Microwave Oven Tripped Circuit Breaker?

First thing you need to look at is, is anything else on the second circuit also? The frig or coffee maker or anything else?

IF you plugged it into another outlet and tripped the same breaker, it is not going to solve the problem. Microwave, coffee maker, griddle, fryer, toaster, toaster oven, or anything else that has a heating element in it is going to trip the breaker.

IF you tripped a different breaker the second time then it could be your microwave. However I have seen breakers trip due to improper wiring with two circuits on the same neutral.

Best thing to do is take it into another room like the living room and give it one more test. IF it trips another breaker it is time to take it in for repair or do the old American toss out and get a new one. If it does not trip a breaker then call the electrician. Either problem is going to cost you a couple big ones unless you get a cheap microwave.

I agree that it's probably a bad circuit breaker. Should be very easy to replace. Cut the main breaker, remove the troublesome one and go to the hardware store to find a replacement. EDIT: If everything in your house shuts off... is it the main RCD breaker that's tripping? If so... It would probably not be too safe to mess with. You'd have to connect live wires from the main line into your house. Still not a big, expensive job for an electrician though... If you have a short or "earth leakage" it would most likely trip the breaker for only the circuit with the problem. The individual breakers should trip at less amperage than the main breaker. The chances of the problem being in the few inches between the individual breakers and the main breaker are slim to none. The chances of a short causing almost enough draw to trip a breaker but not quite unless you plug something else in are slim to none. Also, your electric bill would be outrageous and you'd know. It still looks like a worn-out breaker to me...

How old is your microwave oven? If it's more than 7 years old you should consider replacing it since it'll be cheaper to replace than fix and the newer model will be much more energy-efficient. If your microwave is not that old, I'm still willing to bet that you're correct and the microwave itself is the problem (not the wiring). Calling an electrician is going to be costly -- they charge you just for coming out and giving an estimate -- and it's unlikely that he/she will be able to do anything for you, so here's something you can try: Plug the microwave in someplace like a garage where the breaker is usually set for a higher current rating. Turn it on and see what happens. If it trips the breaker, you know your microwave is drawing way too much current. If it doesn't, then it might be a good idea to call an electrician.

By switching outlets you pretty much already tried the self-diagnosis. If there were other things running on that circuit too, then it might not really have told you much though.

I live in an old house, and our circuits are really weird. For example, two outlets in my pantry are on the same breaker as the light in the stairwell, and the bathroom ceiling fan, and they are all on different sides of the house.

Maybe your microwave and toaster oven are in a similar situation (ie. the lamp in the den was also on at the same time lol). Figure out where the circuits really are, and if nothing seems to be different then give your electrician a call.

Check the max amperage of the microwave and compare it to the breaker. It is possible you are overloading the circuit.

If the microwave isn't going bad, the circuit breaker could be. A replacement would cost about $30, and it would be fairly easy to replace, just have to turn off the main curciut breaker, pop out the old and put in the new, then turn the main back on.

I used a 20-dollar wattmeter to check the power consumption of my microwave oven - the tag on the micro said 13 amps, according to the meter it was pulling 16. My breakers put up with it for a few minutes, and like you, it did the same no matter what outlet. Time for a new microwave oven...

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Since you say ALL the sockets go off, my guess is that it is an RCD which trips, not the individual circuit. (The RCD switch is usually twice the width of an individual circuit breaker). It indicates to me that you are looking at an earth leakage problem (could be damp in an element, for example) as opposed to an overload problem. Can't really diagnose what is causing the tripping without seeing what is actually installed at the house and on which circuit.

First of all is this a counter top microwave or an over the oven microwave? If its an over the oven microwave, it needs to be on its own seperate line because of the voltage. If its a counter top microwave, my thought is your breaker may be shorting.

Microwave only trips brea when I pop popcorn! You can't tell that the breaker has tripped when looking in the breaker box...but if you flip it off and then on the microwave comes back on

most microwave ovens will draw 1200watts max.@120volts that would =10amps. most outlets will handle15&kitchen20.try to turn off all appliances,lights,ect.start unit start with low power setting &work up to high.if the breaker trips there is a problem with the unit,not worth repairing.