I suggest that you shut off the circuit breaker for that circuit and open up
the outlet to see what is going on. The problem could be a loose connection
on the outlet. If all of the wires feed through on that outlet I recommend
that you pigtail them so that all of the current for that circuit is not
passing through that outlet.

If the problem is not in that outlet, than you must open up the remaining
outlets on that circuit in search of the problem. The fact that you plugged
a fan into that outlet and it had an effect on the entire circuit suggests
that the problem is in that outlet. When you open it up you may see some
burn marks on the outlet. Replace it and pigtail it as I suggested.

How old is the house?


John Grabowski
http://www.mrelectrician.tv



"Steve" wrote in message
...
My 3 upstairs bedrooms are on one 15 amp circuit. Occasionally when my
daughter uses her hair dryer the breaker will trip (usually only when one
room has the AC running.)
Yesterday we lost power in all three room but the breaker did not trip.
even
flipping the breaker did nothing to restore power. I checked and there was
power at the breaker, I went upstairs to what I believe is the first
outlet
on the circuit. It had a small fan and a window AC plugged in. When I
unplugged the fan the power came on in all 3 rooms. I suspected a problem
with the fan. I tried the fan in another circuit and it worked fine. Later
that night my wife unplugged the AC from the same outlet and we lost all
power on that circuit. when she plugged the AC back in power was
restored?????

Could this be a bad outlet??? My other concern is some varmints have
gotten
into the attic, squirrels I think, I've been trying to catch them in a
trap
with no luck yet, They did steal my bait though!!!
I'm afraid of them chewing on the wires...
The attic is almost impossible to get into. I wont fit thought the rafters
to get up there anymore.

Any advice on the electrical problem??? Could it be chewed wires or could
it
be a bad outlet???

TIA

Steve