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Just endured hurricane Irma here in S. FL. FPL finally turned the power on (and off a couple times) after days of outage. Now, one section of my kitchen is out while rest of house is on! checked the associated fuse socket (Yes, I have old fashion fuse box) with multimeter and it's showing 100 V. Checked a couple others and sure enough, they show 120. I assume 100v is not enough to run my fridge and microwave as those are the key appliances that are off. The lights on that fuse are also completely OFF. Any help would be appreciated.

user75482
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  • Is the fuse good? – ThreePhaseEel Sep 15 '17 at 15:23
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    @ThreePhaseEel the op states he is checking at the socket and after the hurricane - my guess is he has a service line issue and needs to verify that first and if so contact the power company as his issue is probably at or before the pole. Sometimes partial service is restored or people simply have partial service from hurricane damage. – Ken Sep 15 '17 at 18:03
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    100 is not optimal but will run most devices. The power company needs to be notified. If the fridge compressor starts without a lot of noise it will probably be fine, microwaves convert everything to DC (or the ones I have worked on) and will run at much lower voltages. – Ed Beal Sep 15 '17 at 18:57
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    Definitely contact the power company. Good chance they are providing 110v on both legs and you have a failed neutral. – BMitch Sep 15 '17 at 21:33
  • Fuse is good. Fridge does nothing, nor does microw. Not even a light bulb will work! Confirmed socket is at 100-101v. Both appliances work fine when run from extension cord in next room. FPL told me my neighborhood is still under repair until 9/17. I'm hoping! – user75482 Sep 16 '17 at 07:50
  • P.S. All outlets on that "circuit"(?) read ZERO! – user75482 Sep 16 '17 at 08:00
  • @user75482 chances are that you will find that fuse socket is defective. If you have checked all other circuits and all others are at 120V - your socket / wiring to it is probably bad. See my added edits.. – Ken Sep 16 '17 at 21:25

2 Answers2

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One of your service lines might be low.

Do your incoming lines have correct power (be careful with an open panel)?

Your incoming service line consists of 3 wires - 120V, Neutral, and 120V - you might have 120V on one of those incoming lines and 100V on the other.

Verify this information and if it is low on the incoming line - contact your power company and let them know the line voltage for that line is LOW. As the Hurricane has been there - there could be several reasons for this - one of which is your transformer - but more likely they have to restore proper power to your power pole/transformer.

EDIT 9-16-2017

Adding info here instead of in comments.

If incoming power is good. Your wiring to the socket could be loose or the socket can be bad. In either case I would replace the socket as loose wires became loose for a reason.

Cut off the main power coming in and replace the socket. The price of a fuse 'socket' is cheap insurance against any potential issues including electrical fire.

Ken
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  • I will check that in about 12 hours. But would that only affect one fuse out of 8? – user75482 Sep 16 '17 at 07:55
  • @user75482 Depends on your wiring how the sockets are connected. While they should be balanced they might not be... If all is well with incoming power: your wiring to that fuse socket could be loose, or the socket could be bad. If incoming power is good. Your wiring to the socket could be loose or the socket can be bad, cut off the main power coming in and replace the socket even if only the wires were loose. The price of a fuse 'socket' is cheap insurance against any potential issues including electrical fire. – Ken Sep 16 '17 at 20:29
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Did you use a digital voltmeter? If so, this is phantom voltage being picked up like an antenna from a nearby wire. Actually, the circuit is dead. If you unscrew fuses one at a time, the phantom voltage will mysteriously go away when the right one is unscrewed.

Phantom voltage will also go away if you plug in a small load such as a night light, incandescent lamp, etc.

Harper - Reinstate Monica
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  • op stated checking at the socket, in order to do this the Fuse has to be removed (I am guessing his fuse is lamp screw type (normal for a residence) . If the circuit is dead then his incoming line is dead - a real possibility depending on his panel wiring normally load is balanced but anything is possible. Personally I suspect his socket / wiring to the socket is loose. After op verifies his incoming power he can then determine if he has a bad socket / loose wiring. – Ken Sep 16 '17 at 21:20
  • Please excuse me if my responses here are not placed in the correct place. I'm not used to posting online. – user75482 Sep 17 '17 at 07:35
  • FPL still has a deadline in my area of midnight 9/17. If problem persists, I'll contact them again as well as pursue suggestions given. I DO use a digital display multi meter and have not yet experienced "phantom voltage" readings. But, I will try removing one fuse at a time and see what result occurs. I appreciate ALL the support here. Thank you! P.S. Plugged in night light into outlet in 100v circuit area. No light and still reading 100-101V. – user75482 Sep 17 '17 at 07:49
  • @user75482 Your comments should be under the area you are responding to. You have the same voltage , if you measured all power in each socket / circuit and this is the only socket / circuit with 100v probably bad socket (as long as it is not the only load on the incoming line.) Digital meters unless they have a High Z setting can show phantom voltage - an $5 analog is handy if you do not have a low z setting on your meter (Pro Meters you will see that on them, and many still do not have it) Cheaper meters I have yet to see that feature. Analog is your friend $5 vs $300+. – Ken Sep 17 '17 at 09:01
  • Since you have a DVM I would next check voltage between hot and neutral every place you can. Look for any voltage that is like 140V. That indicates a lost neutral. Are any othet fuses inoperative (or rather, the things on them)? Or just the one? – Harper - Reinstate Monica Sep 17 '17 at 12:54
  • Okay, checked the main outside. 120, 120 and a neutral. Of the 8 screw in socket fuses, 2 of them show 100V-98V. 2 show 8-12V (those 2 are labeled as water heater. Water heater works fine.)The other 100V fuse socket powers lights and outlets without a problem. the other 4 sockets show 120. My $15 DVM has a 200 and a 750 setting for AC. Been using 200. Should I check every hot and neutral at each outlet in the house looking for that 140V? – user75482 Sep 18 '17 at 23:02
  • Yeqh, because a neutral break could be anywhere, and it's serious business if it exists. – Harper - Reinstate Monica Sep 19 '17 at 00:29
  • Oh geez. There is a GFI that I never use behind some jars on a kitchen counter. Has a night light in it only. Just reset it and all came back on. Thank you kind sirs again for your hospitality and input. Sorry I wasn't quicker with checking that. – user75482 Sep 19 '17 at 06:12
  • @user75482 that would do it! Yes, it is typical to have one GFCI receptacle protect an entire circuit including several other receptacles. – Harper - Reinstate Monica Sep 19 '17 at 11:57
  • Yes, and well hidden, rarely used just took it out of the equation altogether. didnt even notice the night light there wasn't on. Was about to test every outlet as per your instructions and low and behold. sigh of relief! Will mark this page for life! – user75482 Sep 19 '17 at 18:41