information presented here. . Electrical work is one of the fastest ways to kill yourself so don?t do it without the help of a professional.
Your house has a complex system of breakers, wires, outlets and appliance that make every life much more enjoyable. There are basically 2 types of wiring in your house: AC (alternating current) and DC (direct current). The high-voltage AC circuits in your house power all your appliance, most of your lights and all of your wall outlets. The 120-240 volts alternating current circuits are dangerous. The low-voltage (mostly DC) circuits in your house include your doorbell, thermostat, speaker, phone, cable TV, intercom, and internet. You may also have outdoor, under cabinet and small spot lighting using low voltage wiring. This website includes articles to help professionals understand and fix electrical problems.
Fresh content is added daily to the site so check back to get more DIY and home renovation advice.
