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About PASCACK VALLEY ELECTRIC Bob Mossman
Expertise
Licensed Master Electrician (29 years) 6165B Contractor in Closter New Jersey with 38 years total experience in Residential - Commercial - Industrial work. Emergency Service - General trouble shooting and repair work - Paddle fans - Kitchen & Bath exhaust fans - AC lines - Smoke detectors - Telephone lines - Cable TV lines - Computer network cabling - Exterior lighting - Recessed lighting - Security lighting - (200 - 150 - 100 amp service up grades) - Electric Heat - New circuits - New appliance hook ups - Back up generators - and more ! FREE ESTIMATES 201-358-1552 www.pascackvalleyelectric.com
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Experience
Licensed contractor in Closter New Jersey.
Education/Credentials
"The Frank Williams School of Electrical Construction". My dear old boss is 96 and still going God Bless him. I started working for "Tenafly Electric" right out of high school at 19. He was tough but I learned more working for him in 8 and half years than most guys. We did mostly industrial work while doing some commercial and residential so I was fortunate to be exposed to all 3 areas of electrical construction. The guys I worked with were all good guys and I stay in touch with some of them still. Most of us went into our own buisness's which says something about the caliber of the guys I worked with. We had some interesting clients : Wella Corp. of shampoo fame, Farah Fawcett etc, I didn't buy shampoo for 10 years, it was a great place to work. Pan Am the X airline just before they went under, another great place to work, nice clean environment. C&C Metals, the largest button manufacturer in the US, a not so clean environment but a very interesting place to work, lots of machine's cranking out buttons of all kinds but you had to be on your toes, it was a potentially dangerous place to be . All kinds of action going on around you.
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You are here: Experts > Home/Garden > Home Improvement/Repair > Electrical Wiring in the Home > Buzzing from service panel
Expert: PASCACK VALLEY ELECTRIC Bob Mossman - 10/31/2009
Question
QUESTION: Well I finally opened up the service panel to see if the wire to the AC breaker was loose. I had noticed a buzzing noise coming from the service panel when the AC came on.
I didn't take the breaker out, maybe I should have, but I tried turning the screw on the breaker that holds the wire with moderate force and it didn't turn. I'm not sure what else the noise could be. I noticed two 12 ga wires going nowhere in the box, and a larger wire also going nowhere.
Here is what the inside of the service panel looks like, and it is pretty dirty. http://tinypic.com/a/1dx1l/4
You can see little bits of things down the middle of the the panel where the breakers connect. There are spider webs all over the place.
Thanks for any help on this.
ANSWER: KC,
It looks like you've had some critters in there. The buzzing could also be coming from the main but its more likely the breaker for the AC. The buzzing is typical of a large load first starting up when its drawing the highest amount of current then it quickly subsides. Its not normal but it does happen and it doesn't necessarily mean there is anything wrong with the breaker it just means its making a buzzing noise. If however the breaker starts tripping when it shouldn't for instance when the AC first turns on then a new breaker should be installed. The wires going no where may have been hooked up at one time but no longer. You might want to trace them and see where they go. You could tape up the ends and leave them in the panel or you could remove them from the panel entirely and back to where ever they come from.
Bob
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thanks for the reply. I was wondering if I should clean the middle part, which I think is called the bus bar. I also forgot to mention it, but I noticed that one breaker was a little loose. It was the housing of the breaker that was a little loose, and not where it connects to the bus bar.
Lastly, and I'm not sure if anything is really wrong, but I noticed a few days ago that my computer went off and quickly came back on. I could have happened few more times, but I'm not sure. It happened so fast I couldn't tell if all the power went off or if it was just that circuit. I say circuit because my VCR was plugged into a different outlet, but it went off too and it is on the same circuit.
Thanks for any help.
Answer
KC,
Sticking a shop vac in there isn't a bad idea, just make sure its plastic.
The breaker may not be attached properly on the opposite end from where it attaches to the buss. Try reattaching it.
As far as the circuit going off, if it continues then you have a connection issue some where in the house. If it doesn't then it was probably just the utility.
Bob
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