# "electrical storm" in my breaker box--



## buddyreid (Mar 29, 2008)

weird--
i wacked my head on a lamp the other night and the bulb started dimming and brightening... thought it was just the bulb, but then all the lights in the house were doing the same thing. 

the same thing happened a while back when i plugged a sander into the same circuit that the overhead lights are on. 

when i go to check the breaker box, it looks like there was an electrical storm inside of it. specifically, the connection between the breaker and the breaker box seems loose. 

i cut off the breaker to be safe.
i guess i probably need a new box altogether?

my main question is-- why would hitting my head on the lamp or overloading with a sander cause the symptoms to show up? and why would they continue afterward? seems odd to me...

thanks for your help...


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## Square Eye (Mar 29, 2008)

Is that breaker box a Federal Pacific brand?


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## glennjanie (Mar 29, 2008)

Or is the wire aluminum? Either way a complete replace is in order.
Except for one other little variable. I had that problem once and the utility had to come out and reconnect the  wires at the mast; one had become loose over the years.
Glenn


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## triple D (Mar 29, 2008)

I would say it's either a bad lamp with a short or a sheer coincidence, but definitely seems a problem with your box.  When you demand power on a circuit with a bad connection at the breaker, you create an extreme amount of heat and arcing.  This however, does not dictate a panel replacement based on the information you've given.  Can you describe as clearly as possible, the picture of what you see wrong inside the panel.  For example, the connection of the wire to the breaker, or the connection of the breaker to the panel bus, or the connection of one of the main feeders to the panel.  Also, the brand of panel and a rough guess on the year it was installed would help. Good luck...this information will allow us to give you further assistance.


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