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Tracing an electrical circuit

Kevin54

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Jan 12, 2005
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Urbana, Ohio
I need some ideas. :willy_nil I'm desperate for some ideas really and don't have a clue:dunno:

When I built my garage, I had some help running the electric. The person that helped me was a great helper, but I found out after things were done that some of my outlets were backstabbed. I never paid close attention other than when we flipped the breaker everything worked. I found out that some were backstabbed when I removed the wall between the two bays. When I removed the wall, I corrected the backstabbed outlets and wrapped the wire around the screws.

Back earlier I had one of the oil filled radiators (for heat) hooked up when I was out in the garage working on the computer. I plugged a vacuum in and popped the breaker. I unhooked the heater, reset the breaker, but I have three outlets that don't work.

In putting the corrugated tin up on the walls, I had to extend a couple of outlets up higher on the wall and corrected the backstabbed outlets. I still have three dead outlets. I am trying to remember how the electric was ran, but when I removed the wall, I had to reroute a couple of outlets. Everything works but these three and I spent almost all day yesterday and half of today trying to figure where I could have a dead wire.

So this brings up my question.......Is there an easy way to back trace wiring to where the bad connection would originate from? In using a Fluke Meter, I can check ground to ground, hot to hot, neutral to neutral, but the leads are only so long. All of my outlets are on one circuit on one wall of my garage, lights on another circuit, when I took the wall out, I connected the circuits up and I know which breaker they come off of.

I guess what I need to know is how can I check, say and outlet, when they are 15' apart? My problem is that I don't know where the dead outlets are being fed from, if this makes any sense at all :headscrat

Momma and I swapped out outlets yesterday for new outlets making sure that everything had a good connection. Every outlet in the garage works other than the three. One is under my desk and it is the end of a circuit because it only has the hot, neutral, and ground. This is on the garage side of a wall that the other side is a closet. I checked the outlets in the closet with a Sperry outlet tester and all is good.

So I guess what I am wondering, is there something made that when the breakers are off, will backfeed some sort of current into a line, that I can check wires at another area seeing that a Fluke Meter doesn't have enough length in the leads.

And again, to most, this might not make sense with the way I am trying to explain it. I know what I envision in my head, but to put it to print may not make sense to others. Anyways.....if someone has some sort of idea what I said and has some sort of an idea what I can do to trace the wires, I will be VERY grateful.

And to let ones know, the wife and I swapped out 7 outlets yesterday that were backstabbed. Well, first off, we took out the backstabs and put the wire around the screw connectors. When that didn't solve the problem, I swapped out the outlets completely, to no avail.

I forgot to mention, when the breaker popped and I unplugged the heater, a traffic light that I had plugged into the circuit came back on when I reset the breaker in the panel box. I decided to plug the heater in again to the wall to see if it would pop the breaker again. It did, but after I reset the breaker one more time is when I found the three dead outlets. That's when the search began and I found the backstabbed outlets. I'm almost positive how the wire is ran in the wall for the three outlets that are dead, but what I don't know is where the power source is originating from to the first outlet in the circuit.

And a word of advice from me to others......When you run your electric to your place, whether a garage, or in the house, make sure you take pictures showing how things are ran. Back when I built my garage, we didn't have a Digital Camera, so I never took pictures. Lord what I wouldn't give to have some pics of the wiring circuitry right now :mad:
 
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Falcon67

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Merkel, TX
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Zircon-C...t-Breaker-Finder-64070/203240717#.UVnSk1eQP74

Maybe something like that. I didn't take any pics, other than what's on my thread here, but I did go in a somewhat logical order. LOL. What I did do is label each plug circuit (A, B, C, ...) and put a label on each plug cover indicating the circuit letter. If I have to work on a plug, no guess work on the breaker. I always test with the little circuit tester before hacking into the box too. I haven't done it yet, but I need to double check the last design iteration of the Visio layout, save it as a graphic, size and print it, then tape it up inside the panel door.
 

pattenp

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Jun 4, 2008
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10,175
Location
Virginia - USA
Turn power off to outlets and use an extension cord as a lead extension to test for continuity from outlet to outlet.
 

Rookie2

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Feb 27, 2013
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Western Pa.
Is there a recepticle that has one dead socket ? the tab may be broken off the side. Did you hang anything on either side of that wall in the last 10 years ? (Screws or nail damage to the romex)
also they sell a tracer that lights up and squawks or a stud finder sometimes will work , kill the breaker and back feed the dead outlets . it can trace the wires thru the wood wall.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Gardner-...oltage-Tester-GVD-3505/202867896#.UVngLzfY2eI
 
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Kevin54

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Jan 12, 2005
Messages
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Urbana, Ohio
Turn power off to outlets and use an extension cord as a lead extension to test for continuity from outlet to outlet.

Is there a recepticle that has one dead socket ? the tab may be broken off the side. Did you hang anything on either side of that wall in the last 10 years ? (Screws or nail damage to the romex)
also they sell a tracer that lights up and squawks or a stud finder sometimes will work , kill the breaker and back feed the dead outlets . it can trace the wires thru the wood wall.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Gardner-...oltage-Tester-GVD-3505/202867896#.UVngLzfY2eI

To respond to rookie first, I've hung some stuff on the walls, but I have nail plates wherever a screw went into the studs. Everything has been fine up until I overloaded one circuit with the ShopVac plus the heater, plus the computer and printer plugged into the same circuit.

To respond to Pattenp....I never give the extension cord a thought. As soon as I get done hanging tin, I'll get the wife to unload the closet again. I'm fairly certain that's where the problem lies. With an extension cord and the power cut off, at least I can check for continuity or no continuity. Thanks for the idea.
 

earthmover

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Joined
Mar 12, 2013
Messages
46
:Dyou take all the wires lose from the first box to the next box put 2 wires together on 1 end and go back to the other end and ohm the the wires out ...should beep when the circuit is not broken..if there is no beep that's your problem between the 2 boxes...just have to make sure your on the same 2 wire each time that you have put the ends together
 
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Kevin54

MEMBER EMERITUS
Joined
Jan 12, 2005
Messages
29,341
Location
Urbana, Ohio
check your gfi in the bath room, alot of garages are also wired to the gfi in the bath room..... Rich


No GFI in the bathroom. This is in my detached garage.

I think it stems from an outlet in the closet, but the wife has it jam packed to the gills. I have to finish hanging up the corrugated metal, then clean up the garage. Once I clean the garage up, then I can empty out the closet.

I swear, as far as making a mess, I think I can out-do most. Just hanging some corrugated metal, the garage looks like a frickin' hurricane hit it. I have **** laying everywhere. :scared:

As I said above to anyone running wire in their new garage, house, or just a remodeling project.......take pics, make notes, or do both. I know how most of the wire (90%) of it was ran, but when I tore out the wall between the bays, I rewired a few places. I breezed through it with no problem, but for the life of me, today, I can't remember where some of the new wiring was ran.

I'll either have it whittled down or I'll have it burnt down :lol:
 
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