Flickering Lights, lack of power???

[Coach1310]

Over the last few days we have had some goofy things going on in our house. When our pump for the well kicks in or the fridge kicks in our lights dim and flicker for a moment. The don't do it all the time. Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I know little, if anything about electrical so I figured I would ask the "Experts." My lack of knowledge led me to think maybe a bad breaker or a short somewhere, but the two items that seem to cause it(I should say three as the wife's blow dryer seems to lately too) are all on different circuits. Like I said, I have no idea, so disregard the breaker thing if it is irrelevant. Thanks for any help.

[Surface Tension]

What Amp service do you have? Got electric heat and hot water?

[Coach1310]

I do not have electric heat or electric water heater. All other appliances are electric though. Not sure on the amps.

[witgey&water]

A flickers is usually a loose connection on either the hot or the neutral and can be very dangerous. This has been known to cause fires. Not something that a person with not a lot of electrical knowledge should try to figure out. My personal opinion is you need to call an electrician now. You don't want your house going up.

[fastkaw]

Have had the same trouble in the past. Turned out to be corrosion in/on the

wires clamps at the poll.

Hard to pinpoint the problem unless you are familiar with your fuse/breaker

center, and which leg in the box is giving you the trouble.

I think you should call a professional.

DISCLAIMER: i am in no way an expert, at anyting. Anything i say is my own opinion and/or observation, and should never be regarded as fact, unless otherwise stated.

[JohnMickish]

It COULD be corroded wires but I'd be willing to bet that it's more of an power company issue. I say this because it's winter and it's dark out.

The demand for electrical power is high. everyone is running their heaters and lights, and baking Xmas cookies in the oven and if you are on a marginal line you will see the lights dim for a micro second. The lights in my house do it once in a while and there are no problems in my panels.

Ask your neighbor if he has the same issues and we can go from there. IMO if you need someone to look at it to sleep at night then call someone but I'd start with the power company.

[BobT]

I'm going with mnfishinguy. Have you noticed a relationship with this phenomenon and a certain time of day. For example, does it seem to be more noticeable between 5:00pm and 9:00pm? This is one of the peak demand time periods, especially now with Christmas decorations, meam preparation, dairy farm activity, etc. The entire supply could be getting loaded extra heavy causing a slight drop in voltage.

Also, the loads you mentioned are inductive motor loads and the inrush current could be causing a slight momentary voltage drop. This could be exaggerated if the supply is already experiencing heavy load and drop in voltage. It's pretty normal to see some "flicker" when these pump and compressor motors start up.

Bob

[boatfixer]

If it were my FAMILY, my house, and my non-expertise, I would call an electrician immediately. I've seen the devastation of a house fire. Why take a chance?