Analysis of the Causes of Tripping of Circuit Breakers at Home

At home, a circuit breaker may trip due to three main reasons: overloading, a short circuit, or a leakage issue. The first reason, overloading, happens when multiple high-power appliances simultaneously exceed the circuit breaker's rated current. Secondly, a short circuit could occur either within an electrical device or due to a faulty connection in the hidden wiring. If no devices are plugged in and the breaker still trips, it’s likely a short circuit in the wiring itself. Additionally, if the breaker includes a leakage protection feature, it might trip due to a small leakage current, typically around 30mA.

In the case of overloading, reduce the number of active appliances and upgrade to a higher-rated circuit breaker, ensuring your wiring isn't too thin and matches the breaker's capacity. For a short circuit in an appliance, repairing the device should resolve the issue. However, if the hidden wiring is the culprit, this requires professional inspection. If the problem stems from leakage, test each appliance individually to identify the problematic device. Hidden wiring leakage issues are generally beyond the scope of amateurs and require expert intervention. Keep in mind that switches without leakage protection only offer basic safety measures.

Identify whether your switch has leakage protection by checking its width; these models tend to be wider and often feature a small button on them. If you suspect a short circuit in the hidden wiring, use a multimeter to measure the resistance between the live wire and neutral wire or ground wire. Homes typically connect appliances, lights, and other devices, so disconnect everything before testing. Ideally, the resistance should be very high, nearly infinite. A reading of just a few ohms indicates a short circuit. Leakage faults, however, cannot be detected using a multimeter. Instead, a megohmmeter should be used to test the resistance between the live wire and ground. National standards require this value to be no less than 0.5M. While leakage isn’t necessarily a critical issue, it prevents the use of circuit breakers with leakage protection. If someone gets an electric shock, the breaker won’t trip. This isn’t an immediate concern as long as all devices are properly grounded. Here, grounding refers to the system's grounding wire, not burying wires in ditches. The TT system only uses grounding wires, while reliable protection is ensured in the TN system.

Understanding these factors helps maintain household electrical safety. If you're unsure about handling such problems yourself, always consult a professional electrician to avoid risks.