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[Shop-talk] Replacing a breaker?

Subject: [Shop-talk] Replacing a breaker?
From: scott.hall.personal at gmail.com (Scott Hall)
Date: Thu, 07 Apr 2011 12:41:50 -0400
References: <151942.796.qm@web161406.mail.bf1.yahoo.com>
So we had some impressive storms here a few night ago and the power went 
out.  That's normal, it does that every time there's a storm.  Also, 
each time this happens, there's a power surge right before the power 
goes out (the issue seems to be a transformer (?) at the end of the 
street--the gray cylinders on the poles).  Usually this fries a VCR, etc.

This time a breaker int the main box has flipped and won't stay 'unflipped'.

Now...before I just Google "how to replace a breaker" and do that, I 
thought prudence dictated I ask someone smarter than me (that's you 
guys  :-) ).

This is a 15-amp breaker, I think (it's the smallest kind in the box), 
and the only thing it's powering are three overhead light fixtures and a 
wall-socket.  There's nothing plugged into the socket, and all the 
fixtures are off.  One of the fixtures is a remote-controlled fan/light 
combo, but I've got the wall switch that controls that fixture in the 
off position.

So...my (completely uninformed and only one 'Theory of Electrical 
Engineering' class, many years ago) deduction is that the breaker itself 
must be bad, since there's nothing on the other side of it drawing 
current that could have shorted and now be open, which will cause a fire 
when I swap the breaker...unless maybe a wire in the wall broke, or 
something.

So...do you guys have any thoughts before I have at this?  Am I missing 
things here?  I'm about to kill myself and burn down my house?  I should 
be testing with a multimeter or something?

Thanks.

Scott

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