If you’re like some people, you know there is a box in your garage that has something to do with the electrical power in your home. You have a vague notion that if the power goes out in your home and it’s not the electrical company’s fault, then it probably has something to do with this weird electrical panel in your garage. So, you investigate. You walk over to it, open it up, and have no clue what you are looking at. And the guide that supposedly explains all of this might as well be in Greek.

Breaker Outlet offers the best circuit breakers and refurbished circuit breakers at the best prices. From industrial circuit breakers and residential circuit breakers to fusible switches and safety switches, we’ve got your circuit breaker needs covered. In this blog post, we’ll review exactly what you are looking at when you open the electrical paneling in your garage. Shop online with us today!

THE INS AND OUTS OF YOUR CIRCUIT BREAKER PANEL

First off, it’s important to know that your circuit breaker panel won’t bite, so there’s no need to be afraid of it. Your circuit breaker panel controls all of the electricity flowing into your home, which is probably why you may be a bit scared of it. However, you can’t shock yourself or cause harm touching your circuit breaker.

WHAT DOES A CIRCUIT BREAKER DO?

A circuit breaker’s job is first and foremost to keep you safe. Sometimes electrical surges can overwhelm the power system, which could be dangerous in your home and to whatever is plugged in at your home. A circuit breaker is designed to stop this from happening by “tripping” or breaking the connection from the electrical grid to your home, thus stopping this dangerous overload surge from entering your home. Circuit breakers are switches just like your light switch to your bedroom, plain and simple. However, not all circuit breakers are created equal. Breaker Outlet offers residential circuit breakers as well as commercial circuit breakers, or medium-voltage or high-voltage circuit breakers. Visit us online today!

WHAT DOES YOUR ELECTRICAL PANEL DO?

Besides keeping you safe, as we’ve previously discussed, an electrical panel allows you to control all of the electricity that flows into your home. This is important since there are instances when you need to shut off the power in order to perform maintenance work safely, especially if you are performing electrical work. Whether you’re installing a new ceiling fan or track lighting, you’ll need to shut off power to the area in order to avoid the possibility of being electrocuted with live wiring.

TO SHUT OFF YOUR ELECTRICAL PANEL

To shut off your electrical panel, you will simply shut off each breaker individually and then shut off the main breaker. This ensures that there is absolutely no power running to your home. You can then complete your work, and restart the system, doing the opposite first, with the main circuit breaker being turned on first.

Breaker Outlet offers circuit breakers, enclosures for circuit breakers, main switch circuit breakers, and a whole host of other component parts for your main electrical panel and more. Now that you know the basics, let's go over the different types of breakers!