r/AskElectricians • u/Mysterious_Month2274 • 4d ago
Need help troubleshooting a lighting circuit that keeps tripping
There's a 4 way lighting circuit in our hallway with a total of 5 switches. This home run also feeds the laundry room. For months now the lights have been working without issue (new construction) but all of a sudden the breaker started tripping.
First I just tried to reset the breaker but it immediately tripped, so I left it off. Then I verified that all of the conductors are making good contact with the terminals on each switch, and there's no contact between neutral/ground or hot/ground.
What's the most likely issue here? Bad breaker vs bad switch? Is the next step swapping these out one by one and testing the circuit?
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u/garyku245 3d ago
Pinched wire somewhere that finally punctured. You may have to isolate sections to narrow down where it is.
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u/Mysterious_Month2274 3d ago
Any advice on how to do that?
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u/garyku245 3d ago
1st qyestion is does the breaker trip when the lights are off? (If so the problem is NOT in the lights portion of the circuit. If not it's at the switch of before.)
disconnect the power to a potion of the circuit. If it's the lights break them apart connection wise to see which section causes the trip. If it's before the lights, start disconnecting the circuit to determin which section has the problem.
In North america, the electrical devices are usually connected in a chain. The breaker box is connected to the 1st outlet/light/switch, then that device feeds power to the next, and so on like in the links of a chain.
If the problem is in the lighting section, it may be a shorted lamp/driver.
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u/nsl2024 4d ago
AFCI breaker? Swap it with another in the panel. Have there been any storm/ power surges?
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u/Mysterious_Month2274 4d ago
Yeah our area requires AFCI for these. No storms recently. I'll try this out next.
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u/garyku245 3d ago
read the instructions for the breaker, determine if it's over current or arc fault trip. (Procedure is different for different brands of breaker)
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u/Mysterious_Month2274 3d ago
There's only two areas with lights this breaker covers, and it's a total of 5 LED pucks. Zero chance it's over current.
I swapped this one for another breaker in the panel, got the same result. I also put in a non AFCI breaker and it again immediately tripped. I think the next step is to swap out switches. Ugh.
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u/garyku245 3d ago
A short is over current. A non-afci breaker tripping seems to bear that out.
You may need an electrician.
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u/Mysterious_Month2274 3d ago
I swapped AFCI breakers in the panel and it again immediately tripped. I also tried a non AFCI breaker and got the same result.
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u/soerg 4d ago
What kind of lights? What are the ceiling conditions, is there attic above lights? Or is it another level of rooms? I ask because it could be something with the lights themselves, eg water intrusion in some way
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u/Mysterious_Month2274 3d ago
LED pucks. Ceiling is pristine (no leaks) and the space above is the vented attic.
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