How Do Circuit Breakers Work?

Understanding the vital role circuit breakers play in preventing overloads

We've all been there; You reach to turn on an appliance and instead of hearing a beep, whir, or hum, there’s only silence. Suddenly, everything electrical in your home has come to a halt.

Although it may feel like an inconvenience, the tripped circuit that just shut down your power is just doing its job. The sole responsibility of any given circuit breaker in your home is to protect the electrical wiring in your house and to keep you safe.

When the wires in your house become overloaded with electrical current, it causes them to heat up. Instead of transferring that heat to the appliances and electronic items plugged into your outlets, causing them to burn out, and possibly cause a fire, the circuit breaker trips. This shuts off the electricity to the entire house or to that select zone at its distribution point.

Circuit breakers and power failure

It's important to remember that it's not the number of appliances that cause your power to stop, it's the size of the wires in your walls and the electrical load you send through those wires.

A circuit breaker trip is a sign there could be something wrong with your home's wiring. Your first step is to find out why it tripped in the first place. It could be as simple as a bad breaker or something more serious that a qualified electrician should evaluate.

What is a circuit breaker?

Inside each circuit breaker is a spring hooked over a small piece of solder (a meltable, fusible alloy). Each breaker is connected to an electrical wire that runs through your house. The electricity that flows through your house runs through the solder. When the connected wiring is at risk of overheating, the solder melts, resulting in the spring extending through the solder, pulling the switch off, and shutting down that particular circuit. When the alloy cools down, it can be reset.

A fuse works on a similar premise, but instead of a spring, the meltable metal is the bridge itself. When overheated, it melts and permanently opens. Fuses must be replaced each time, while circuit breakers can be switched back to an "on" position.

Get grounded

Inside each circuit breaker is a spring hooked over a small piece of solder (a meltable, fusible alloy). Each breaker is connected to an electrical wire that runs through your house. The electricity that flows through your house runs through the solder. When the connected wiring is at risk of overheating, the solder melts, resulting in the spring extending through the solder, pulling the switch off, and shutting down that particular circuit. When the alloy cools down, it can be reset.

A fuse works on a similar premise, but instead of a spring, the meltable metal is the bridge itself. When overheated, it melts and permanently opens. Fuses must be replaced each time, while circuit breakers can be switched back to an "on" position.

Protection from the unexpected

Even if you're the do-it-yourself type, you should still leave electrical work to the experts. Your circuit breaker box is not as simple as your other home appliances. The numerous wires, breakers, and voltage offerings in your box can cause real harm if you try to tinker around with them, especially if you intend to create a workaround for breakers that trip often. Simply put, if you feel there is a problem with your circuit breaker box, you should have it checked by a professional.

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*Repair claims are limited to $500 per service call and $2,000 per plan in the aggregate per plan term. Plans are provided by NRG Protects Inc. Independent contractors will be performing various services under the plans. In some instances we may make a cash payment in lieu of repairs or replacement in the amount of actual cost, which may be less than retail, to repair or replace any covered system, component, or appliance.

**If your authorized repair technician determines that the water heater is deemed irreparable, we will give you a credit of $500 towards a replacement water heater by your authorized repair technician.

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