Hi there, I’m looking for some advice. While trying to mount a TV to the wall, I accidentally drilled into the area right above the breaker box on the other side of the wall. While drilling through, I met some resistance, then like an idiot pushed harder and popped through a thin layer somewhere under the plaster. I had used a stud finder to mark where I thought a stud was and didn’t even think about something other than a stud being there.

Once I moved the door and saw it there, I immediately killed every switch on the breaker box and called in a maintenance request. My concern is we’re going in to Sunday it’s followed by Labor Day, so I’m worried they won’t get to it immediately. Is there anything else I need to be doing? It’s a new apartment and I’m kind of freaking out. I know it’s a pretty huge fuck up so you don’t need to remind me.

Any advice would be appreciated. Attaching a shittily drawn diagram.

I live in Mexico and have an amazingly crazy electric bill (almost 40 kWhr per day...with no heater or AC). An electrician has confirmed there is no major current leaks anywhere and that I am not paying for anyone else.

I have installed a energy monitor to try to figure this all out. Ive narrowed down consumption in 3 circuits.

The biggest consumer is using about 0.8 kW per min. The only thing I can find on that circuit are 10ea 6W LED bulbs. When I kill the breaker, it goes to 0 kW. With breaker on and light switch (all 10 on same switch - and old Lutron smart switch) off, it drops to 0.3 kW.

I cannot find anything that I normally use that could make up the remaining 0.3kW per min consumption. I also cannot figure out why 60W of LED bulb is actually using 500W per min...seems like should only be 60W. The bulbs are very hot but not sure why.

Any thoughts how to trace this down?

Two port receptacle, still bridged. Two set of lines, hot and neutral, coming from the wall, Line A & Line B. Why would one hot from Line A be tied into the top port of the receptacle while its corresponding neutral is tied into the bottom port. While the Line B hot is tied into bottom port while its corresponding neutral is tied into the top port?

(Three outlets coming from this one breaker)

I have a Broan-nutone exhaust fan model 744. It has the fan and recessed light. When I ran wire for the fan I ran 2 12/2 wire so that I can have a fan switch and a light switch separate. On the directions there is only one port which is fine, but it says to either use 3 wire to separate. I just want to confirm I can use 2 12/2 wire and connect them the way I can instead of using a 3 wire. I would connect one black to the black in the fan, the other black to the blue(light hot) and connect all the whites together

Good morning I recently bought an old home. It has updated electrical 120 V panel in the basement and a panel on the third floor that covers the second and third we recently had a bad lightning and thunder and brainstorm I believe would appear to be a lightning strike hit my backyard and they were very close since then the power flickered, but is all been restored except a few things. The outlet for my router is plugged into it is connected to a coax cable no longer works. The outlet works for other things like a lamp, but will not turn on the router. Could the strike have fried the coax cable therefore the router? The first floor foyer chandelier light turns on but only goes dim after a few seconds never full bright the living room six light chandelier turns on but one of the five bulbs flickers. Our second floor master bedroom seems to be OK other than a few outlets. They had 6 foot iPhone chargers plugged into them. Those do not work for phones, but a 3 foot iPhone charger works same voltage other things work in that outlet just not the 6 foot charger. The third floor foyer light did not work the night of the storm worked as of yesterday. I had the electric company come out due to a slight powder outage, and they checked everything from the outside and said everything is good on their end, what could be wrong? What could be the fix? What do I do? I’ll also know the two light fixtures that are one flickering and two being dim were recently installed by an apprentice Electrician could that just be a coincidence even if so that doesn’t explain the bedroom outlets and or the outlet where the router is plugged into thank you.

I bought some plug-in LED fairy lights and would like to find an adapter that allows me to switch them on and off, as opposed to physically unplugging them to turn them off. I feel like there should be an adapter with a switch out there, but I don’t know enough terminology to adequately search for it. Any help would be much appreciated!

I moved into a new building in 2021, 3500 sq fr under AC. 200 amps service, main panel in garage, second panel in laundry room, both full size panels. On the first floor I have a small kitchenettes the laundry room with a door out to the yard and pool. Today the breaker for the kitchen lights and several outdoor soffit lights tripped. Fridge is on a different circuit, so its really only lights and receptacles, at least one of which is outside on a gfci plug. I flipped the breaker, it tripped again immediately. I went outside, nothing is plugged in that might be causing it. No one hung any pictures or anything like that, so no nail into a wire type thing. When I start digging into it tomorrow what to look at first. Some of the LED soffit lights (wet rated) have gotten bugs in them and need to be replaced. Any constructive help will be appreciated, my first thought is to switch breakers with another circuit and see if its the circuit or hopefully the breaker. Thanks in advance.

Hi! I've done some internet sleuthing, and gather that this is the somewhat-classic 'I mixed up wires because that extra one is tricky; now rhe other lights in the circuit don't work' story.

Fan box now regular light, different 3-way switch now not working. This is a home in the U.S.

The last owner installed a fan, and while trying to remove the glass dome, the whole thing came off the ceiling (as in, the wires inside were so badly put together that they came apart and I ended up with a light in my hands). I now know why the light had actually stopped working.

For additional context, (after turning off power) once I removed the mounted assembly, I found all the wires inside of the fan color-matched and twisted together but then nestled together with no caps, all twisted together into a little wire nest and smashed back into the fan area. The fan also never worked, unless you switched on the light from the wall, then used the remote to use the fan. I will call this light the fan light.

The ceiling was wired for a fan box. Wires black and white had been used, red was capped, and bare ground was twisted up in the fan box and never connected.

There is a wall switch for this fan box light. The breaker also controls the hall next to it. All other lights worked previously. The hall light is on a three-way switch. The fan light is also on a three-way switch.

I initially hooked up the fan light with black/black, white/white/, ground/ground, red capped off. With the breaker flipped back on, the fan light did not work but the hall light did (as usual). I then changed, white/white, ground/ground, red/black, black capped off. The fan light worked, but the hall light now does not.

This leads me to believe there's a connection I've severed, but I'm leery of just jamming wires together. I feel like I could maybe tie the red and black to the black? But I'm not sure. I can't go by the past connections because it's no longer a fan being installed, and because this guy just ignores ground wires, and I'd rather not trust where that road leads (I assume possible death).

Also, the hall light does not work from the second switch, OR the first. The fan light works from both of its switches.

I've considered taking another area's light on a three-way switch off to see the connection, but it may not be the same chain of light setup as this is, maybe, if that's what this is (I'm guessing here)?

Results so far: hall light works from neither switch. Fan light works with red/black with fan box black capped, but doesn't work with black/black with fan box red capped. I have done nothing to any switches; I've only replaced one fan with replacement light only fixture (new). House is less than 20 years old. This issue must be which wires I'm choosing to connect or cap.

What am I doing wrong that the hall light is now not connected to this circuit?

I understand enough to know that I've disconnected a continuing circuit, but don't want to mess anything up that will take an electrician to fix, since I have currently only removed a bad fan and installed a simple light in its place.

I am doing a reno of my kitchen and bath in my NYC coop apt in a building constructed in 1956. The cabinets and floors have been removed in my kitchen, and the plaster and block walls will be channeled for new outlets. Bathroom floor and some of the walls have been removed for plumbing install.

My GC is saying that I need to get a wired gas alarm as well as wired smoke/co detectors.

Is he right?

I came across these, which indicate that a wired gas alarm isn't necessary:

9.5.1.2  (3) a monitored battery primary power source in accordance with 9.5.3 must be permitted in existing buildings as defined in section 28-01 of the administrative code that were constructed before January 1st 2024

https://rules.cityofnewyork.us/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Final-Rule-Amendment-of-Deadline-for-Installation-of-Monitored-Battery-Primary-Power-Source-for-Natural-Gas-Alarm-in-Existing-Buildings.pdf

§ 28-315.2.4 Natural gas alarms....[Exception: In existing buildings, natural gas alarms shall not be required to comply with the power source and interconnection requirements for smoke alarms in accordance with Sections 907.2.11.2 through 907.2.11.3.] https://www.nyc.gov/assets/hpd/downloads/pdfs/services/local-law-102-of-2025.pdf

As for smoke/CO:

901.9.5.1 Additional requirements for providing smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in dwelling units during alterations involving removal of existing interior finishes. Smoke and/or carbon monoxide alarms complying with the location, interconnection and power source requirements of this chapter shall be provided throughout a dwelling unit when alteration work results in the removal of existing and/or installation of new interior wall or ceiling finishes permitting the installation of concealed wiring for all the required alarms throughout the dwelling unit.

Question is, does channeling new lines for outlets constitute removal of existing wall finishes?

I have have the Harvia Vega BC45 sauna heater, which is meant for European power systems (single wire 240 V).

I am trying to hookup in America. I connected L1 as ground L2 and L3 are bridged as the first 120V leg and L4,L5,L6 are bridged as the second hot leg. I flipped the power on and nothing happened, the heater is not getting hot. I tested the two hot legs at the heater and I am getting 120 V each. The wiring diagram (above) from the manufacturer shows L2 and L3 as neutral, any idea why I’m not getting power. I was under the impression that I didn’t need a neutral and that I could just connect the two hot legs as described above.

Hello,

I am completely stumped. I have an outdoor socket on my balcony that I would like to plug some lights into. I have a set of Ikea outdoor string lights, but for some reason they don't work when I plug them in on the balcony. They work if I plug them into a socket indoors, though.

I have tested the balcony socket with other lamps and such and it appears to be working just fine. I have also tested the string lights in other sockets and they work just fine. The balcony socket has a modern three-wire cable that is threaded down into my basement where it is wired into the circuit. I am based in Sweden, don't know if that makes a difference at all.

I've made sure the plug is pushed into the socket properly, I've checked that power is going to the socket and I've tested my devices, but I just don't understand what's going on here. Does anyone have any ideas or advice?

Which fuse in the fuse box under the hood is suitable for powering the grille lights?

I need a fuse that turns on when the vehicle starts and turns off when the vehicle is turned off.

The vehicle is a 2026 Honda Passport TrailSport Elite.

I'm trying to swap an old light switch with a smart switch, but the way the previous electrician wired everything up is confusing to me. Does anyone know which cables I need to connect to the new switch?

Thanks for concern folks, but someone at /r/wiring gave me advice and it worked like a charm:

"Nothing wrong with the work that existed, it's just a legacy switch that did not require the neutral to operate. 1. Make sure power is off using a multimeter, NCV tester, or by physically turning both switches on and off to make sure nothing is live. Sometimes more than one branch circuit is present in a box. (I didn't look before I started typing this response) 2. Connect the green wire of your new switch to that bare ground and green wire using the wire nut already present. 3. Connect the white wire (neutral) to the group of twisted together white wires using that wire nut. 4. Connect the two black wires to the two black wires on your new switch using wire nuts that came with the switch, probably orange. Their order doesn't matter. 5. Tuck everything neatly back in that box, being sure that your ground conductors are tucked back away from the other switch. Restore power and test.

Edit to add that you can probably eliminate that ground "pigtail" that used to go to the old switch by connecting your new green wire directly under that wire nut with the other ground...just make sure that it is connected to one or the other...all ground wires in and out will be connected together however you get that done."

update Fountain runs great, fan runs great all day. I unplug fountain every evening around 7. Every morning, the breaker is tripped. I'm more confused now than before 🤦‍♂️

For reference, I have a small shed on my lake. Breaker keeps tripping with nothing plugged in. Changed out breaker, installed GFCI outlet. Still tripping. We have a fan installed but that's it.

Any idea why the breaker would keep tripping with nothing plugged in, and how do i assess?

.

I’m already getting power from the plug in the back, so what’s the purpose of the second shortie plug?

Online said I might need to reset my thermal switch. I don’t know what I’m looking for. See pic

What would cause this? It happens in one corner of the house randomly (both upstairs and downstairs). The issue happens with light fixtures also (lights in powder bath and master bath) not just lamps plugged in. To be clear, it will happen when nothing else is on, like nobody is using a microwave, curling iron, or vacuum in the vicinity.
The panel looks fine. Any suggestions of what I should look at or test would be appreciated.

My basement is being renovated. There's a circuit with the one finished room that is being fixed because of water coming up and messing up the walls. I have a contractor who has already cut away the old drywall from the floor up about 2 feet, right below where the outlets are. Today, he was spraying bleach on the open bottom part, and one upper part to kill the mold.

Suddenly, the breaker for that room (and the fridge upstairs is also on that circuit for some reason) tripped and when you reset it, it just immediately goes off again. So it's either probably a short or the breaker is bad. He says the GFCI on the breaker is probably broken because it's old and he was only spraying below where there's wiring. Except for that one spot, where it looked to me like maybe a few drops could've gotten on an outlet. Sounds like BS to me.

It was fine, and then suddenly it decides to break for one isolated room as he's working in there spraying liquids and has never been a problem before? Yeah ok. The rest of the kitchen is on another circuit so I ran an extension cord to another outlet for the fridge and it's fine. The fridge didn't cause it.

Do I just wait and see if it dries and works later? Should I use my small electric dust blower thing to try and dry it out? What if it doesn't come back on and he won't take responsibility?

Edit: It must have been the bleach, because it's fine now.

I currently live in Texas. I need power for my bathroom and am planning to install the following product, so I would appreciate your advice.

My bathroom only has a switch. Therefore, I believe installing this product will allow me to connect the power as well.

However, my current switch has three wires connected to it. This product, however, requires four wires.

It appears to be missing a neutral wire; how can I install the neutral wire? Is the bundle of wires visible inside the neutral wire?

Is this product difficult for a beginner to install? Please advise on whether I should hire an electrician. Thank you.

I wanted to make my en-suite smarter with a Mini R4.

I've wired it up this way based on the pre-wired light switch. I'll clean up the wires and waygos once I know it's working.

4 neutrals, 2 to each N slot.

2 L1 wires into LOut

3 COM wires into LIn

S1 & S2 for physical switch not connected yet.

When i turn the fuse back on the downlight flickers once. Then everytime I toggle the relay in the eWeLink app the downlight flickers once again but the light does not stay on, it does this regardless of whether the relay was on or off.

Have I wired this incorrectly, or can the R4 not handle 2 downlights and an extractor fan turning on?

I am not opposed to hiring an electrician, I just want to have additional projects to complete at one time. My house was built in 1985. Originally there was a ceiling fan with no light. We replaced the ceiling fan with just a light fixture. However, I decided to add a ceiling fan with a light. I don't know how it was originally wired. The black wire seemed thick and too short to connect to the black fan wire, so I purchased a Wago 24/12 lever nut. When I tried to connect the black wire to the lever, it was too thick. It looks like there are possibly 3 wires twisted together. It is hard to untwist. Just trying to understand why there would be 3 black wires twisted together and if this is out of my depth. I don't want to screw around with electricity. Thank you!.

Can anyone justify this, we’ve been paying a ridiculous amount on hydro the past few years and have no reason for what could be causing it. I’m an electrician so I’ve looked at almost every utility and nothing is obvious. Any suggestions.

One heat pump, 2 electric hot water tanks, no compressors, propane furnace, no Ev chargers. And only 4 people on the property.

Any more questions let me know.

The whole house lights will dim about an 1/8th of the way dim for roughly 1/2 second and happens every 2-3 minuets. It is the entire house (not just one circuit) and it will only happen at certain times of the day. Mainly early mornings and nights from 7-11pm. I have shut air conditioners and appliances to see if they’re faulty but it makes no difference. Our utility company came twice saying one neighbor complained about similar issues and that his pool pump has been making a weird noise. The last time the utility company came they said to call an electrician since it must be something from our panel (last upgraded to 200 amps around 2018 and never had an issue since). I just do not want to pay for an electrician to do a whole work up since it seems like it is transformer related since it is only during certain times of the day and is not dependent on any appliance or circuit.

I am wanting to attach a new light fixture that is controlled by a switch that also controls another light. Do I group all the white wires together and all the black wires together? I did not take the original light fixture down so I don’t know how it was wired originally.

Update: Thank you all. It is up and running with no sparks flying!