Similar Odd Power Outage problem too....

[rundawg325]

I have a similar odd power outage problem as well. Certain times of the day I have lost power to certain areas/rooms of my house but not the entire house. The power would be lost for a few seconds and then return. The longest has been like maybe 45 seconds but not over a minute. My bedroom loses all power (outlets and ceiling fans), second bedroom only the outlets lose power, home office only the outlet where my fax is connected to, living room wall outlet and ceiling fan outlet but not the outlet where my tv is hooked up and finally in the second bathroom all of the power is lost.

My dining room area is ok as well as my kitchen and main bathroom. ANY suggestions????

BTW an electrician came out and tightened some loose wires in the breaker box, which do not get tripped. I dont think he checked all of the outlets also.

[Billy_Bob]

Keep track of where you are losing power and where you are not losing power. In addition to the problems mentioned in the other thread, you could have a "subpanel" which also has loose connection(s).

Then also try calling the electric company and have them check their end, then call the electrician back and let him know what specific rooms are having problems. This would help track down which specific "leg" is having the problem.

[rundawg325]

When I had the last outage I checked every outlet to see which had power and which did not and wrote them down. Come to think of it he checked the breaker and some of the power switches (not all) and maybe 2 of the 9 outlets that would be affected so he did a half assed check on that. I still have my home warranty and going to call them again and tell them that it is still giving me problems and to send someone else.

[Billy_Bob]

You might find that the circuits which lost power just so happen to be "every other" breaker in your panel!

[Billy_Bob]

P.S. You would be a "dream" customer to have!

I like it when someone can give me a detailed rundown of what is happening including which specific circuits are having trouble.

As a rule, these things work just fine when I walk in the door.

So very helpful to have the information to track down the problem.

[leejosepho]

I once had a similar problem, and a bad contact between the main breaker and a corroded bar in the panel was the problem. At first, some lights would occasionally flicker, then half the panel eventually lost power altogether and the home warranty folks paid to have the entire panel and all the breakers replaced. If an electrician has yet to actually pull breakers out and check behind them, you definitely should have that done.

[Thatguy]

I recommend testing the intermittent outlets with a hair dryer load; more than a 3v drop means a bad connection even if it holds with smaller loads.

This link
http://www.idealindustries.com/media...uctions_v4.pdf
is a wealth of pass/fail specs on house wiring. You don't even need to buy the tester.

For really intermittent problems Dranetz makes things that can babysit the lines and read out all kinds of data on what was happening just before the fault appears. Maybe someone will rent this instrument to you.

[220/221]

What I do with intermittant outages is load up the affected circuit and try to MAKE it fail. A couple of toaster ovens/ toasters/hairdryers work nicely if you don't have the proper testing equipment.

It's easier to fix if it's broken at the time.

[rundawg325]

Well I have not had any loss of power since Friday afternoon when the elecrtrician left. I did report it to the Home Warranty company that I lost power again after he left. Since then it has been working fine so maybe it is fixed. I do have a 60 day warranty on the service so I am going to continue to keep an eye on it.

Thanks everyone for the responses and information which I will use if this occurs again.