ADVICE FROM YOUR LOCAL ELECTRICIAN
How to fixed your tripped power
Your guide to dealing with a tripping safety switch safely – and when you should contact an electrician.
Powers out - again!
Few things are more frustrating than sitting down at home, switching something on, and suddenly – click – the power goes out. If your power trips constantly, it’s your safety switch or circuit breaker doing its job to protect you and your home.
A lot of the time, you can identify the culprit and fix it yourself with a little bit of fault finding.
Read below our tips that may be able to get your power back on – and when you need to contact us for help for the trickier problems.
Here’s what you can do before calling an electrician:
1. Identify what has tripped
First, head to your switchboard and see which switch has flicked off. It’s important to know whether it’s a safety switch or a circuit breaker:
A safety switch protects people from electric shock. You can usually spot it because it has a small “test” button on the front.
A circuit breaker protects your wiring and appliances from overload or short circuits. These don’t have a test button.
Knowing which one has tripped helps narrow down the cause.
2. Think about recent weather, or what you were using when it tripped
Power can trip for different reasons. Sometimes it’s external, like heavy rain, storms, or moisture getting into outdoor fittings. Other times, it’s simply what you were running at the time – like turning on a high-power appliance (kettle, heater, microwave, etc.). Noting what happened just before the trip can point you in the right direction.
3. Unplug your appliances and check again
If the switch keeps tripping, unplug everything that was connected to that circuit. Then try resetting the switch:
If it stays on, plug appliances back in one at a time.
If it trips again when a particular item is plugged in, you’ve found the faulty appliance.
If the switch still won’t stay on even with everything unplugged, the problem may be in the wiring or the switchboard itself, and that’s when you need a licensed electrician.
The Common Culprits
When your power keeps cutting out, it usually comes down to a few familiar troublemakers. Some of the most common causes include:
(hover for more info)
- Faulty Appliances
kettles, toasters, dishwashers, fridges or heaters often develop internal faults
- Moisture
water getting into outdoor power points, garden lighting, or roof spaces after rain
- Damaged wiring
cracked insulation, rodent damage, or wear and tear in older homes
- External lights or outlets
sensors, external lights, external power points or isolators
- Hot water systems
faulty elements in hot water systems
- Faulty safety switch
if the switch itself is worn or faulty, it may trip without cause
- Nearby lightning strikes
nearby lightning strikes can damage safety switches
- Temporary faults
like a one-off power surge or lightning strike during a storm
Download our handy flowchart
We’ve made a handy flowchart you can download and follow to help try and get your power switched back on.
When to Call an Electrician
If your power trips constantly and you can’t trace it to a single appliance, the issue may be with your home’s wiring, circuit breakers, or switchboard. These problems aren’t DIY jobs – they need a licensed electrician.
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