hi there,
i have an old PC that after I use I have a habit of unplugging from the wall. The last few times though when i unplug the turned off PC a Circuit breaker is tripping. why could removal of a plug of a switched off device cause this?
Sam
Try a different outlet. If it continues, it's a bad plug and/or cord. If it doesn't, it's the receptacle or the wires connected to it that's bad.
Sounds like a defect i the socket, or possibly a wire is touching something within the outlet box. Or insullation worn through.
I'd call an electrician in the morning to come and check it out. Might be a wall fire in the making.
Fortunately, it is tripping the breaker instead of heating up.
Yes I had this problem, It was one of the screws that you use to wire in additional outlets. It had backed out and was shorting to the metal box and triping the breaker. Tightened it up and all was well. Remove power 1st. thanks, Tony D.
Could be:
a. A bad power cord fith failed insulation where the cord enters the plug producing a short across the line occuring only when you grab the plug to pull it out. (You're not pulling the plug out by the cord, are you?)
b. If the breaker happens to be a GFI type; If you're removing the plug "slowly" you might be breaking one side of the hot/neutral pair before the other side for long enough to cause tripping of the GFI. They can be funny about things like that.
c. As the others have already said, the outlet might be loose and moving around inside it's box, causing something to short out in there.
Try plugging a different piece of equipment into that socket, with a similar type of (Polarized/grounding) plug, and wiggle and twist the plug while removing it. If the breaker blows, make sure it stays off (no one flips it on for you without warning), take off the outlet plate, and look for the problem inside.
Good luck, and let us know what you find,
Jeff
-- Jeff Wisnia (W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
"If you can keep smiling when things go wrong, you've thought of someone to place the blame on."
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