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brock_lee t1_iueh746 wrote

GFCI circuits are not usually connected to lighting circuits. This is why you usually find that bathroom and kitchen outlets, but not lights, are on the same circuit. This is not universal. I would suspect either there really is a breaker tripped, the breaker is defective, or perhaps there is a loose connection somewhere in the lighting circuit. I literally just had this happen. My living room ceiling fan just stopped working after years and years. The circuit it's on is fine. I traced it to a junction box in the attic, that runs to the fan, where the power wires had come undone from the wire nut. Go figure.

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cbryancu t1_iuei2y4 wrote

Electrician best recommendation

Check switches that control lights. Check GFCI for any loose wires, but be careful if you find a wire not connected in GFCI box...never know what someone else did. Electrician can fix and make sure not a hazzard

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freedoneit t1_iuew99k wrote

Yes , you may have a failed neutral. Check from the hot to the ground with a tester , not a “tick” tester. If you have 120 across hot and ground you’ve lost your neutral. This can occur anywhere in circuit between the receptacle you were using and the electrical panel. The stab-in connections which are commonly used can have a high failure rate , even though it’s a “UL”/code approved connection .

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domdogg123 t1_iuey1p8 wrote

Can you expand on the 'replacing the vanity' part?

What tool did you use to cut a hole in the ceiling? Any chance you shook a wire loose or cut through one?

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inhospitableUterus t1_iuf1ds1 wrote

Possible water got into a junction box in the ceiling below and is causing a minor short? When you have a bad connection, for whatever reason, it’s common devices “downstream” from the fault to lose all power.

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domdogg123 t1_iuf2434 wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#355,919)

I would use a multimeter to see what kind of voltage you have at the GFCI & at the lights that don't work. It's possible a short is diverting enough power that there isn't enough voltage left on the circuit to turn the lights on.

This sounds serious enough for professional help if you can't get it tracked down in short order.

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SirMaxPowers t1_iugxzq8 wrote

There's lots of different levels of DYI. If you're a novice that may have replaced a light switch before, I'd be tempted to buy a new GFCI and replace it. If it doesn't work you can return it, if from a big box store and call a professional. Everyone's different. Just find your confort level, and put safety first. Anyone doing even minimal electric work would benefit from a $20 electric tester to confirm the circuit is dead. Good luck

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fchilly t1_iuhf6ul wrote

I've seen weird instances where more than one GFCI was on a circuit.

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Acrobatic-Secret374 t1_iuj64cv wrote

Replying to [deleted] (#357,079)

It seems, (from the comments I have read,) that you already have a working knowledge of the likeliest of problems.

Calling an electrician is certainly the best option.

To continue DIY, you have to make sure you get the proper test equipment and gain at least a basic familiarity of what the readouts say.

Based on your description of the problem, the most frequently suggested problem of a loose connection is very likely the issue.

When a connection weakens, the volts have to increase to cover for that loss. If the amps don't break a breaker/fuse and the amps don't go over the total load and it never faults to gound, you can have issues where lights dim and circuits act funny but not in a way you would expect a failure as a homeowner (grew up with an electrical engineer as a father in a house he owned)

You very likely have a weak connection in a part of the circuit that is rarely serviced. Loose nut, or something similar.

To solve it without test equipment... Shut off all power to the house and check everything. Tighten everything down a smidge and turn it on again to see if it changes.

I would bet several nuts aren't as tight as others and are causing the issue.

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