Troubleshooting Electrical Circuits

This lesson came from Virginia Tech and has not been edited by the Georgia Curriculum Office.

Notes to the Teacher

The content in this unit is presented with the assumption that students already know basic electrical principles and that they can wire circuits consisting of duplex receptacles and loads controlled by singlepole, three-way, and four-way switches. This unit should take approximately 2 90minute blocks. Note! This is an untested time-frame

Interest Approach
Bring in a bag of popcorn Have students visualize a romantic evening with their significant other watching a movie When they try to pop the popcorn, sparks fly out of the outlet and the appliance wont turn back on

What Happened?

Objective #1
Given in-class instruction and laboratory application, explain electrical flow through common household/farmstead circuits with at least 70% accuracy.
State the basic components of an electrical circuit Trace and diagram electrical flow through an unswitched circuit (duplex receptacle). Trace and diagram electrical flow through a circuit switched by a single pole switch, by three-way switches, and by four-way switches State whether the circuit is open or closed

What are the basic components of a switched electrical circuit?

Source Switch Load Return to Source

Example #1: Light that is controlled by a single pole switch

Source? Hot wire from breaker box or previous box Load? Light bulb Return to Source? Neutral wire

What does the switch do?

Hot Wire Neutral wire

Single-Pole Switch

Light

Is this circuit open or closed?

Example #2
Diagram a circuit that has a duplex receptacle then 2 lights controlled by single-pole switches

Hot Wire

Neutral wire

Which light is on?

Three-way switched circuits

Whats the difference between a single pole switch and a three way switch?
Common terminal

How does electricity flow through it?

3-way switch
Hot Wire
Switch 1 Switch 2

Neutral wire

Common

Travelers

Is this circuit open or closed?

How does a four-way work?

The four-way switch makes and X between two 3-way switches. LOOK!!

4-way

Practice
Diagram electrical path through the following circuits
1. An open circuit consisting of a duplex receptacle and single pole switch controlling a light.
2. A closed circuit containing a light controlled by two three-way switches 3. The same circuit as Number 2 but with the electricity flowing through a different terminal 4. A closed circuit consisting of a light controlled by two three-way switches and a four-way switch.

Review
1. What are the basic components of an electrical circuit?
Source, switch, load, return to source

2.

Given the logic diagram on the board, identify the components represented and state whether the circuit is open or closed.

Tomorrow
Now that you can visualize electrical flow through switches, you can identify and fix common problems that causes circuits to malfunction.

Objective #2
Given laboratory demonstrations, instruction, and application identify and safely fix circuit problems with at least 70% accuracy.
Follow safety procedures Identify and properly use receptacle testers, continuity testers, and multimeters Use start-to-finish elimination to locate problem Safely fix the problem

Fixing Circuit Problems

SAFETY FIRST

Process of Elimination -- Follow electricity from the source through the circuit until you find the problem. Retest circuit after making any changes

FIX THE PROBLEM

SAFETY FIRST
Turn off circuit breaker before making any repairs Read instructions that come with circuit testing equipment.
Power be turned off when using ohmmeters and continuity testers Have electricity on when using voltmeters

Process of Elimination
Remember that electricity has to flow from the hot wire through the load and then back to source on the neutral wire.

To find the break. Take a ride with the electricity and write down what you see.

The Road Map

1. 2. Check breaker Make sure voltage can pass through the switches

3.

Make sure it can pass through the load to the neutral

Make sure the neutral is connected to the wiring panel

4.

Tripped Breaker/Blown Fuse

1. Short Circuit current bypassing load before returning to ground
A. Identified by
smoke lined outlets and plugs A loud Pop Sparks

B. Caused by
1.Wires touching each other 2.Incorrect wiring configuration

A.Overloaded Circuit pulling too many amps

A. Identified by several appliances stopping B. Caused by having too many appliances running on the same circuit. C.Commonly occurs when making a big breakfast

Switches
Use a multimeter or continuity tester to make sure the switch works

Multimeter

Continuity Tester

Testing Switches
1. Make sure the breaker is off. 2. Turn multimeter dial to test for ohms or use a continuity tester 3. Attach wires to terminals and flip the switch The meter should read zero at one position and 1 at the other. The continuity testers light should come on at only one position A Zero or a light indicates continuous flow A One or no light indicates no connection

Switches cont.
Testing 3-way switches
Hook on lead to common terminal and use the other lead to check travelers
The flow should be continuous between the traveler and the common terminal depending on the position of the switch

If no continuity is found, replace the switch.

Loads
Use continuity tester to make sure the current can pass through the load Attach one lead to the hot wire and the other to the neutral If no connection exists, the appliance is broken.

Testing Receptacles
Use receptacle tester to make sure receptacle is wired correctly

Testing Neutral
Use continuity tester to test across any connection between the load and circuit breaker

Repairing circuit
Repairs generally consist of:
1. 2. 3. Taping breaks in insulation with electrical tape Installing new switches Changing wiring configurations

4.
5.

Tightening connections
Reconnecting plug wires

MAKE ALL REPAIRS WITH CIRCUIT BREAKER OFF!!!

Application
Lets go to the shop, look at some broken circuits, and fix them. Possible problems include:
short circuit disconnected wires flipped breaker wrong wiring configuration etc.

SAFETY FIRST AND FOLLOW TESTING EQUIPMENT INSTRUCTIONS SEE ME BEFORE TURNING ON THE POWER

REVIEW
1. When a circuit doesnt operate, where is the first place you should look?
Circuit breaker

2.

What are common signs that a short circuit has occurred?

Smoke-lined outlets and plugs, sparks, loud pops

3.

What are two things that can cause a short circuit?

Wires touching each other or incorrect wiring configuration

Review cont.
4. What two tools are commonly used to test continuity of electrical circuits?
mulitmeter(sets on ohms) and continuity tester

5.

Should the power be turned on or off when using a continuity tester?

OFF!!!!

6.

Before making repairs, make sure the electricity is ___________________?