When should I call an electrician about my breaker panel?

Call an electrician the same day if your breaker panel is hot, buzzing, scorched or wet, if a breaker will not stay on, or if breakers trip repeatedly. Call to book a visit if the panel is decades old, you are adding a big load, or you have never had your wiring inspected. A single trip with an obvious cause is not an emergency.

Call right away

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) lists warning signs of a potential electrical hazard. These ones apply to a panel:^[1]

• breakers that need resetting frequently
• a panel containing breakers rated higher than the wiring they protect, which CPSC calls an overrated panel
• bright flashes or showers of sparks
• sizzling or buzzing sounds
• parts that are painfully hot to touch or discoloured from heat
• the odour of burned or overheated insulation

If you see sparks, smell burning or the panel is hot, switch off what you can from a safe spot and call an electrician at once. If there is smoke or fire, leave and call 911 first. Do not open the panel cover yourself. CPSC says not to remove the service-panel cover and calls that a job for a qualified electrician.^[1]

Call to book a visit

These are not emergencies, but they are reasons to have a pro look:

• A breaker trips again after you reset it, or the same one trips every few weeks. See is it safe to reset a tripped breaker.
• A GFCI or AFCI breaker fails its monthly test or trips for no clear reason. CPSC says a defective one should be replaced by a qualified electrician, and that both types can stop working without showing signs.^[2]
• The panel is old, or you cannot tell when anyone last inspected it. CPSC suggests checking the panel door for a dated inspection label. It says an inspection is overdue if the last one was 40 or more years ago, and advisable if it was 10 to 40 years ago, especially if high-wattage loads have been added.^[1]
• You are adding an EV charger, hot tub, heat pump or addition and want to know whether the panel can carry it. See how to know if an electrical panel needs replacing.
• Lights dim or flicker when large appliances start, which CPSC also lists as a warning sign.^[1]

What the electrician does

A good visit starts with questions: what tripped, when, and what was running. Then comes a look at the panel, its ratings and its connections, plus a check of the circuit that is causing trouble. The outcome is usually one of three: a load rebalanced, a bad breaker replaced, or a recommendation to repair or replace the panel. Ask for the findings in writing.

Hiring in Virginia

Virginia law bars anyone from doing or offering work in the electrical trade for compensation without a tradesman licence, though people working under the supervision of a licensed tradesman do not need their own.^[3][4] The Board for Contractors says unlicensed contracting is against the law, and that if you hire an unlicensed contractor the Board may not be able to help you resolve a complaint.^[5]

Before you hire:

• look up the licence with the Board for Contractors; a number on a business card does not prove it is valid^[5]
• ask whether the work needs a permit, since Virginia's building code requires one before work starts on electric wiring^[6]
• let the electrician apply for the permit, because the Board advises that the contractor, not the consumer, should obtain building permits^[5]
• get a written contract with the scope, price and payment schedule^[5]

When to call a licensed pro

For anything beyond flipping a breaker handle, such as replacing a breaker, adding circuits or changing a panel, hire a licensed electrician. For prices, read what a breaker replacement costs in Virginia. More guides are in the electrical answers hub, and you can browse local electricians.

If your panel is giving you warning signs, describe the problem once and licensed local electricians respond.