Your home’s electrical panel, often called a breaker box, circuit panel, or fuse box is the heart of your homes’ electrical service. All the standardized parts work together and keep the lights on and provide power to all the appliances and electrical devices that you use every day. All Orange County Electrical panels contain multiple circuits, circuit breakers, conductors, and safety devices. Use the chart below to learn more about the function of each component in your electrical breaker panel:

Live wires, electrical outlets, and electrical panels can all injure or even kill humans if handled improperly.

Do you suspect a problem with your home’s electrical breaker panel? Call Tradesman Electric and have expert support and call as soon as possible. You are encouraged to call the electrical company and emergency responders FIRST if you notice sparks, smoke, or suspect an electrical fire. It is also important to call a professional electrical panel safety specialist that can repair or replace a damaged electrical panel or component once a crisis has been averted. Because the breaker panel is the heart of your home’s electrical service, your electrical system will not function without a working electrical panel. A short-term quick fix to get electricity back up might not be a long-term solution. It’s possible that the quick fix could put a strain on your home’s electrical system simply delay a major power shutdown, power surges, or create hazardous situations. Sometimes, a quick fix can even increase the risk of fire.

Over time, older electrical breaker panels can present dangerous conditions. Those conditions could lead to a circuit breaker overload that will not shut down. When that circuit breaker continues to provide electricity, it can eventually lead to smoking panels and possibly start a fire. We highly recommend that you call Tradesman Electric and have one of our electricians replace your old electrical panel. A new circuit breaker panel will not only be a safer and more efficient model, but you will have peace of mind knowing your family and home are safe.

Aside from aging outdated breaker panels, there are a variety of other problems that could be serious trouble for your home’s electrical system. Rodents like rats, mice, and even squirrels will nibble on wires. If a pest were to make it inside of your electrical breaker panel, it could be electrocuted and create serious corrosion within the breaker panel box. The best advice for pests and rodents if they are interfering with your home’s electrical system would be a qualified pest control company first. Other electrical issues that might limit the life of your electrical panel also need to be addressed. Electrical surges, oxidation of the electrical components, and parts that have worked themselves loose, possibly causing arcing, melted electrical components, and scorching of the breaker panel requiring breaker panel replacement. Contact Tradesman Electric for service.

How will you know when to call for service? If you experience any of the following, call Tradesman Electric for help: You have a Power outage, breakers that trip excessively, lights flicker or turn on and off intermittently, electronic equipment resets unexpectedly, outlets lose power and it returns without your intervention, Sparks, or there’s a fire. As with any electrical issue, contact a licensed electrician to do a comprehensive inspection of your electrical panel and your home’s electrical system.