Finding a short on lighting circuit.

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Electricalartist

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Tomorrow I need to find a short on a outside lighting circuit with underground wiring. It's been a while and I'm a little rusty. Long story... On an LED lighting circuit can I use the continuity tester to find which wires are shorted ?
I was planning on going to the panel and continuity test hot to ground hot to neutral to see which is shorted. And attempt to use a sure tracer to pinpoint
 
Hot to ground might show you something usable, but I doubt hot to neutral will be enlightening.
I would isolate the underground and test that first. If you have continuity, it's bad for sure. Isolate or remove the load from the underground and energize that portion. See if trips.
 
How much distance can the sure trace detect?
I use a 3M cable locator/fault locator (like the power companies use). Accurate to a T finding where the short is underground.
 
I would remove the loads the ptonsparky said.
Connect an incandescent light bulb on a pig tail in series with the hot and the breaker.
If the bulb has full brilliance then it probable that the short is not cleared.
Continue to work on taking splices apart until bulb goes out.
If you haven't figured it out the fault.
Then move the pigtail up the circuit to where the pig tail lights up again.
Of course there are other factors but this is the basics.
Good luck
 
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