Electrical Panel Repair in Olympia, Washington

An electrical panel, also known as a breaker box or fuse box, accepts electricity from the power grid and routes it safely to the different electrical circuits in your house. The electrical panel box should be made of metal and painted gray. If you open it up, you should see rows of switches. These switches are circuit breakers, and each of them manages the flow of electricity to a different part of the house. If you don’t see switches and instead have glass fuses, you definitely will need to install a new electrical panel to improve the safety in your home.

The electrical panel should also have one large switch at the top. This main circuit breaker controls the flow of electricity to the breaker box itself, so flipping the switch will turn off the power supply to the entire home. Older homes will not have a main circuit breaker and it is recommended that you install a new panel or breaker box as the only way to turn off the electrical supplying your home is if the power company comes and disconnects you. This is a serious fire hazard and the NFPA highly recommends having a main breaker panel in your home. If you have no main breaker or a fuse box and you get a modern electrical panel installation that meets current code you can often get a discount on your home insurance because your house fire risk is decreased. 

An electrical panel provides power to the entire home. Every outlet, electrical fixture, and hard-wired appliance receives power via one of the circuits controlled by the breaker box or fuse box via dedicated electrical wiring.

If you've ever had the power go out in one part of the home while it remains on in all of the other rooms, you've seen the circuit breakers in action. When the appliances and devices hooked into a particular circuit attempt to pull too much power at once, it flips the breaker and cuts off the power supply to ensure electrical safety. You can then head over to the electrical panel, open it up, and flip the circuit breaker back on, restoring the flow of power.

You only need one main electrical service panel, and that's all many homes often have. This panel acts as a distribution center, splitting the power from the grid into individual circuits. In some cases, homes also have subpanels, or secondary service panels.

Subpanels are fed by the main panel and are typically installed to accommodate new circuits and breakers installed during remodels or home additions. You may also notice subpanels in detached garages, workshops, and other areas that are far from the main panel. They also pull power from the primary breaker box.

Secondary service panels are fed by the power company. They have their own meter and act independently to the main service panel. These are rare but more common in rural areas where two buildings on the same property are great distances apart.

It's very important to keep your electrical panel in good working order, as malfunctions can place your home and its inhabitants at risk. As with any form of home electrical repair, you should only trust licensed electricians to help with breaker box repair. You'll know that you need to call an electrician for electric panel repair if you notice any of these issues:

• The current electrical panel won't meet residents' current demands.
• You need to have additional circuits installed to accommodate new appliances or increased electricity delivery.
• The bus bars in the panel must be replaced to improve its safety or performance.
• One or more circuit breakers need to be replaced because it has been tripping repeatedly.
• The electrical panel requires rewiring as a result of safety concerns.
• The breaker box has to be relocated due to moisture or other serious safety concerns.
• You need to have a secondary panel added to accommodate an addition or a serious remodel.

In some cases, all you'll need is basic circuit breaker repair. This is often the case when breakers trip repeatedly, fail to reset or feel hot to the touch. In other cases, the entire breaker box or fuse box may need to be replaced or upgraded. Water damage, frayed wires, consistent overuse of one circuit, and lightning strikes can all cause irreparable damage to your breaker box, necessitating a full replacement.