Overcurrent Through Wire

A typical residential circuit in your home is protected by a 15 amp circuit breaker. This means typically, a maximum of 15 amps of power are running through your wiring. In some cases, unsuspecting homeowners have installed an overrated circuit breaker because their circuits keep tripping. As you see in the video, even at 30 amps, this is not necessarily an immediate fire hazard. When 15 or 30 amps of current runs through wire for an extended period of time, the wire remains intact and does not overheat. Only when significant overcurrent beyond all safety factors occurs (85 amps), the wire quickly overheats and begins to smoke and melt.