AFCI: Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter. An AFCI is a safety device that will help protect a circuit by monitoring it for arc faults that breakers can not see and will trip out before a normal breaker would. AFCI’s are required by 2008 electric code to protect circuits supplying power to virtually all rooms in your house, with the exception of kitchens. One AFCI can protect many outlets and lights, etc., on the same circuit. Currently, AFCI’s are in circuit breaker form and will be found in your circuit panel and will look similar to a GFCI breaker with a test button on it. An example of what an AFCI would do is if you had a lamp cord was underneath a rocking chair and over time the cord got damaged and the conductors started to touch. The AFCI would see this problem and trip the breaker when a standard breaker may not. AFCI’s are complicated to explain in a short paragraph how they work, but this was a general idea.
AFCI’s have a test button. They should be tested once a month per their instructions. This can be done with an AFCI tester or by simply pushing the test button. The breaker should trip. If it won’t reset, it’s time to replace it.
AFCI’s are a fairly new technology and therefore still cost quite a bit. However, like any life-safety device, the benefit far exceeds the cost!
AFCI breakers work the same way as a breaker when it comes to resetting it.