Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Eko

(7,332 posts)
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:22 PM Mar 17

I have an old 50's to 60's style circuit breaker and I lost power to half my house tonight.

I believe one of the main fuses in the main breaker may be bad so half of my breaker is working and the other half is not. Can you just pull the big square main breaker out and replace them without needing the power company turning off the power?
Thanks for any help!
Eko.

35 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
I have an old 50's to 60's style circuit breaker and I lost power to half my house tonight. (Original Post) Eko Mar 17 OP
Yes, you could put the working one inplace sunflowerseed Mar 17 #1
Federal Pacific? N/t gay texan Mar 17 #2
Yes, it says that on the box. Eko Mar 17 #5
get rid of that box NOW gay texan Mar 18 #19
Thanks, Ill call an electrician. Eko Mar 18 #20
If you have a 60/70 entrance, I'd definitely upgrade to a minimum 100Amp Service (or 200Amp) if you have future expansio OAITW r.2.0 Mar 18 #24
Yes, but... RainCaster Mar 17 #3
Could be you've lost a 'leg' of power coming to your home from the power company. rubbersole Mar 17 #4
One of the GFI's blew on a outlet in the kitchen Eko Mar 17 #6
What happens when you turn the oven on? rubbersole Mar 17 #7
Was afraid to try it and lose all the power. Eko Mar 17 #8
Good luck 👍. rubbersole Mar 17 #9
Should I try the oven tonight or just wait till tomorrow? Eko Mar 17 #10
Try it in the morning when you're ready to replace your main fuses. rubbersole Mar 17 #15
Sounds like you might have Bussmann fuses protecting the power legs. OAITW r.2.0 Mar 17 #11
Correct. Eko Mar 17 #12
That makes sense some, Eko Mar 17 #13
Doubtful. Probably on a branch circuit. OAITW r.2.0 Mar 17 #14
My drier seemed to want to work Eko Mar 17 #16
That's a 220V source, for sure. OAITW r.2.0 Mar 17 #17
That is what I was thinking looking at the schematic. Eko Mar 17 #18
pulled the mains and replaced them, Eko Mar 18 #21
I think you should probably get an electrician to check your entrance. OAITW r.2.0 Mar 18 #22
Yeah, no joy. Eko Mar 18 #23
Garage door openers and refrigerators are not 220V. I have never seen one that was or advertised as such. Wonder Why Apr 14 #26
Thanks, it was more of a problem that anything that took a lot of wattage wouldnt work. Eko Apr 14 #27
Update on power problems. Eko Apr 14 #25
A home electrical system, particularly one out of code, is not a location for on the job training ... marble falls Apr 14 #28
Yeah, paid an electrican and got it inspected. Eko Apr 14 #29
I've been a Machinist Mate in the Navy, Safety Officer with several companies and production engineer ... marble falls Apr 14 #30
I grew up in a huge Navy town, Eko Apr 14 #31
The two largest air forces on the planet by a long lead? USAF and the USN. marble falls Apr 14 #32
Yup, chuckled at that. Eko Apr 14 #33
How can you talk about breakers and fuses in the same device? 4dog Apr 14 #34
My bad, I had a fuse box with fuses in it and now I have a breaker box with breakers in it. Eko Apr 14 #35

sunflowerseed

(273 posts)
1. Yes, you could put the working one inplace
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:27 PM
Mar 17

Of the broken one to make sure that is the problem, take the broken one to the hardware store to make sure u get the right one.

gay texan

(2,466 posts)
19. get rid of that box NOW
Mon Mar 18, 2024, 11:50 AM
Mar 18

Get it changed out as soon as possible. Those boxes are known for starting fires

OAITW r.2.0

(24,538 posts)
24. If you have a 60/70 entrance, I'd definitely upgrade to a minimum 100Amp Service (or 200Amp) if you have future expansio
Mon Mar 18, 2024, 10:34 PM
Mar 18

The costs between 100A and 200A services are small. Bigger physical box that allows more branches. Do an audit on your typical power requirements now and, say 5 years from now. Will anything change? If not, a 100A box with circuit breakers or GFI circuit breakers are the way to go. Worth the investment.

RainCaster

(10,908 posts)
3. Yes, but...
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:31 PM
Mar 17

I've done things like that many times, but I have a lot of experience. Not an electrician, just a home owner with 40+ years of electronic design background. If you're not comfortable doing this, get an electrician.

rubbersole

(6,716 posts)
4. Could be you've lost a 'leg' of power coming to your home from the power company.
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:33 PM
Mar 17

Call the power company customer's service line. To get the 110 volt power to the dark side of your house, turn on the oven (if electric). That feeds power to the half of the panel not getting it now. Nothing 220volts will operate. There will be no problem when power is restored.
It could be your main breaker, but that's kind of rare.

Eko

(7,332 posts)
6. One of the GFI's blew on a outlet in the kitchen
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:42 PM
Mar 17

Pushed it back in then the light over the sink worked but started flikering and the whole house flikered so I cut it off.

Eko

(7,332 posts)
8. Was afraid to try it and lose all the power.
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:49 PM
Mar 17

What I have I can get by until tomorrow morning when it's daytime. I've got some of extras of the big big fuses for my main fuse I can pull it tomorrow and replace.

Eko

(7,332 posts)
10. Should I try the oven tonight or just wait till tomorrow?
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:52 PM
Mar 17

Cant even get in my car and drive as my garage has a electric garage door. I can get it open but its dang hard.

rubbersole

(6,716 posts)
15. Try it in the morning when you're ready to replace your main fuses.
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 09:20 PM
Mar 17

It can tell you if you have a 'short' that's causing the fuse to blow. If all your 110v stuff seems to operate normally, your problem is usually at the main fuses or power company side.

OAITW r.2.0

(24,538 posts)
11. Sounds like you might have Bussmann fuses protecting the power legs.
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 08:56 PM
Mar 17

pull the block out of the panel....Probably separate fuses for each of the 110 legs. that create your 220V source. Approx 3" by 3/4 in dia tubes. If 60's or 7o's, they can be easily replaced and probably should be. Replace all of the power fuses. I assume your entrance has 15-30 amp glass fuses for the branches?

Eko

(7,332 posts)
13. That makes sense some,
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 09:01 PM
Mar 17

Garage door, fridge, those could be 220 correct? So those are out. The right side of the box seems dead so prob the fuse for one of the legs is blown?

OAITW r.2.0

(24,538 posts)
14. Doubtful. Probably on a branch circuit.
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 09:11 PM
Mar 17

If you have a blown fuse, anything that runs on 220V (stove, water pumps/heaters) will be undervoltage or run strange, if at all.

OAITW r.2.0

(24,538 posts)
17. That's a 220V source, for sure.
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 10:25 PM
Mar 17

If it's humming, I think you have a fuse problem on 1 of the 110V legs. It's getting 1/2 the power that it needs to run.

Eko

(7,332 posts)
18. That is what I was thinking looking at the schematic.
Sun Mar 17, 2024, 11:49 PM
Mar 17

The leg that powers the 220 also powers the things that are out and its the entire right side of the box. Ill pull the main fuses tomorrow and replace them.

Eko

(7,332 posts)
21. pulled the mains and replaced them,
Mon Mar 18, 2024, 12:45 PM
Mar 18

turned on the kitchen light, it and fridge came on for a moment then went out.

OAITW r.2.0

(24,538 posts)
22. I think you should probably get an electrician to check your entrance.
Mon Mar 18, 2024, 01:21 PM
Mar 18

Does the stove/dryer work? If so, your problem is now isolated to the branch circuits that control the lights and fridge. While the fridge is usually on a separate branch circuit, it's possible that both are on the same branch. Are there labels for the circuits in the entrance? check for blown fuses; replacing the bussmann fuses may have generated a surge that's blown the glass fuse (If it's a 15A, I'd replace with a 20A glass fuse).

If no joy, a electrician will probably be needed to remove the entrance cover and check the wiring in the box.

Please note, I am not an electrician. I've added lines that required opening the entrance cover to mount circuit breakers, but it's easy to get a shock if you are unfamiliar with the equipment.

Wonder Why

(3,231 posts)
26. Garage door openers and refrigerators are not 220V. I have never seen one that was or advertised as such.
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 08:49 PM
Apr 14

Washers - No
Electric Dryers - yes
Gas dryers - probably no
Electric oven - yes
Gas ovens - no
Whole House A/C - yes
Room A/C - no
Wall A/C - possibly
Fridge - No
Standalone home Freezer - No
Most small kitchen appliances - No
Garage Door opener - No
Dishwasher -No
Sink Waste Disposal - No
Electric water heater - yes
Gas water heater - No

Eko

(7,332 posts)
27. Thanks, it was more of a problem that anything that took a lot of wattage wouldnt work.
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 08:56 PM
Apr 14

Or voltage? Anyways we got it fixed it seems like.

Eko

(7,332 posts)
25. Update on power problems.
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 08:29 PM
Apr 14

Finally got it fixed all the way yesterday. We replaced the fuse box in the house and were still having problems. We ended up replacing the line coming from the power meter and everything seems fine now. Almost a month with very little power. Been using a ice cooler the whole time lol. Thanks everyone for helping!
Eko.

marble falls

(57,144 posts)
28. A home electrical system, particularly one out of code, is not a location for on the job training ...
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 09:11 PM
Apr 14

... this is how seriously your local building code officials feel about it: if you use a licensed electrician, he's required to replace it.

If it's a simple thing like replacing a box, if the wiring is more 60s than 50s - it should cost around $500 or so. It'll make you glad you did just in knowing your residence is code compliant electrically, and just knowing you failed the learning on the job aspect can be a medical emergency and/or a visit from the fire dept.

My dad has an irrational lack of fear with electricity and I've told him he is in a casual relationship with electricity. About 20 - 25 years ago I was helping him move the fountain in the back yard. The soil around it was damp/wet. When he reached for the wiring in the box, I asked him if he had de-energized that circuit. He said, "if you don't touch both wires, you'll be OK!"

I said, this is AC and all you need to do is ground it and you'll know how wrong you are. He touched his wire and yelped. I flipped the breaker.

A little later we went into the house for lunch. "Guess what happened to me", he asked my mom.

"You got shocked."
"Who squealed?"
"You did, I heard you clear upstairs."

Eko

(7,332 posts)
29. Yeah, paid an electrican and got it inspected.
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 09:19 PM
Apr 14

I work on guitar amps some and know enough to get myself in trouble and am smart enough not to do it.
Thanks!

marble falls

(57,144 posts)
30. I've been a Machinist Mate in the Navy, Safety Officer with several companies and production engineer ...
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 09:30 PM
Apr 14

... what I know about electricity is I don't know about enough electricity past "de-energizing" and locking out.

Good man, I really wanted to read more from You!

Eko

(7,332 posts)
31. I grew up in a huge Navy town,
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 09:46 PM
Apr 14

Was going to join myself (half of my block and my family was in the Navy and I took NJROTC) till I figured out I liked skateboarding and guitar a bit more and they didn't let you do much of that. Mom didnt like that much. Worked out alright as I get paid from one of them alright now but I still wonder sometimes. I met some awesome and sometimes scary people especially in the 2000's. I also saw a lot of the guys come home from that boondoggle and some that didnt. Met 2 guys that had just gotten back on a boat that I wont name and was selling them some gear, asked them where they were and they said Somalia. They were fit, small and sharp as shit. I know what they were. Not many Navy goes into Somalia on land. Got to be friends with them for a long time. Good guys. Memories, memories, anyways thanks for chiming in!

4dog

(505 posts)
34. How can you talk about breakers and fuses in the same device?
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 11:25 PM
Apr 14

I thought they were apples and oranges. Sorry for late entry, just encountered.

Eko

(7,332 posts)
35. My bad, I had a fuse box with fuses in it and now I have a breaker box with breakers in it.
Sun Apr 14, 2024, 11:37 PM
Apr 14

They both do the same thing so I would say oranges to tangerines but you are correct. They are not the same thing.

Latest Discussions»Culture Forums»DIY & Home Improvement»I have an old 50's to 60'...