"Considered a bit of a pain by me and many of my colleagues, since resetting them/using them as on-off switches is in some cases the only way for us to clear up a problem in various cabin systems."
Has anyone noticed that on some modern aircraft, the only way to switch off certain systems IS by pulling the CB... or by removing airplane power? On the 747-400, for example, there are no switches for DME, Rad Alt, VHF and HF comms, VOR, FMC, ILS, FCC's, etc.
Many airlines (depending on ground time) have the engineers pull CB's as a way of making the systems safe on the ground and to reduce wear and tear on the systems . No doubt this is done with the approval of airline manufacturers.
Personally, having changed only one or two CB's in the last 6 years due to wear and tear, it certainly gives one the impression that they are designed to stand up to the rigours of being pulled on a routine basis. On the other hand, I do believe that there's no harm in expressing our concerns on this issue.
Rgds.
Q.