What a trip means
A safety switch watches the circuits it protects and turns the power off very quickly when it detects a problem on them. The trip itself is not the fault; the cause is somewhere on the circuits it protects.
The cause could be almost anywhere on those circuits. It might be an appliance, a light fitting or power point outside that has let water in, or something in the wiring inside a wall or ceiling. Several circuits often share one safety switch, so the room where the power went off is not always where the problem is.
That is why a tripping safety switch is a job for a licensed electrician. Finding the cause means testing the circuits, and that is electrical work. In Queensland, electrical work must be done by a licensed electrician, and DIY electrical work is illegal.
Resetting it once
If a safety switch trips, you can switch it back on once. If it stays on, note what was happening at the time it tripped and keep an eye on it.
If it trips again straight away, or trips again later that day, leave it off and call a licensed electrician. Don't keep flicking it back on, don't hold the lever up, and don't try to stop it tripping some other way. Repeated tripping needs a licensed electrician to find the cause.
Call straight away if
- You can smell burning, or see scorch marks or melted plastic on a power point, switch, appliance or the board
- Something sparked when the switch tripped
- There is water near a power point, light or appliance on that circuit
- Someone felt a tingle or a shock
In any of these cases, leave the safety switch off and stay away from whatever looks damaged. If someone has been hurt, get medical help first.
What we need to know
The more detail you can give, the less time goes into narrowing the problem down on site. When you call, try to have answers to these:
- Which safety switch trips, going by its label on the board
- When it trips: in the rain, at night, when a particular appliance is running, or at random
- How long it has been happening, and whether it is getting more frequent
- Whether any electrical work, renovation or new appliance came before it started
- What stops working when it trips
A clear photo of the closed switchboard, taken from the front, also helps. Noting these things down is all the investigating a householder should do.
What finding the fault involves
Fault finding means working through the circuits the safety switch protects until the cause turns up. Sometimes that is quick. Sometimes it takes a while, because the place where the symptom shows is not where the cause is.
Every P4 job is quoted, but a fault is hard to price before anyone has looked at it. The details above make that conversation easier. See home maintenance and repairs for the other small jobs P4 handles on the same kind of visit.
The test button
Each safety switch has a test button, usually marked "T" or "Test". The Electrical Safety Office suggests safety switches on all circuits and testing them every three months (ESO frequently asked questions).
Pressing the button should make the switch trip. You then switch it back on. If it doesn't trip when you press the button, that is also a reason to call a licensed electrician.
If some circuits have no safety switch
Plenty of older boards have no safety switches, or only cover the power points. Only a licensed electrician can install a safety switch. Rental homes need safety switches on power point circuits within 90 days after a tenancy starts.
If your board has no room for more, or still runs on old fuses, see switchboard upgrades. ## Timing
P4 works Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm. After-hours work can't be promised. If a safety switch keeps tripping outside those hours, leave it off and call once P4 is open again.
