Some of my Electricity is Out!

[daveamkrayoguy]

My wife called to tell me at work that the lights in the bathroom didn't work (suggesting that all those LED's up in there all burned out at the same time!) and I came home to find the front porch light off but the switch for it was on...

 

My bedroom light doesn't go on and a couple outlets dont' work--the one for my stereo set and the one behind the bed that I plug the iPads & sometimes my phone in... But the other two work, one unused one next to the bed and behind the dresser for my clock and my lamp...

 

And not only doesn't the bathroom lighting work over the mirror, there is no heat lamp or fan, or the electrical outlet our power toothbrushes and night light there are plugged into...

 

The plug behind the couch doesn't work for the lamp next to it or the front room light over the door in what's really not a front hall, that overhead light in that corner there tries to light up the whole living room, really genereously to a fault, so I avoid turning it on unless I really need it...

 

So ditto for the outlet by the front door controlled by a wall switch...

 

And, oh, yes, I played around with every switch in the breaker box, even at the expense of resetting clocks here and there, and the clothes dryer turning off and having to be restarted back on a couple times...

 

So, guys, help me--what is wrong, and what should I do?!

 

 

 

-- Dave

 

 

 

[fisherpaykel]

some outlets out

Call the power company as a first step, I have had a partial power failure where that happened.  Also if you have not done so yet maybe turn the main breaker off and then back on, I don't know if only one side of the breaker can trip off without the other but worth a try. Also turn off and back on the breakers for the affected circuits.

 

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

Forgot to mention: the hall going to the bathroom and bedrooms, the overhead light doesn't work...

Turns out the unused outlet next to the bed doesn't work--well, if the plug next to the couch in the next room won't function, then easy to see that they're on the same line, so luckily an extension cord from another bedroom provides power for my stereo set-up--Oh, how I could never live without all that!

Yes, I flipped each breaker switch, and nothing happened from it, and I don't want to cut off all the power in the whole house, as I'm afraid it won't solve anything--so calling an electrician would be best...

-- Dave

 

[arbilab]

If 240V appliances-- stove, dryer, waterheater-- work normally, power company can't help you.  If all those are gas, possibility you have lost one hot leg somewhere between the pole and the load side of the breaker box.  Good thing the fridge still works eh?

 

The master switch (if equipped) is supposed to trip both legs if one leg faults, but can't be counted on to do so.  I mean, if you have power you're supposed to have all of it and you don't, so you can't count on that either.

 

[ozzie908]

Same as this

About 10 years ago had the same issue in my restaurant it turned out some local power line was ripped down by a falling tree it managed to avoid 2 of the 3 phases hence the phase that provided certain items was not working until it was repaired by the power company.
Same as you I checked all the breakers did my nut in as the Burglar alarm was on the phase that didn't work it bleeped constantly...

Austin

 

[jamiel]

Make sure the electric meter is fully engaged; that is, push in the round dome to make sure one side hasn't come loose. Had a garage apartment once where the stairs up interfered slightly with the dome of the electric meter and from time to time took out 1/2 of the circuits.

 

[mattl]

Sounds like you lost one leg of your power supply.  In a circuit panel half of 110v curcuits oare on one side ot the 220v supply coming into the home, the rest of the other.  Sounds like a call to DTE is in order.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

Well, guess what happened after making that particular appointment with DTE Online?

I go in that very bathroom to take my shower (after getting my daughter to take a bath in there, in the dark) and even though it was getting a bit light out, I flipped the switch (you know how during a power outage you forget there's no electricity but you habitually "turn on a light, anyway") and the light went on...

In fact, everything that I'd checked, and could check, or at least wanted to check, came on back to NORMAL! I will plug in my stereo rig later, and the porch light has a sensor that goes on at darkness, so somehow the problem fixed itself...

Or maybe the capability exists to have "partial power" like that, as I thought the problem was all in the breaker box, while the Electric Company's Website asked about down wires or anything obstructed by tree branches (we had some cut around, over and under all our supply lines a couple days ago) while it was clear from what looking out whatever window or door I could do, I could plainly see, Not...

And if only you saw me bursting out of the bathroom telling my wife that the lights worked (& maybe that I could post me enthralled in rejoicing in what it seemed "that" type of "miracle", given the way I was "not really dressed" at Dirty Laundry!)

But, of course, maybe this (the night light was noticeably on with the glowing red and green LED’s) should have tipped me off:

-- Dave[this post was last edited: 10/25/2019-15:28]

 

[cornutt]

Do you have any lights that seem to be glowing unusually bright? Or have you noticed that lights go on and off as 240V things like the furnace or oven cycle on and off?

 

[easy]

partial power outage

One of my friends had this happen last week and was equally confused. Turns out she had TWO electric lines coming in from the street kind of twisted together) and only one of them was out. If this was your problem, maybe your power company fixed the problem one and hence the sudden "miracle" of the lights.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

Well, when I got home from work my wife told me the power company had seemingly been outside at the PM time of the time they'd promised to come, prompting my wondering why I hadn't seen anyone from there that morning...

Here are those LED lights in that very light I speak of, and was still shocked at the thought that they (and the front porch light, equipped with a sensor) could have all had burned out all at once, whereas a sensor-equipped one over the side door was still on, though that one tends to be on more than the front, as it's darker over there and it's hard to get the bulb in the socket with the sensor facing away from the house...

No, no brights get brighter in any extraordinary way, sometimes my programmed CD player would be off, with only the LED by the power being on, and I think a surge from our dryer going off, then automatically on when using the automatic dryness could cause that--I remember programming 10 tracks on a CD that had 12 songs, and that's what made me remember that I forgot the last two...

-- Dave