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brooklyn1

On Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:08:23 -0800 (PST),
wrote:

>On Thursday, November 28, 2013 9:06:32 AM UTC-8, pltrgyst wrote:
>> On 11/28/13 1:28 AM, T wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>> > Circuit breakers do wear over time. It's a spring mechanism in there
>> > that over a span of time will lose strenghth and not be able to hold the
>> > contacts together.
>>
>>
>>
>> Ummm, the spring doesn't hold the contacts together. It drives them
>> apart when the breaker trips.
>>
>
>So if the spring ever breaks, an overloaded circuit will set the building on
>fire? Doesn't sound like a failsafe to me.

Circuit breakers don't rely on springs.
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com...t-breaker2.htm