August 13, 2021
The question no one knew to ask: How to label your breaker panel. Best advice: Do it before you need it. Here’s the easy solution, ready for you to use right now.
How To Label Your Breaker Panel
No one gets excited about this. There’s no shopping, no “beauty” factor, no huge sense of accomplishment.
No one will care. If you mention it at lunch people will yawn and pick up their phones to scroll Facebook.
But there’s something more.
Like buckling your seat belt, or remembering not to dry your hair in the tub, getting this done may save your life.
Even if the evidence of the benefit is less, I promise there will be a day when you thank yourself.
As always, there’s a reason for this post. Our dishwasher stopped working. Not only that, 👉🏼something in the control panel of the dishwasher was burning.😮 The smell was obvious upon entering the house. That acrid plastic-electrical-burning smell.
You know what I did? Walked over to the breaker panel, located the switch labeled “Dishwasher,” and flipped it off.
Because I am a superhero like that.
Later the friendly repairman was able to show me the small slightly blackened area surrounding the wires in the dishwasher’s control panel. 😧
Would a fire have eventually started?
I don’t know.
But I do know this: It didn’t.
To keep all this in perspective today, here are the top 3 causes of house fires, according to NFPA:
- Cooking
- Electrical
- Heating.
Parker Young Construction explains it this way:
There are a lot of things that can cause accidental fires within the home, which is why fire prevention safety is so important. Many accidental fires are often caused by electrical problems. You can often prevent a full-blown fire if you are able to properly respond to any burning smells coming from an electrical source.
If you happen to smell burning near an outlet, then the first thing you should do is trip its circuit breaker so that you can safely unplug whatever it is that’s plugged into the outlet. If the smell disappears, then contact a local electrician to come inspect the outlet for faulty wiring. However, if it continues to smell, leave the house immediately and call 911.
Disaster Averted.
One minute, one word, one pointer finger.
Open the panel, find the word, flip the switch.
Disaster averted.
I’m going to describe the easy preparation for this superhero moment, and I will take 90% of the effort out of it for you. Because I’ll give you a spreadsheet example that will get you started, with a few adjustments you can easily make.
And let’s make sure we remember that it’s not just this exact situation we’re anticipating.
Here’s the other thing: When the repairman comes to your home, he needs to be able to easily see which breaker to switch off, to block the electricity to the appliance he’s working on.
If you haven’t done this task ahead of time, he’ll have to try all the switches till he gets the right one. Yep. Your computers, clocks, internet router, lights, television, phone chargers — you get the idea.
This doesn’t diminish the first reason to create your list, but it sure adds another benefit!
I’ve even got a template you can use for free. Because you came to see me today!
If you’ve got Microsoft Excel (or Google Sheets), a piece of paper, and some tape, that part is free.
If you have just a few blank adhesive labels, that part is also free.
If you have an hour (maybe two), you can do this.
And we all know we can redeem that hour. As busy people, we give and take hours every single day.
And may I gently remind you that a house fire or electrical incident will take much more from you than this worthy task will.
Enter Excel, Companion to Superheroes.
A worthy task, daunting at first glance, but our favorite spreadsheet will take the sting out.
Now, you may think you’re finished with this task. And you may be.
Let’s see.
Your panel box may have blank labels on which you can write. You may have written on them, or you may be considering that now. Someone in the past may have written on those labels.
But there’s something you need to know:
Ink can fade. And that information, written on those labels, is saved in only one place: On the panel itself. It’s hard to make corrections or changes.
There’s a better way. And it’s simple.
Create a diagram that shows the area of control for each breaker. With a spreadsheet. Match the information to corresponding numbered labels on the panel.
You’ll number each breaker with a small neat numerical label, then create an Excel spreadsheet that is arranged just like the breaker panel. Two columns, with the numbers of each switch and the name of the items or area each switch controls.
This can all be done with inexpensive labels and a simple printed sheet from your computer.
It takes about an hour, start to finish.
If you already have some sort of labeling completed.
The More Difficult Task
However, if you’ve never labeled the breakers in any way, or if the labels are extremely vague, you have to do something first: figure out exactly what each switch controls.
You’ll have to do this before you get your spreadsheet completed.
And I can help you with that. The general idea is this:
You make your rough draft “list” by getting a buddy to help you. This means getting a helper (husband, friend, neighbor, son, daughter) and moving around the house with lamps, radios, night-lights, etc., that you plug in to outlets, turning things on and off. One of you does the moving around and plugging in, the other person is stationed at the breaker panel, turning off switches one at a time. You have to shout a lot, or use your cell phone.
That takes a while. But please don’t be discouraged.
The important thing is for you to decide to get this done.
In fact, I have four ways you can complete this easily.
- A very complete and thorough tutorial for the entire process from Jen, the everyday homeowner. Her article, How to (Quickly) Label a Home’s Electrical Panel Directory, is well researched and will walk you through each step. She even included a diagram of her house layout on her finished project. That is brilliant. And she has a template for the spreadsheet. The article I wish I had written. If you want to completely follow her directions instead of mine, I won’t take it personally! Her method is detailed, clear, and correct.
- A website that shows you how to use computer programs to draw floor and wiring plans: Conceptdraw. If all this is sounding like a fun adventure to you and you love the technology aspect, this one is for you.
- The old-fashioned pencil-and-paper method. Create a simple drawing of each room on its own sheet of paper. Mark locations of all outlets, the overhead light socket, and any other fixtures (wall sconces, etc).
- Go ahead and create the Excel spreadsheet. Instructions are below. Get the basic layout created. (You can make it from scratch, or use the template I’m giving you today.) You will use it now to make your handwritten list. The labeling areas are blank until you have all your answers. Print it out, bare and blank, and use it to create your initial list, just hand writing as you discover what controls each outlet and overhead light.
As you test and discover, what you write down doesn’t have to be pretty, but it has to be legible. Use whichever method above makes the most sense to you. And remember — this is the most difficult task.
And please know this is the most time-consuming part, but once it’s done, it’s done!
When you’re ready to make your clean pretty copy for the switch box, you can go back to the file and type your notes in neatly to create the final diagram.
I’ll tell you more about this in a second.
Today I’m asking you to consider entering the mindset of “This must be done.“
If you’re feeling pressure building up now, please don’t run off just yet.
If the idea is a little overwhelming, enlist someone else to help you.
And check out my finished work in the pictures.
HOW TO CREATE THE EXCEL SPREADSHEET TO LABEL THE BREAKER PANEL BOX
To make your spreadsheet, you won’t need to worry about any formulas or links. That’s a relief. You won’t have to add, subtract, borrow, or carry!
What you’ll need to do is think of it like a diagram — resize the columns and rows to represent the appearance of the panel box, and merge cells where you need to, for those breakers that are double-sized. I’ll show you some close-up pictures to explain some of the details.
Resizing the columns, merging, shading cells, and selecting text colors. You can do that.
To review, you have three basic steps:
- Make a handwritten list of what outlets/appliances each switch controls.
- Place numerical labels on the panel beside each switch if they are not already there.
- Create the spreadsheet with the list of items controlled by each breaker switch.
Number 1 was the biggest challenge for us, more time consuming. But without it, you can’t complete the project. If you need to make your list, try the methods suggested in “The More Difficult Task” above.
Here’s what you need to know about the rest.
What the Panel Looks Like
Most residential electrical panels will consist of two columns of switches. In mine, some sets are joined together, for the items that use more power. They can’t be separated. Those joined-together sets of switches count as one switch and usually cover just one appliance.
You should take a minute to really look at the switches, then make some simple labels with legible numbers.
Placing the Number Labels
Assign numbers starting at the top left and going to the bottom. Then continue numbers down the right side. Be as neat as possible.
That’s pretty much the easy part.
And while you’re admiring the work you just accomplished (congratulations!), use your cell phone to take a picture of the panel, now that you have the labels in place.
Run back to the computer and start working on the Excel sheet.
Customizing the Spreadsheet
Use the picture you took to get that spreadsheet looking like an electrical panel. The “number” columns can be pretty narrow, but leave yourself plenty of room in the columns where you’ll enter the house areas. As you can see, some of my breakers covered a number of different areas.
When creating your own spreadsheet or adjusting the one I’m supplying, arrange it so that it makes sense to you.
What’s the whole idea of recording things? So you can find them. You need to be able to open that panel door, look at the diagram, and find what you need quickly.
And (being real with you right now) you’ll notice some blank areas on mine, and one duplicate. I think we failed to separate master bedroom and bathroom. And numbers 19 and 22B may be outdoor outlets. I’m not sure, and they are blank. That’s right, I’ve got more work to do.
Why am I showing you that? To remind you that getting this far is important, and I didn’t abandon the whole project just because there are a few unanswered questions. When I get those answers, I’ll simply revise the sheet and tape a new copy into the inside of the panel door.
Did you notice the tiny red numbers on my sheet? Those are the “amps” shown on the actual switch. To be honest, if people start talking about amps, volts, and horsepower, I’m a little lost. I won’t be doing anything with that information.
So why did I include it?
Identification. Noting that number on my diagram helped me to be sure I had the right switch when I was labeling. As you can see, they are not all the same.
Will you do it? Label your breaker panel?
If you’re still yawning, I get it. Seriously.
Life is busy, daily tasks are not finished, and a new project is an unwelcome guest.
I’m not asking you to do this for my benefit.
It’s for your household.
The many ways we love our families would never fit on this page.
Keeping our people safe is an act of love.
In my limited and protected life, I have known two people who were electrocuted in accidents, plus one who suffered an electrical shock but survived. (For the record, electrocution means the result was death.)
I have also known of people who lost their lives in house fires. (Not my people, but my people’s people.)
Preempt, prevent, precaution. All those words have to do with doing something before. Which is now.
Take a second, right now, to think about your people. You can’t keep them safe from every danger in every minute. But you can do something.
Do something. Right now. Something.
- Take a picture of your panel.
- Take a picture of your mama’s panel.
- Get the template I’m giving you.
- Pin this article on Pinterest.
- E-mail a link to yourself.
- Share it on Facebook.
Do something.
Take a first step toward accomplishing this task.
You get no prize, no medal, and no recognition. You get the satisfaction of knowing you cared enough to do it.
Thank you for listening/reading. I really mean that. For taking a small step toward awareness, for yourself or someone else.
I’ll show you some items you can use for this. I used really inexpensive Avery labels for my panel. I do have a Brother labelmaker that is a lot of fun; I just didn’t use it for this project.
The template for the panel is here for you to download. Free. For you. 😊
Click the square image below, Breaker Panel Box Diagram Template, to get it. It’s an Excel file, and no sign-up is required. The link takes you right to the document.
When you see the document, make a copy as an Excel file, which should allow you to save your own copy and edit your file.
For yourself, or someone you know who needs a nudge, let’s get this done.
Download the template, and decide what to do first.
Because you care, right?
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-Grammye
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What’s the tip of the week?
Choose careful over careless. And know the difference.
Care — Maybe the most overused word in our language.
- The provision of what is necessary for the health, welfare, maintenance, and protection of someone or something.
- Serious attention or consideration applied to doing something correctly or to avoid damage or risk.
I care about you. Thanks for being here.
What’s your first step? Or have you already done it?
Yeah? Boom! 🤜🏼 Share!
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So many homeowners don’t think to do the simple, yet potentially life-saving task of labeling their circuit breakers. There simply isn’t enough advocacy. Thank you so much for this post!
Jen! Thank you for stopping by today. I agree — This just isn’t something we talk about. I learned a lot from your instructions, and appreciate all the hard work you did to break it down into very manageable tasks! Even those of us who are intimidated by “electricity talk” can label our breakers. Hoping to see someone else jump on the safety train and get this done! 😃
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