Free Expert Tips

As Murphy’s Law would predict, electrical issues usually happen at the worst possible timing. Often, we are quick to jump directly into contacting an electrician to fix the problem when, in fact, it would benefit us to calm down and troubleshoot the problem. It may sound like it takes more time to go through this process, but in the end, it will save you money. If troubleshooting becomes too frustrating, ask CityLight Electrical for help. Sometimes bringing in a fresh set of eyes can more quickly uncover what you have been missing. Here are safe troubleshooting tips that can help you navigate through electrical troubleshooting. Good Luck!

• The first step of any electrical troubleshooting exercise involves gathering as much information about the problem as possible. Instead of immediately diving in and randomly attempting anything to get the equipment running. Determine how is the equipment supposed to operate, what technical documentation is available for the equipment, and is there someone familiar with similar equipment who may have experienced this same issue.

• Understand the malfunction and the role the malfunctioning equipment plays within the entire process. When you understand how the equipment and process is supposed to work, you can better understand what part of it is not functioning correctly.

• Identify what can be measured so that you can identify items that are outside the acceptable range. For example, are there voltage readings or temperature readings that would help you evaluate the source of the problem?

• Correct/repair the damaged component.

• Verify the repair after completion. Once the repair has been performed, start the system to ensure it now runs as required. This is important because there may have been other underlying problems. For example, there may be an issue with a circuit causing a fuse to blow (such as a shorted electrical connection). If this is the case, additional troubleshooting will be required.

• Perform root cause analysis to determine what really caused the problem. Since one of the objectives of troubleshooting is to ensure the problem doesn’t reoccur, it is important to determine what really caused the malfunction and take action to ensure a permanent solution is found.