What to Does Your Circuit Breaker Keep Tripping?

 If you circuit breaker keeps tripping, there could be a serious issue, often caused by general wear and tear on the circuit breaker itself, requiring that a new one be installed.

Repeated circuit breaker tripping caused by general wear and tear on the circuit breaker is usually due to one of the following issues:

1. Short Circuit: A short circuit is common, but potentially dangerous. This is when a "hot wire" is contacting a neutral wire in an electrical outlet, which causes an overload of current to flow through the circuit, creating heat. The circuit breaker automatically shuts off in cases like these to prevent an electrical fire.

2. Overloaded Circuit: Another common occurrence is a simple, overloaded circuit. If your electrical system or certain circuits can't handle the amps coming through the circuit, it will flip the breaker, and possibly damage electronics or even start a fire.

3. Ground Fault: This is when a hot wire and bare ground wire are both touching the metal box housing them. This sets off a chain reaction that pushes more electricity through the circuit than it's supposed to hold, which repeatedly trips the breaker. A ground fault, or ground fault surge, will usually burn an outlet.