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This started happening last week. My Shark vacuum kept tripping my breaker. My wife smelled smoke coming from the vacuum so we assumed it had reached its end. I bought a new vacuum (same brand), thinking the problem would be fixed, but to no avail.

I've plugged it in everywhere in the house and it trips the different breakers. I plugged in other appliances, but they do not trip the breakers. I even plugged in an old Oreck vacuum, and it did not trip the breakers. Any thoughts?

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isherwood
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Joseph Baird
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  • What's the nameplate rating of the vacuum? What size breakers are we talking about? – JACK Jun 06 '20 at 20:48
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    Do the breakers trip immediately when the vacuum is turned on, or do they take a little while to trip? Do they have TEST buttons on them? – ThreePhaseEel Jun 06 '20 at 22:49
  • They're 15s. The breakers trip immediately. they have test buttons on them and they trip when pushed, so they're working properly. – Joseph Baird Jun 06 '20 at 23:23
  • 120v, 60HZ, 10A on nameplate – Joseph Baird Jun 06 '20 at 23:26
  • Do you have GFCI receps in your kitchen or bathroom? We may need photos of the breakers to figure out what that TEST button means. – Harper - Reinstate Monica Jun 07 '20 at 02:38
  • the breakers themselves have the test button on them – Joseph Baird Jun 07 '20 at 21:16
  • Can you post photos of the breakers in question please? – ThreePhaseEel Jun 07 '20 at 22:15
  • @JosephBaird when you trip one of the breakers in question with the vacuum, does it blink the light next to the test button at you when you turn it back on? – ThreePhaseEel Jun 09 '20 at 02:17
  • Yes, the light blinks when I switch it back to on position. – Joseph Baird Jun 09 '20 at 17:16
  • @JosephBaird -- turn that breaker off again, then press and hold TEST while turning it back on. It should flash a series of blinks, then a pause, then that same series of blinks again...how many blinks are in that series? – ThreePhaseEel Jun 09 '20 at 19:58
  • Just tested. Blinks twice. However, this just started about a week ago. I've been using the same vacuum for 4 years now. I thought it was the vacuum and ordered a brand new one (Shark Navigator). Same result. I plugged in my old Oreck vacuum and works just fine. – Joseph Baird Jun 09 '20 at 22:37
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    Just tested the rest. Breakers 2 and 6 blink 5 times. All others 2 times. – Joseph Baird Jun 09 '20 at 22:40
  • That is...strangely inconsistent from circuit to circuit. (BTW: according to [Eaton's instruction leaflet](https://www.eaton.com/ecm/groups/public/@pub/@electrical/documents/content/il00402001e.pdf), 2 blinks is a parallel arc and 5 blinks is a ground fault (>30-40mA, if you're wondering)) – ThreePhaseEel Jun 11 '20 at 02:46
  • I just plugged in my steam vac and it doesn't trip the breakers. I'm wondering if I should just get another brand of vacuum LOL. – Joseph Baird Jun 11 '20 at 14:59
  • The problem is that the Shark is simulating an arc fault. It *might* work to plug a 100w incandescent lamp into the same outlet (and turn it on) before starting the vacuum. – Hot Licks Nov 07 '20 at 00:08
  • arc fault breakers with electrically noisy vacuum - probably need a vacuum that is better built or a non arc fault breaker circuit. I had this problem with vacuum and arc fault as well but my house only used arc fault circuits in the bedrooms. – Fresh Codemonger Mar 06 '21 at 18:15

2 Answers2

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In normal operation some electric motors like in vacuum cleaners can generate arcing that trips some arc fault breakers like yours. I have read that "newer" breakers are resistant to this but I have no experience.

You may need different or newer or better arc fault breakers. There are technical support numbers on the Eaton web site, maybe they can help you determine if they have a breaker that is compatible with your vacuum.

You may need to install one or two non-AF breakers for your vacuum.

jay613
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  • This is a common issue with AF breakers and the reason many professionals think they should not have expanded beyond the original requirements for bed rooms to protect against electric blanket fires. – Ed Beal Jul 30 '22 at 19:46
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I just moved in to a new house and have the same problem. I'd say it's not your vacuum, it’s lousy breakers from Eaton; they're good for commercial but not so good for residential. We had a problem with our brand new washing machine and electricians tried to tell me it was the unit. Funny, I ran an extension cord and it worked. The breaker flashed 6 times, I told him change it out. It was a bad breaker right out of the box, not like Seimen or Square D. Check the anode and make sure all the breakers are seated and all connections are tight.

I forgot to mention: go to Eaton's website and they will tell you what the flashing light code means, it goes from 1 blink to 6 and then you can go back and check what kind of fault you have.

Fredric Shope
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Sparky
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    Please [edit] this to apply proper punctuation to make sentences. It appears that your fingers maybe moved a bit too fast and applied some random punctuation. Also, you've got the makings of an _answer_ in here, but it reads more as a story at the moment. Now that you've taken the [tour], you'll know that we're looking for specific answers, not your standard forum running commentary... – FreeMan Jun 09 '20 at 14:44