PC blew 15A breaker, options?

[jojo69]

Don't think anyone will, seeing that when my pc is drawing that kind of power I am at home using it. Also never heard of someone burning their house down via PC gaming but im sure that would make the news lol.

way to be melodramatic guys. Im grateful for the concern but apart from someone just mentinong a few posts back that the wire used for 15A squeaks by on 20A (I think it was 14ga but it may even be 12ga) I really don't think im in the realm of blowing things up?

Plus that kind of draw only happened during a 15m benchmark run.. although as I mentioned earlier, once I add water to the cards I guess that "buffer" wont be around any longer.

Perhaps I should go down there and feel the wire once in awhile.. make sure its not glowing red or smoking the insulation O.O

either way, makes me ponder how other people are running overclocked quad SLI rigs without issue? I was under the impression all homes are wired with 15A breakers? apart from appliances etc.

(220v line is on my to do list come tax time that's for sure, dunno what size breaker that uses but I should be far within those guidelines)

ummmmm

wire fires are nothing to trifle with

 

[leSLIe]

Hmm... that printscreen looks suspicious...

 

[klepp0906]

OP's PC

 

[klepp0906]

My guess would be 16 amps...

wattage /sigh. and its about 1850w iirc

 

[klepp0906]

Hmm... that printscreen looks suspicious...

? lol would you rather I iphone'd it real quick ? Your really grasping at straws now lol.

why am I even bothering

 

[klepp0906]

The wire size is NOT the only thing you have to look at. You have to also look at the length of the wire.

If you are not completely sure you are running 12GA or larger wire, you do NOT want to put a 20A breaker on it unless the length of the complete run (all outlets included) is less than 56 feet.

See here for a calculator to tell you what size wire you need to run.

http://www.csgnetwork.com/wiresizecalc.html

Im gonna go take a look at the wire and see if its printed somewhere on it. if not ill have to dig up a stripper and check the size of the wire. Safe > sorry I suppose. Ty for the calc!

 

[RamonGTP]

wattage /sigh. and its about 1850w iirc

Well it trips at >15 amps and voltage fluctuates, which means wattage will also fluctuate. The lower the voltage, the higher the current draw will be. That's the nice thing about 220-240v circuits, they use half the current.

 

[Johnx64]

I have used larger fuses for a variety of reasons (and smaller) in vehicle fuseboxes and assumed it was the same.

It is the same. I'm assuming you don't have a lot of automotive experience to have never witnessed a person putting in a 5 amp bigger fuse because the fuse kept blowing which resulted in the wiring harness melting and the fuse box melting due to the extra heat.

 

[Lunas]

why do you need 4 titans are you litecoin mining? rendering a holographic wife? 2 of them should render any game at a high enough resolution with >60fps on ultra settings

update:
looked at sig
Could not afford... water blocks... or a decent case... or decent psu....

Basics of building you START WITH A FOUNDATION NOT THE SHINGLES ON THE ROOF!!!!
goes in this order
CASE
Motherboard
PSU
CPU
COOLING METHOD
RAM
VIDEOCARD
HARD DRIVES
MONITORS
optical drives...

You should have started with 2 titans and planned on getting 2 more later...so you could do this right rather than sloppy.
hypothetically if you had only picked up 2 titans you would have enough to get the full watercooling solution and a 2000w+ psu a case that fits all of it a bigger SSD or 2x 256 gig SSD and still had some change left for pizza

 

[Deleted member 88227]

may i point you to my other thread with a screenshot? that was with my old single psu and I tripped the shut off on it short of blowing the breaker. That didn't happen until it hit 2000w from the wall but it was running the entire pc.

I already read and posted in your other thread, multiple times.

once I got the 2nd psu, no more tripping of the prot but I can make you look silly if its really necessary? many people with a lot of electrical knowledge in this thread, perhaps they can tell you what it takes to blow a 15A circuit.

You don't have the intelligence to make me look silly. I can assure you of that. With that poorly configured rig you have there is no telling what is going on with it.

or you can brush up on your reading comprehension. First and foremost, if you think these cards can only pull 300w your incorrect to put it nicely. 2nd my board has aux power for the pcie slots, 3rd, the 2500w is the entire pc under stress which I can prove w/ ss if you'd like, but it will be 2 separate shots, one for the psu w/ the 4 cards, one for the psu with the pc+peripherals.

Says the guy who thinks switching out a breaker is okay. I am not incorrect as I put it nicely. The specifications of PCI-express states that the PCI-express slot itself can only deliver up to a maximum of 75W of power. The 6 pin PCI-express plug on the GPU can deliver an additional 75W of power while the 8 in PCI-express plug can deliver 150W. That's a total of 300W. Why don't you go look up that information.

I guess I could be making it up cause it makes me cool to blow breakers and such... perhaps in your world. It wouldn't take much time to google and see some people have a single titan pulling over 400w but I digress.

My i7 870 @ 3.5Ghz w/ 470 GTX blew a 15A fuse. That proves nothing. Additionally that 400W on a single Titan is not only most likely measured AT THE WALL, but it's also an entire system.

Ironic my 4 titans that can only pull 1200w can restart my psu on command by opening furmark @ 4k reso with an OC on them O.O

I just think you have a lot of problems going on and your only solution is to feed it more power instead of trying to figure out what's wrong.

ughg how aggravating. Love being called a liar by people with no clue, the epitome of frustrating lol. I assume you have a rig similar to mine then?

I never called you a liar.

Anyways, moving on. I was unaware that changing a breaker can void your homeowners. They are certainly reaching nowadays eh? That's practically criminal. They have no problem taking the money for 30 years and not having people use it 1 time though. grrrrumble.

Reaching? IT'S A FIRE HAZARD! Why on Earth would they continue to insure you would be dumb on their part.

I appreciate all the input though, didn't realize changing the breaker was as big of a deal as it was. I have used larger fuses for a variety of reasons (and smaller) in vehicle fuseboxes and assumed it was the same.

Maybe you should brush up on your reading comprehension and Google it.

 

[klepp0906]

one more quick one.. hopefully it helps people in the future. Here is 4 titans drawing over 400w each. I couldn't hit the screenshot button in time but it hit 1690 before it keeled over on me.

 

[klepp0906]

I already read and posted in your other thread, multiple times.



You don't have the intelligence to make me look silly. I can assure you of that. With that poorly configured rig you have there is no telling what is going on with it.



Says the guy who thinks switching out a breaker is okay. I am not incorrect as I put it nicely. The specifications of PCI-express states that the PCI-express slot itself can only deliver up to a maximum of 75W of power. The 6 pin PCI-express plug on the GPU can deliver an additional 75W of power while the 8 in PCI-express plug can deliver 150W. That's a total of 300W. Why don't you go look up that information.



My i7 870 @ 3.5Ghz w/ 470 GTX blew a 15A fuse. That proves nothing. Additionally that 400W on a single Titan is not only most likely measured AT THE WALL, but it's also an entire system.

I just think you have a lot of problems going on and your only solution is to feed it more power instead of trying to figure out what's wrong.



I never called you a liar.



Reaching? IT'S A FIRE HAZARD! Why on Earth would they continue to insure you would be dumb on their part.




Maybe you should brush up on your reading comprehension and Google it.

so your basically changing the subject and denying the numbers I am putting in front of you? some people lol.

 

[klepp0906]

and poorly configured rig? are you retarded.. ive spent over a month dialing it in.. ive been building pc's 15 years.. and I detest children telling me what I am or am not from behind a monitor but I assure you my lack of knowledge in the area of electricity has no reflection on my knowledge in other areas.

pecker measuring contests are fun, but take your bitterness elsewhere. You can show me all the links you want, but your simply digging a denial hole..

Ive put the numbers In front of your face. I guess I configured my titans to draw more power? /sigh cmon man

that would be quite a bit of juice if it was an entire pc.. but as the earlier photo shows in my "poorly configured rig" (what does that even mean? lol) I still have another psu inside that draws 300-600w last I checked (can only plug in one psu meter at a time)

do the math.

P.S. and so that image of power draw in someone elses computer is relative how? lol

P.S.S I didn't look so clearly the first time but I appreciate you proving my point. so the 400w titan rig minus 67 for the pc itself is still 333w which = over 1300w add in a custom bios which I can assure you your linked review wasn't using, and a raised TDP and POOF you have my wattage easily.

 

[klepp0906]

oh.. and if your 470 blew a fuse.. talk about something being wrong

unless you had a welder running on the same outlet

your right.. in and of itself it does prove nothing, but my pictures do. and the only things in this room using power are my pc, my monitors, and related components (router etc)

my OH my how this thread has been derailed.

I will take a look at the gauge of the wire and get a measurement of length and report back though. perhaps we can determine just how much of a danger this poses or doesn't pose.

(danger relative to a gaming pc... wrong on many levels lol)

 

[Deleted member 88227]

and poorly configured rig? are you retarded.. ive spent over a month dialing it in.. ive been building pc's 15 years.. and I detest children telling me what I am or am not from behind a monitor but I assure you my lack of knowledge in the area of electricity has no reflection on my knowledge in other areas.

Funny that others have no issues running quad titans with 1500W PSUs just fine.

pecker measuring contests are fun, but take your bitterness elsewhere. You can show me all the links you want, but your simply digging a denial hole..

What exactly am I in denial over? I'm just trying to help you.

Ive put the numbers In front of your face. I guess I configured my titans to draw more power? /sigh cmon man

Too many variables and like I said in the last thread you started, I don't trust your power measuring abilities or equipment.

that would be quite a bit of juice if it was an entire pc.. but as the earlier photo shows in my "poorly configured rig" (what does that even mean? lol) I still have another psu inside that draws 300-600w last I checked (can only plug in one psu meter at a time)

do the math.

I can do math. It's you I'm trying to help here.

P.S. and so that image of power draw in someone elses computer is relative how? lol

Reading comprehension. It's a single Titan.

P.S.S I didn't look so clearly the first time but I appreciate you proving my point. so the 400w titan rig minus 67 for the pc itself is still 333w which = over 1300w add in a custom bios which I can assure you your linked review wasn't using, and a raised TDP and POOF you have my wattage easily.

That's right. It's a single titan drawing 400W and if we minus the 67W for the "idle" CPU that leaves 333W. Obviously even if the GPU is crunching away the CPU is anything but idle, but anyway. 333W is at the wall, still. With a 90% efficient PSU that's 299.7W of DC power.

oh.. and if your 470 blew a fuse.. talk about something being wrong

unless you had a welder running on the same outlet

My point was just because something is plugging into an outlet and it blows a fuse doesn't mean that's the only thing that's the problem. In my case, I live in a house built in the 1930s where electricity was added after the fact. It also wasn't the only thing on that fuse since a less than 400W rig can't possibly blow a 15A fuse on it's own. Needless to say nearly half the house went black.

your right.. in and of itself it does prove nothing, but my pictures do. and the only things in this room using power are my pc, my monitors, and related components (router etc)

What monitors do you have and how many of them?

my OH my how this thread has been derailed.

I am merely replying to your statements directly. So if this train wreck got off the track it's because you're the Engineer.

I will take a look at the gauge of the wire and get a measurement of length and report back though. perhaps we can determine just how much of a danger this poses or doesn't pose.

(danger relative to a gaming pc... wrong on many levels lol)

I can almost guarantee it's not going to work the way you want.

 

[jojo69]

Originally Posted by klepp0906 View Post
Anyways, moving on. I was unaware that changing a breaker can void your homeowners. They are certainly reaching nowadays eh? That's practically criminal. They have no problem taking the money for 30 years and not having people use it 1 time though. grrrrumble.

I can't believe I am reading this, dude, you are overamping that circuit...we aren't joking or making fun of you, this is a really bad idea.

 

[Lunas]

I can most assuredly confirm that unlicensed uncertified out of code wiring will indeed void homeowners insurance. If your wiring is coded to have a 15 amp breaker and no bigger then you can not put a 20A on it without running a new thicker wire... This is why electricians are so expensive they are required to certify the work is within code so that insurance has confidence in your home to insure it.

But you did not listen to us before why listen now...

 

[Justintoxicated]

Get solar (convince your wife), tell electrician you want a free grounded outlet installed for your computer as part of the deal.
Profit.
That's what I did

 

[RamonGTP]

I'm seeing a lot of GPU envy in this thread. Why do some of you care "why" he has 4 Titans?

That said, there is enough criticism to go around.

OP, if you can afford 4 Titans, you can afford to have an electrician either rewire the circuit for 20+ amps or better yet, run a dedicated 220-240v circuit for the PC. You don't have to worry about tripping a breaker, you don't have to worry about burning down your home and you don't have to worry about having a 2nd PSU. Might as well do it right, it's no use to continuously reply in this thread in hopes you'll get someone to tell you what you want to hear.

 

[Lunas]

I'm seeing a lot of GPU envy in this thread. Why do some of you care "why" he has 4 Titans?

That said, there is enough criticism to go around.

OP, if you can afford 4 Titans, you can afford to have an electrician either rewire the circuit for 20+ amps or better yet, run a dedicated 220-240v circuit for the PC. You don't have to worry about tripping a breaker, you don't have to worry about burning down your home and you don't have to worry about having a 2nd PSU. Might as well do it right, it's no use to continuously reply in this thread in hopes you'll get someone to tell you what you want to hear.

it is not exactly gpu envy he spent over 7500 on the rig he complains about not being able to afford waterblocks and an electrician to power the beast so he asks how to make his house a fire hazard....

 

[phillyboy]

I see bad things happening here. I just hope the wire burns up at the circuit breaker panel or other metal enclosure and not inside of your wall.

It'll probably smolder and burn the insulation first so you can start checking for that at least...

 

[RamonGTP]

I see bad things happening here. I just hope the wire burns up at the circuit breaker panel or other metal enclosure and not inside of your wall.

It'll probably smolder and burn the insulation first so you can start checking for that at least...

One would hope that it doesn't burn up at all, which it PROBABLY won't, but why would anyone take that chance with their home?

 

[phillyboy]

That's true, but I wouldn't be surprised if the insulation started getting overheated.

I've seen undersized wiring in action at work before and you don't get a nice feeling in your stomach after it is found.

 

[Zangmonkey]

I can most assuredly confirm that unlicensed uncertified out of code wiring will indeed void homeowners insurance. If your wiring is coded to have a 15 amp breaker and no bigger then you can not put a 20A on it without running a new thicker wire... This is why electricians are so expensive they are required to certify the work is within code so that insurance has confidence in your home to insure it.

But you did not listen to us before why listen now...

Also they are bonded so that if they fuck up and cause an electrical fire the insurance company will take their bond.

 

[Zangmonkey]

That's true, but I wouldn't be surprised if the insulation started getting overheated.

I've seen undersized wiring in action at work before and you don't get a nice feeling in your stomach after it is found.

Actually, I'd bet it's far more likely to overheat at a point where it's mechanically fastened. Wires are stapled in wall, even though current code requires insulated staples the majority of wiring work I've seen is with un-insulated staples.

It's all too easy to pinch, cut or otherwise impair insulation at the fastening points.
If OP overloads the circuit and causes a fire it won't be at the panel.

Also, consider that OP's 15A break was, apparently, allowing nearly 17 amps... this is over 10% above the trip rating. Assume the same quality on the 20A breaker (God help him if they are Stab-Lok breakers!!!!) and he's looking at over 22A draw before a breaker trip.

Again, I cannot overstate this enough: what OP is doing here is asking for a fire.

There are too many points of failure now. The panel, the wire, and outlet!!!
Your breaker was 15A, so it's likely that the receptacles are also 15A rated.

If you're not going to get a dedicated circuit run, then take the other poster's advice and buy a 20A rated big-ass extension core from another outlet in the house which is rated for the load.

I swear, OP, you seem like a pretty smart guy. Your rig is impressive.
Don't be so fucking stupid with your high voltage supply wiring

 

[evilsofa]

You can afford four Titans but you can't afford an electrician to keep your house from burning down?

 

[klepp0906]

Get solar (convince your wife), tell electrician you want a free grounded outlet installed for your computer as part of the deal.
Profit.
That's what I did

you know, this is becoming more and more popular and I have no doubt in another decade it will be commonplace... not realistic for me at the moment, but certainlys omething to look into in the future.

not sure how much the initial investment I have no doubt it saves you an arm and a leg

 

[klepp0906]

I'm seeing a lot of GPU envy in this thread. Why do some of you care "why" he has 4 Titans?

That said, there is enough criticism to go around.

OP, if you can afford 4 Titans, you can afford to have an electrician either rewire the circuit for 20+ amps or better yet, run a dedicated 220-240v circuit for the PC. You don't have to worry about tripping a breaker, you don't have to worry about burning down your home and you don't have to worry about having a 2nd PSU. Might as well do it right, it's no use to continuously reply in this thread in hopes you'll get someone to tell you what you want to hear.

not replying due to that. I already have my answer. Im toe'ing the line and ive gone through hell getting this pc working.. just had to dig up cash for the 2nd psu only to find out after getting the 2nd psu its now blowing a breaker.

you are correct, I spent a ton of cash on this pc which means my wife would die if I said I wanted to spend a raw penny more. Im not sure why people think because I have a nice pc I have a ton of money to blow elsewhere at the moment.

aside from the fact im in recovery from cancer (ton of $$ in meds) my wife and I are both in less than ideal jobs due to the economy in MI and economy in general. This is my first computer in SEVEN years.. I saved a long time and took tax money and sold off my 2 old pc's to fund it. Also bought the 780s that were in this PC one at a time. After finding out NVidia's greedy arse wasn't going to allow quad SLI, I was fortunate enough to find someone who would trade 4 780's for 3 gtx titans. Made the trade and saved up over the course of another month or two to buy the last one.

not sure how all that means I have money laying around to pay an electrician but A) we live check to check, and B) ive never used a contractor for anything... (mostly due to the aforementioned financial issue) Not to say it wouldn't be ideal... but this pc has stretched me real thin. I know we have some bright minds here although they are outnumbered by the morons and web trolls. I'd like to think most people are capable of understanding just becase someone has something nice doesn't mean they have tons of nice things.

I had to sacrifice a lot to get this together and let me tell ya.. it will be my only pc for the next 3 years MINIMUM.

You act like I said I have 6 4k monitors and a Porsche (then your assumption may have hit a little closer to home) FWIW I drive a 1995 thunderbird I could have gotten a much nicer car but I would have had to buy it one tire at a time, and that is just one example of the sacrifices I made.

A computer is necessary for work and gaming is my life.. it was an excellent long term investment.

So now that we have that covered....

 

[klepp0906]

why do you need 4 titans are you litecoin mining? rendering a holographic wife? 2 of them should render any game at a high enough resolution with >60fps on ultra settings

update:
looked at sig
Could not afford... water blocks... or a decent case... or decent psu....

Basics of building you START WITH A FOUNDATION NOT THE SHINGLES ON THE ROOF!!!!
goes in this order
CASE
Motherboard
PSU
CPU
COOLING METHOD
RAM
VIDEOCARD
HARD DRIVES
MONITORS
optical drives...

You should have started with 2 titans and planned on getting 2 more later...so you could do this right rather than sloppy.
hypothetically if you had only picked up 2 titans you would have enough to get the full watercooling solution and a 2000w+ psu a case that fits all of it a bigger SSD or 2x 256 gig SSD and still had some change left for pizza

Read last post ^^ and 4 titans @ 4680x2560 barely cuts it w/ todays games FWIW

although now that you mention it, coincidentally I have began looking into xxxcoin mining. Unfortunately its looking like NVidia cards are awful for this though >.< I just love to game and have spent a really long time in the dumps due to health and needed a gift to myself and luckily my wife agreed

 

[klepp0906]

Funny that others have no issues running quad titans with 1500W PSUs just fine.



What exactly am I in denial over? I'm just trying to help you.



Too many variables and like I said in the last thread you started, I don't trust your power measuring abilities or equipment.



I can do math. It's you I'm trying to help here.



Reading comprehension. It's a single Titan. OMG EXACTLY! LOL now multiply it by 4



That's right. It's a single titan drawing 400W and if we minus the 67W for the "idle" CPU that leaves 333W. Obviously even if the GPU is crunching away the CPU is anything but idle, but anyway. 333W is at the wall, still. With a 90% efficient PSU that's 299.7W of DC power.

Now lets add in a custom bios with a power target of 450w and see what happens. My screenshot, that's what. I'm bored w/ the back and forth at this point or id post the 1950wall/1674gpu I just got after turning my core down and my memory up. Wish I could see the other psu's numbers to add to the fun but alas im too lazy to switch the coord atm. Point is, no one would have a reason to exaggerate and I hope I have provided adequate proof to get you to understand that. (one final pro tip - the 300w your getting by adding the 8pin the 6pin and the pcie slot.... that's just the spec, not the max they can provide. assuming that isn't clear at this point)

My point was just because something is plugging into an outlet and it blows a fuse doesn't mean that's the only thing that's the problem. In my case, I live in a house built in the 1930s where electricity was added after the fact. It also wasn't the only thing on that fuse since a less than 400W rig can't possibly blow a 15A fuse on it's own. Needless to say nearly half the house went black.

Fair enough. FWIW ive lived here 5 years and never blew a breaker, as I mentioned previously, I ran my old pc as well as a window AC with no issues. I can entertain the possibility of an old weak breaker perhaps.. however I have seen 0 issues after the change to the 20A so for now its moot.

What monitors do you have and how many of them?

Dell U2713H x 3

I am merely replying to your statements directly. So if this train wreck got off the track it's because you're the Engineer.

Hardly. Regardless, I hope we can return to being civil. Descending to the point of that which I despise makes me feel dirty.

I can almost guarantee it's not going to work the way you want.

No issues thus far but I have no allusions to just how hard im working my electrical. Which as ive said before and thought 1000x is damn silly for a pc.

 

[klepp0906]

it is not exactly gpu envy he spent over 7500 on the rig he complains about not being able to afford waterblocks and an electrician to power the beast so he asks how to make his house a fire hazard....

not sure where I complained about either. I simply said I don't have water yet, and discussing affording waterblocks and affording to have my house rewired by a contractor in the dead of winter in the same sentence just makes me lol.

One thing at a time. Though im glad to know their are people out there who have their houses re wired when their pc needs some more juice. /facepalm

 

[jojo69]

OP, please listen to me

I have never begrudged you your very nice setup, I have not belittled you or made fun of you above.

Please do not continue with the 20A breaker, I am not joking, this is a bad bad idea.

Get a 12 gauge extension cord and run back to a 20A outlet if that is what it takes, seriously.

 

[klepp0906]

That's true, but I wouldn't be surprised if the insulation started getting overheated.

I've seen undersized wiring in action at work before and you don't get a nice feeling in your stomach after it is found.

ive checked it several times and its cool to the touch. however, that is at the point where its accessible which is the furthest point from the pc at the breaker itself.

worth mentioning I would be much more concerned if I ran the pc at the load that caused the break for any sustained amount of time. Truth be told, the most demanding game(s) I play suck about 100w less per card than furmark does. Guestimation of course but its quite a difference. Tbh if it weren't for a few choice benchmarks, I may have been able to just squeeze by with 1 psu even.

Didn't want a pc that was rock stable EXCEPT ... for one. Also didn't want to be riding my
PSU at its limit continually. 10 year warranty n all but your only psu goes down and your up xxxx's creek.

 

[klepp0906]

Actually, I'd bet it's far more likely to overheat at a point where it's mechanically fastened. Wires are stapled in wall, even though current code requires insulated staples the majority of wiring work I've seen is with un-insulated staples.

It's all too easy to pinch, cut or otherwise impair insulation at the fastening points.
If OP overloads the circuit and causes a fire it won't be at the panel.

Also, consider that OP's 15A break was, apparently, allowing nearly 17 amps... this is over 10% above the trip rating. Assume the same quality on the 20A breaker (God help him if they are Stab-Lok breakers!!!!) and he's looking at over 22A draw before a breaker trip.

Again, I cannot overstate this enough: what OP is doing here is asking for a fire.

There are too many points of failure now. The panel, the wire, and outlet!!!
Your breaker was 15A, so it's likely that the receptacles are also 15A rated.

If you're not going to get a dedicated circuit run, then take the other poster's advice and buy a 20A rated big-ass extension core from another outlet in the house which is rated for the load.

I swear, OP, you seem like a pretty smart guy. Your rig is impressive.
Don't be so fucking stupid with your high voltage supply wiring

And you seem like someone who knows their electricity. An electrician even? I appreciate the compliment, and I will be the first to admit im an easy-going/laid-back individual, perhaps to a fault. I try not to worry too much. That's not to say that if I believe im doing something dangerous or stupid that im too bullheaded to stop/change/fix/adjust it. Im also confident that everyone here has their heart in the right place. (for the most part!)

That said... you mentioned that my breaker was taking more power than it should have to trip? Correct me if im wrong but aren't breakers supposed to trip early when theyre old? Regardless.. the pc only tripped under high stress for a prolonged period which leads me to believe, give or take due to defect or deterioration I am close and by adding the larger breaker I shouldn't be going anywhere near its limit.

As you mentioned, it can fail at any point but fwiw it is cool to the touch where I can get at it. This I find very odd considering it blew the last breaker which is tripped via heat if im right? Of course Id imagine the insulation itself dampens a good amount of the heat.

I don't make a habit of stressing my gpu that hard for a long time, was just making sure my overclock was stable for the most part. That said, when I do get my waterblocks I will have to move one over to the other psu and they will definitely draw quite a bit more power. I do want to make sure I don't need to be concerned because OBVIOUSLY no one wants to put their family in danger. If the house goes up at best I lose the pc I spent so much time and money to build in the first place.

That said, is their anything I can take/provide a picture of that can help establish the degree of safety we are talking about? I just looked at the wire but I cant find a gauge label on it. Their is a 20A proper next to the one I swapped, and the wire is ever so slightly larger. I took a picture of this but in the picture even close up the difference is so small you cant tell. This is what makes me assume that if 20A takes 12 and 15A takes 14 that I am using a 14 on a 20. Someone a page or so back mentioned that you can in fact do this, but only up to a point or a temperature spec or something.

Anything more to offer?

 

[klepp0906]

OP, please listen to me

I have never begrudged you your very nice setup, I have not belittled you or made fun of you above.

Please do not continue with the 20A breaker, I am not joking, this is a bad bad idea.

Get a 12 gauge extension cord and run back to a 20A outlet if that is what it takes, seriously.

I appreciate the civility God knows this thread deteriorated a bit much. Anyhow, this may be what I have to do. Im waiting to hear back if pictures of anything in particular will help establish whether its completely necessary or not.

When I say necessary I mean from an imminent point of view. It will be done regardless in the future. I don't intend to stop "pc-ing" for lack of a better word, and if todays quad SLI rigs are sucking this kind of power it makes me wonder about tomorrows.

either way, appreciate your concern and point taken.

 

[Zangmonkey]

That said... you mentioned that my breaker was taking more power than it should have to trip? Correct me if im wrong but aren't breakers supposed to trip early when theyre old?

No. A breaker that trips early is much better than a breaker that trips late!

Regardless.. the pc only tripped under high stress for a prolonged period which leads me to believe, give or take due to defect or deterioration I am close and by adding the larger breaker I shouldn't be going anywhere near its limit.

I don't think you're understanding the problem here.
The breaker is not the limiting factor in your electrical system. The wiring, distance, receptacles, etc are the limiting factor.
The breaker is the final safety to prevent you from overloading your electrical system.

What you're doing is taking a system that says "I am rated for 15A, and because I'm only rated for 15A I require a safety system that turns me off if I exceed that!"

You are removing the safety from the equation.

As you mentioned, it can fail at any point but fwiw it is cool to the touch where I can get at it. This I find very odd considering it blew the last breaker which is tripped via heat if im right? Of course Id imagine the insulation itself dampens a good amount of the heat.

Heat does not cause breakers to trip. Or, at least, heat is not how breakers are supposed to trip. If heat is tripping your breaker you have a major problem.

Your breaker should trip due to overload of the breaker's rating, the wire should not be warm when this happens. If your wire is hot to the touch you have a problem, even if your breaker is properly sized.

I don't make a habit of stressing my gpu that hard for a long time, was just making sure my overclock was stable for the most part. That said, when I do get my waterblocks I will have to move one over to the other psu and they will definitely draw quite a bit more power. I do want to make sure I don't need to be concerned because OBVIOUSLY no one wants to put their family in danger. If the house goes up at best I lose the pc I spent so much time and money to build in the first place.

Again, you are removing the safety mechanism.. it's not just about your PC, it's about the entire electrical system in your house.

That said, is their anything I can take/provide a picture of that can help establish the degree of safety we are talking about? I just looked at the wire but I cant find a gauge label on it. Their is a 20A proper next to the one I swapped, and the wire is ever so slightly larger. I took a picture of this but in the picture even close up the difference is so small you cant tell. This is what makes me assume that if 20A takes 12 and 15A takes 14 that I am using a 14 on a 20. Someone a page or so back mentioned that you can in fact do this, but only up to a point or a temperature spec or something.

For all intents and purposes, there is no true way to check the safety of your electrical system without tearing down the walls and inspecting the wiring.
Your safety in the house depends upon the breaker which was designed to limit the electrical system.

Even if the conductor in your panel were a 12, I still would not replace a 15A breaker with a 20A breaker. For all you know that wire was a spare piece that only enters the panel from junction box and continues in a different gauge.

Anything more to offer?

All I can offer is what I've already said, multiple times: don't replace your breaker with a bigger breaker

Just don't do it.

 

[Deleted member 88227]

He should bring the PC to his parents house and run it from the garage. lol

 

[jojo69]

Heat does not cause breakers to trip. Or, at least, heat is not how breakers are supposed to trip. If heat is tripping your breaker you have a major problem.

I pretty much agree with your post except for this, I believe the pilot device in most residential breakers is, in fact, a bi-metallic strip that buckles when the current across it heats it to a given temperature.

I know that I can push my shop circuits harder in the winter.

 

[Zangmonkey]

I pretty much agree with your post except for this, I believe the pilot device in most residential breakers is, in fact, a bi-metallic strip that buckles when the current across it heats it to a given temperature.

I know that I can push my shop circuits harder in the winter.

Modern circuit breakers use a magnetic trip system which should trip when the current creates a magnetic field of a certain strength. This is temperature independent.

Some circuit breakers also have a heat based trip

 

[jojo69]

fair enough, perhaps I have an older type, or perhaps I have the "also" type and in the summer the thermal side is the limiting factor

what I know for sure is I can run the compressor plus other tools when it is cold out

cheers