Why are my Christmas lights tripping the breaker?

There are three primary reasons for your breaker tripping: overloaded circuit, short in the wiring, and an old breaker. Breaker failure can happen at any time if your breaker is nearing the end of its life, but overloaded circuits and shorts in the wiring can increase during the holiday season.

What can damage a GFCI outlet?

A GFCI outlet can fail in several different ways: By not tripping when you press the “Test” button. By not restoring the electricity flow after pressing the “Reset” button. By not cutting off the power to the outlet despite being tripped.

Can you short out Christmas lights?

Short Answer: No, you can’t lengthen or shorten standard series-wired incandescent and LED Christmas tree light strings that are made with 2 or 3-wire harnesses. If, however, you are installing C7/C9 18 AWG Christmas light cords with sockets and screw in bulbs that are wired in parallel, yes, you can shorten them.

Can a GFCI outlet go bad?

A GFCI can go bad or fail in three ways. The first way it can fail is that it won’t trip when you push the test button and the outlet stays hot or dead; the second way is that the trip button stays out and won’t reset; and the third way, and most dangerous, is that the button trips out but the outlet stays hot.

How do I stop my Christmas lights from tripping GFCI?

Plug the Christmas lights into your Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI), or outdoor outlet. Wrap Teflon tape (electrical tape) securely and carefully around the plugs, completely coating the plug to prevent water from getting in and effectively creating a water-tight seal.

How do I stop my GFCI from tripping?

What to do:

Unplug all appliances on that outlet’s circuit.
Push the reset button.
Plug in one appliance at a time until the GFCI trips.
Unplug appliances that were on before the GFCI tripped and see if the last appliance that you plugged in still trips the GFCI.
Replace or repair the appliance that tripped the outlet.

How do you tell if a GFCI outlet is bad?

Push Reset Button

Look for GFCIs in bathrooms, kitchens, basements, garages and on the home’s exterior.
If the GFCI won’t reset or the button doesn’t pop out when you press the “test” button, there may be no power to the GFCI or you may have a bad GFCI.

Why is half my Christmas lights not working?

If half a strand is working and the other half is not, you probably have a loose or broken bulb. Start with the first unlit bulb and work your way down, wiggling them to check for looseness. If it flickers, that’s your cue to replace it.

How can you tell if a Christmas light fuse is blown?

You can sometimes tell by sight if a fuse has blown; the metal filament inside the glass cylinder will have a break in it.

Why do my outdoor Christmas lights keep tripping the GFCI?

Unfortunately, when it comes to Christmas lights and decorations and GFCIs, generally all it takes to trip a circuit is for a little moisture to get into the outlet, cord, or lights. If this happens and the power is on, the circuit will trip, causing the lights and décor to go out.