As I’ve been doing electrical work in my new home, I’ve had to get up to speed on the latest building codes. One change stood ...

A building requirement aimed at making new homes in Ohio safer from the threat of electrical fires will go into effect a year after originally intended. The new rules, part of the 2008 National ...

According to the National Fire Protection Association and the National Fire Incident Reporting System data, the five-year period from 1994 to 1998 averaged 73,500 annual electrical fires that were ...

Although flawed in its execution, the addition of AFCIs to the 2002 Code highlights the importance of arc-fault protection. Circuit breakers and fuses are effective in preventing fires caused by a ...

Residential electrical branch circuit breakers incorporate electronic and electrical technology in Arc Fault Circuit Interrupters that can turn off power to prevent fires if arcing occurs. This ...

Eaton Aerospace is to shrink its arc-fault circuit interrupter (AFCI) for use in fighters and adapt the technology to DC and three-phase AC electrical systems. Single-phase AC arc-fault circuit ...

Question: There was a house fire on our street last week. Investigators traced the cause to a short circuit in an electrical wire. Now I'm terrified that a fire can start in my home without warning.

Solid-state power controllers (SSPCs) are designed to replace mechanical circuit breakers, which work by tripping when the temperature of their internal sensors reaches a predetermined level (Fig. 1).

It can be difficult to determine if you've got a bad circuit breaker. There are steps you can take before deciding to repair, ...

Q: Several weeks ago, I read your column about installing electrical wiring. I’m curious about circuit breakers. What is the primary purpose of circuit breakers? Are there different types of breakers?

What is this new circuit breaker, the Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter (AFCI), and how is it better than the circuit breakers (CBs) we have? Let me tell you a little story. Recently, I was working in a ...