Hi folks, in Googling my problems, I came across this great forum and I looked through some other AFCI threads, but nobody has talked about the kind of problem I have.....
On the circuit that runs 2 of my bedrooms (and the hallway), recently (last month or so), the AFCI breaker was tripping at odd times. Mostly overnight to start with. At first, it was every few days, then it started happening almost nightly.
I should say, nothing in terms of what's plugged in or running has changed at all during this time.
First step was looking at all the outlets for obvious wiring issues and checking them with a volt meter (and checking the basement box and all the visible wiring there). This revealed nothing. So, we replaced the breaker (original was a Siemens 15A, replacement was the same, but now has the LED fault indicator).
I went almost a week without a problem, then bam, tried to turn on my computer and the breaker tripped. Okay, I know the first thing is to unplug and test things one at a time, which I've done several times. This is where it's odd. Once it trips, it seems nearly anything plugged into any of the outlets on the circuit will re-trip it. At one point, I was testing with a simple clock radio and it would trip it with nothing else plugged in. However, with the new breaker, it's become a bit less sensitive. The alarm clock alone won't trip it, but a paper shredder will (or TV, etc.).
HOWEVER.....here's the oddest part I discovered yesterday. This is after my computer went down and I tried the testing with the shredder at various outlets. I got to one outlet in the room and the shredder didn't trip it. I went back to another outlet and it DID trip it like before. So, I started plugging a bunch of stuff (via extension cord) into that one working outlet and could NOT get it to trip (with a computer, TV, and shredder all running). At this point, ALL THE OTHER OUTLETS WERE THEN FINE AS WELL! I could plug the shredder in anywhere and the breaker wouldn't trip (this testing was all done within a 30 minute timeframe). It hasn't tripped since that time yesterday.
There seems to be no pattern to the trips and while it does now seem to have something to do with load, when it's "working" nothing will trip it...and when it's "bad", nearly anything will trip it.
I should also say that when it's "bad" and I leave everything plugged in, the breaker will not reset. I have to unplug everything and then reset it...and then try things one at a time. That's what I did with the "shredder" test yesterday.
Any suggestions would be appreciated. I have no problem calling an electrician in....but the advice I've gotten so far is that an electrician will only be able to find the problem during the "bad" times (which seem to be difficult to predict).
EDIT - I should also add that the other AFCI breaker that covers the other bedrooms NEVER trips. Ever....and I have an LCD TV and space heater that both get used frequently on that circuit. Also, we've been in this house for 5 years without issue (built in 2004).
On the circuit that runs 2 of my bedrooms (and the hallway), recently (last month or so), the AFCI breaker was tripping at odd times. Mostly overnight to start with. At first, it was every few days, then it started happening almost nightly.
I should say, nothing in terms of what's plugged in or running has changed at all during this time.
First step was looking at all the outlets for obvious wiring issues and checking them with a volt meter (and checking the basement box and all the visible wiring there). This revealed nothing. So, we replaced the breaker (original was a Siemens 15A, replacement was the same, but now has the LED fault indicator).
I went almost a week without a problem, then bam, tried to turn on my computer and the breaker tripped. Okay, I know the first thing is to unplug and test things one at a time, which I've done several times. This is where it's odd. Once it trips, it seems nearly anything plugged into any of the outlets on the circuit will re-trip it. At one point, I was testing with a simple clock radio and it would trip it with nothing else plugged in. However, with the new breaker, it's become a bit less sensitive. The alarm clock alone won't trip it, but a paper shredder will (or TV, etc.).
HOWEVER.....here's the oddest part I discovered yesterday. This is after my computer went down and I tried the testing with the shredder at various outlets. I got to one outlet in the room and the shredder didn't trip it. I went back to another outlet and it DID trip it like before. So, I started plugging a bunch of stuff (via extension cord) into that one working outlet and could NOT get it to trip (with a computer, TV, and shredder all running). At this point, ALL THE OTHER OUTLETS WERE THEN FINE AS WELL! I could plug the shredder in anywhere and the breaker wouldn't trip (this testing was all done within a 30 minute timeframe). It hasn't tripped since that time yesterday.
There seems to be no pattern to the trips and while it does now seem to have something to do with load, when it's "working" nothing will trip it...and when it's "bad", nearly anything will trip it.
I should also say that when it's "bad" and I leave everything plugged in, the breaker will not reset. I have to unplug everything and then reset it...and then try things one at a time. That's what I did with the "shredder" test yesterday.
Any suggestions would be appreciated. I have no problem calling an electrician in....but the advice I've gotten so far is that an electrician will only be able to find the problem during the "bad" times (which seem to be difficult to predict).
EDIT - I should also add that the other AFCI breaker that covers the other bedrooms NEVER trips. Ever....and I have an LCD TV and space heater that both get used frequently on that circuit. Also, we've been in this house for 5 years without issue (built in 2004).