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  #21  
Old 08/26/10, 10:51 AM
arabian knight's Avatar
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Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: West Central WI.
Posts: 21,244
I had a problem that one side of the main breaker box was hot. Meaning only some of the outlets worked. I had a very low voltage reading on one side. Now this is a mobile home which has a "plug in" type of receptacle outside. And one side was corroded and only supplying Half of the power to the main breaker box inside the trailer.
Now the OP has already said they had a rodent problem a few years ago, so One Side Could again be giving a problem, very similar to what I had Half the box only having power to it. Leaving many outlets that did not work. OR had Very LOW power coming to them~! And when used they then went out. very similar to what is happening to the OP in this tread.
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  #22  
Old 08/26/10, 11:04 AM
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: northcentral MN
Posts: 14,378
I've read that house fires started by squirrels are NOT covered by most insurance policies.

Have you determined if the bad outlets are all on the same circuit? The first thing I would do is try to map out what outlets and switches are on each circuit.

Good luck!
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  #23  
Old 08/26/10, 03:41 PM
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: north Alabama
Posts: 10,811
A Knight, that type of failure doesn't fit this situation.
Patt, flipping the breaker on that circuit is a very good idea.
ThaiBlue, at this point, I would be VERY surprised if it was a GFI problem.

I had hoped not to get into this, but...

Once the breaker is flipped, pull out the various affected sockets. Examine them carefully. If a wire is leading directly into the socket base without being terminated with a curlicue of wire around a screw terminal, use a pair of diagonal cutters to clip off that wire, then strip a bit of insulation and attach it using the screw terminal. A pair of needle nose pliers will twist the wire into the required curlicue.

If any of the screw terminals look scorched or damaged, or the plastic of the socket looks bad, replace that outlet entirely. If any wire ends show signs of being heated (melted or burned insulation, discolored wire) clip the wire end and make a new curlicue. SCREW DOWN ALL WIRE CONNECTIONS.

Look inside the outlet boxes for wire nut connections. Count them by color, and buy new wire nuts. Remove the existing wire nuts, verify the condition and if OK, re-use the existing wire nut. If ANYTHING looks wrong, make new wire ends and replace the wire nut with a new properly sized one.

Once all the sockets have been verified, power the circuit back on. If you are lucky, the problem junction(s) will have been fixed. If the circuit still doesn't work, then there is a junction box somewhere in the wall or on a joist or beam that has a bad connection, or less likely in this case, the connection in the breaker box is bad.

Wiring can be traced to find the spot where a connection has failed. Sometimes it involves punching holes in walls to get to junction boxes.
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  #24  
Old 08/26/10, 10:35 PM
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: South of DFW,TX zone 8a
Posts: 3,554
young man i know had a similar problem, it turned out to be on the power company's side of the meter, bad insulation on the feed line, didn't give enough juice for the whole house, called power company to come ck it out and fixed at no cost to him
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  #25  
Old 08/27/10, 09:24 AM
Jhn Boy ina D Trump world
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: NC
Posts: 2,394
If your appliances that are on 220 are not working, but the ones on 110 are, then you've got a problem with one leg of power coming into your house. Check with the power company.
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  #26  
Old 08/27/10, 01:01 PM
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: north Alabama
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Microwaves are 110 volts.

PLEASE FOLKS, before responding to this thread further, take a moment to read this post.

Electrical problems can be dangerous and get folks killed. When responding with advice to a potentially life threatening situation we all have a serious responsibility. THINK TWICE before posting and be sure to read ALL the posts from the original person. A number of people have chimed in with a variation of the "bad leg from the mains transformer" comment, even though it was obvious from the very first post that this is NOT the case.

I've worked with electricity. I've helped my father build radio stations, rewire circuits and install new ones. I've built radios and amplifiers and other electronics from nothing more than a crude schematic and a pile of loose parts. I've installed complete projection booths in movie theatres, dealt with 3 phase as well as split phase. I say this to provide emphasis to one point - I AM NOT AN ELECTRICIAN. I have basic knowledge and enough respect to keep me out of trouble, but I also know when to call in the professionals. If you have more electrical knowledge than I do, you know EXACTLY what I am saying.

Giving advice on electrical matters is not like advising on what to plant or how to do a common task. It carries a responsibility that I fear is not being respected here.

PLEASE, guessing and relating personal experience is not going to help. NOT reading the OP posts or just skimming the thread and then commenting is in fact a PROBLEM. I understand the desire to be helpful and to contribute. It is noble and one of the finest aspects of forums like this. All I am asking is that folks temper that desire to help and work a little harder on understanding the issue that is the topic, reading the previous posts for clarification and then commenting (or not).

I hope that the thread remains open and available, because I am curious and want to get the report back on what the OP eventually discovers. Thanks for reading and I hope I haven't offended.
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