The question no one knew to ask: How to label your breaker panel. Best advice: Do it before you need it. Here’s the easy solution, ready for you to use right now.
No one gets excited about this. There’s no shopping, no “beauty” factor, no huge sense of accomplishment.
No one will care. If you mention it at lunch people will yawn and pick up their phones to scroll Facebook.
But there’s something more.
Like buckling your seat belt, or remembering not to dry your hair in the tub, getting this done may save your life.
Even if the evidence of the benefit is less, I promise there will be a day when you thank yourself.
As always, there’s a reason for this post. Our dishwasher stopped working. Not only that, 👉🏼something in the control panel of the dishwasher was burning.😮 The smell was obvious upon entering the house. That acrid plastic-electrical-burning smell.
You know what I did? Walked over to the breaker panel, located the switch labeled “Dishwasher,” and flipped it off.
Because I am a superhero like that.
Later the friendly repairman was able to show me the small slightly blackened area surrounding the wires in the dishwasher’s control panel. 😧
Would a fire have eventually started?
But I do know this: It didn’t.
To keep all this in perspective today, here are the top 3 causes of house fires , according to NFPA:
There are a lot of things that can cause accidental fires within the home, which is why fire prevention safety is so important. Many accidental fires are often caused by electrical problems. You can often prevent a full-blown fire if you are able to properly respond to any burning smells coming from an electrical source.
If you happen to smell burning near an outlet, then the first thing you should do is trip its circuit breaker so that you can safely unplug whatever it is that’s plugged into the outlet. If the smell disappears, then contact a local electrician to come inspect the outlet for faulty wiring. However, if it continues to smell, leave the house immediately and call 911.
One minute, one word, one pointer finger.
Open the panel, find the word, flip the switch.
Disaster averted.
I’m going to describe the easy preparation for this superhero moment, and I will take 90% of the effort out of it for you. Because I’ll give you a spreadsheet example that will get you started, with a few adjustments you can easily make.
And let’s make sure we remember that it’s not just this exact situation we’re anticipating.
Here’s the other thing: When the repairman comes to your home, he needs to be able to easily see which breaker to switch off, to block the electricity to the appliance he’s working on.
If you haven’t done this task ahead of time, he’ll have to try all the switches till he gets the right one. Yep. Your computers, clocks, internet router, lights, television, phone chargers — you get the idea.
This doesn’t diminish the first reason to create your list, but it sure adds another benefit!
I’ve even got a template you can use for free . Because you came to see me today!
If you’ve got Microsoft Excel (or Google Sheets), a piece of paper, and some tape, that part is free.
If you have just a few blank adhesive labels, that part is also free.
If you have an hour (maybe two), you can do this.
And we all know we can redeem that hour. As busy people, we give and take hours every single day.
And may I gently remind you that a house fire or electrical incident will take much more from you than this worthy task will.
A worthy task, daunting at first glance, but our favorite spreadsheet will take the sting out.
Now, you may think you’re finished with this task. And you may be.
Your panel box may have blank labels on which you can write. You may have written on them, or you may be considering that now. Someone in the past may have written on those labels.
But there’s something you need to know:
Ink can fade. And that information, written on those labels, is saved in only one place: On the panel itself. It’s hard to make corrections or changes.
There’s a better way. And it’s simple.
Create a diagram that shows the area of control for each breaker. With a spreadsheet. Match the information to corresponding numbered labels on the panel.
You’ll number each breaker with a small neat numerical label, then create an Excel spreadsheet that is arranged just like the breaker panel. Two columns, with the numbers of each switch and the name of the items or area each switch controls.
This can all be done with inexpensive labels and a simple printed sheet from your computer.
It takes about an hour, start to finish.
If you already have some sort of labeling completed.
However, if you’ve never labeled the breakers in any way, or if the labels are extremely vague, you have to do something first: figure out exactly what each switch controls.
You’ll have to do this before you get your spreadsheet completed.
And I can help you with that. The general idea is this:
You make your rough draft “list” by getting a buddy to help you. This means getting a helper (husband, friend, neighbor, son, daughter) and moving around the house with lamps, radios, night-lights, etc., that you plug in to outlets, turning things on and off. One of you does the moving around and plugging in, the other person is stationed at the breaker panel, turning off switches one at a time. You have to shout a lot, or use your cell phone.
That takes a while. But please don’t be discouraged.
The important thing is for you to decide to get this done.
In fact, I have four ways you can complete this easily.
As you test and discover, what you write down doesn’t have to be pretty, but it has to be legible. Use whichever method above makes the most sense to you. And remember — this is the most difficult task.
And please know this is the most time-consuming part, but once it’s done, it’s done!
When you’re ready to make your clean pretty copy for the switch box, you can go back to the file and type your notes in neatly to create the final diagram.
I’ll tell you more about this in a second.
Today I’m asking you to consider entering the mindset of “This must be done.“
If you’re feeling pressure building up now, please don’t run off just yet.
If the idea is a little overwhelming, enlist someone else to help you.
And check out my finished work in the pictures.
