What causes electrical circuit breakers to trip?

Consider there were no circuit breaker trips, then wouldn’t house fires be a common issue? The circuit breaker usually trips when there is too much electricity flows through it or when it cannot handle the excess current load. This implies that the flow of electricity is cut off to keep circuits from overheating or causing more damage. Therefore, it is important that we pay special attention to the electrical circuit breakers including miniature circuit breakers as well. Even though the tripping of circuit breakers ensures safety, it can get quite annoying to constantly experience them and getting the power back on repeatedly. Thus, let us look at the three main reasons that cause circuit breakers to trip:

Circuit Overloads:

 An overload is the primary reasons behind the tripping of electrical circuit breakers constantly. This occurs when we want a particular circuit (example, miniature circuit breaker) to provide more electricity than its actual capacity. This leads to overheating of the circuit which puts all the electrical appliances connected to that particular circuit at risk. For instance, if the television set is connected to the circuit which actually needs 15 amps but is now using 20 amps, then for obvious reasons the circuit of the television system will get damaged. Thus, this is why the electrical circuit breaker trips to prevent this from happening, potentially even preventing a major fire

 Short Circuits:

Another commonly found reason why circuit breakers trip is a short circuit, which in fact is more dangerous than an overloaded circuit. When a “hot” wire comes in contact with a “neutral wire” in one of the electrical outlets, a short circuit happens. This results in a large amount of current flowing through the circuit which creates more heat than what the circuit can handle. When this happens the breaker trips and then shuts off the circuit to prevent dangerous events such as a fire.

 Ground fault:

Ground fault surges are more or less similar to short circuits. Just like short circuits, they occur when a hot wire touches a ground wire that is made of bare copper or the side of a metal outlet box which is connected to the ground wire. This enables more electricity to pass through it which the circuit ultimately fails to handle. The breaker then trips in order to protect the circuit and other appliances from overheating or from any potential fires.

Thus, if you avoid such problems, you are putting the safety of yourself and your loved ones at great risk. Thus, if the electrical circuit breaker at your home trip frequently, then you should immediately call a professional to investigate the problem. It is advisable to not try and handle this issue at your own risk.