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Circuit Breaker Question
Posted on 6/26/22 at 1:22 pm
Posted on 6/26/22 at 1:22 pm
I recently had a 50 amp inlet and interlock kit installed at my home for storm season. Yesterday I tested the system without problems. Once I switched back to city power, the breaker for my hot water heater keeps tripping. When attempting to reset the breaker, there was a pop and sparks came out of the panel. Am I looking at a faulty breaker or something else?
TIA
TIA
This post was edited on 6/26/22 at 1:30 pm
5
Posted on 6/26/22 at 1:28 pm to PolarPop5
Unplug your water heater and try again.
Posted on 6/26/22 at 1:36 pm to ItzMe1972
I unplugged the hot water heater (gas) and reset the breaker. So far so good. It is strange as after the reset the hot water heater will run for sometime but randomly trip the breaker after no change in load. This is also a gas tankless hot water heater so I don’t think it is pulling much load.
This post was edited on 6/26/22 at 1:52 pm
Posted on 6/26/22 at 2:36 pm to PolarPop5
quote:
I unplugged the hot water heater (gas) and reset the breaker
gas water heater is a single 110v breaker only
if its tripping breaker you may have a bad heating element or temp control on it
Posted on 6/26/22 at 7:55 pm to PolarPop5
Why does a gas heater need power? Is this for tankless? Just curious.
Posted on 6/26/22 at 8:21 pm to LEASTBAY
Yes it is a tankless gas hot water heater. There is an electronic control panel in the house that lets you adjust temperature.
This post was edited on 6/26/22 at 8:22 pm
Posted on 6/26/22 at 9:09 pm to PolarPop5
quote:
Yes it is a tankless gas hot water heater. There is an electronic control panel in the house that lets you adjust temperature.
The ignition, blowers, etc. are also all electric. It’s been a while but I think total peak load on a tankless gas is like <2A.
Posted on 6/27/22 at 10:02 am to PolarPop5
if that breaker is just a plain breaker, a new one should be like $7-10. I'd just replace it. The sparking is not a good sign.
Posted on 6/27/22 at 11:54 am to notsince98
Another thing that could be the problem is a loose connection where the wires attach to the breaker.
Posted on 6/27/22 at 1:39 pm to PolarPop5
you shouldn't see an arc jump out of a breaker, im feeling that is a breaker issue
breakers are so cheap anyways might as well switch it out
breakers are so cheap anyways might as well switch it out
Posted on 6/27/22 at 4:05 pm to DVinBR
I’m gonna bite the bullet and replace it. Of course it is a tandem 20/30 breaker that runs about $70…
Posted on 6/27/22 at 4:24 pm to PolarPop5
quote:
I’m gonna bite the bullet and replace it. Of course it is a tandem 20/30 breaker that runs about $70…
You have a link to one of those?
Posted on 6/27/22 at 4:44 pm to PolarPop5
you can also check with a clamp to see if there is a problem with the circuit, put it on max hold setting, turn the breaker on, if you see a spike on the circuit then it's downstream
Posted on 6/27/22 at 5:22 pm to PolarPop5
Do you have a disconnect for that heater ? If so turn off the breaker and go pull the disconnect and see if it got hot, this happened to ours once and the inside of the disconnect box was melted so had to replace it plus get a new breaker.
The cause of the problem was a loose neutral on the bus bar. Might also wanna check that as well.
The cause of the problem was a loose neutral on the bus bar. Might also wanna check that as well.
Posted on 6/27/22 at 5:31 pm to PolarPop5
Had same thing happen to me last week but w/o the 50amp plug issue. Replaced the breaker. Still did it. So shut off power to heater (electric) and checked continuity to element as a bad element will trip breaker. All good. So pulled another panel on heater and checked thermostat. It was fried. So bought a new one( $20 at plumbing warehouse) and replaced. Made sure any black wires were sanded and the thermostat was flush t I tank wall. Bingo. Saved $400-$500 +. Water is hotter now at lower setting. Easy to do. I am nooo electrcian but do have a multimeter.
Posted on 6/27/22 at 6:21 pm to PolarPop5
quote:
I’m gonna bite the bullet and replace it. Of course it is a tandem 20/30 breaker that runs about $70…
That’s a good place to start.
Your standard thermal-mag breakers in home panels also tend to get more sensitive the more they trip. A friend’s AC compressor would trip his breaker biweekly, then weekly, then every 2-3 days, then daily. It’s a cheap place to start even if the issue ends up being elsewhere.
Posted on 6/27/22 at 6:39 pm to notsince98
Posted on 6/27/22 at 7:44 pm to PolarPop5
I've never seen one of those but I don't look at plug in breakers that much.
On a side note, square d issued a recall or something for their qo panel doors. If you have a qo panel you might want to look into it.
On a side note, square d issued a recall or something for their qo panel doors. If you have a qo panel you might want to look into it.
Posted on 6/28/22 at 9:34 am to PolarPop5
Interesting. I had never seen a tandem breaker with different current values.
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