So you think your house is going to burn down because a receptacle doesn’t work? I know… I know that electricity can be a very scary thing to deal with. Because a lot of people don’t understand how it works or what to look for when things stop working.
I want to be clear here… yes, there could be a possibility of a fire if a plug or parts of the electrical system stop working. The possibility of it happening is slim, but it is real. You will see that an electrical fire is usually started by a loose connection. Basically what happens is that a connection that joins 2 or more wires will separate slightly. When this happens, the result can be arcs and sparks. If something is close enough to catch fire from the heat that is produced, you may be in trouble.
Now, again, the chance of something like this happening is small… but it does happen. Well, what should you do first if you notice that something has stopped working in your home?
1) Take note of what is being used when you notice the problem… do you have any high energy exhaust appliances plugged in that no longer work? Some examples of these are space heaters (probably the biggest cause of many problems), hair dryers, toasters, basically anything that has a heating element.
2) You’ll want to make sure you don’t blow a fuse or break a switch. To verify this, you will want to find where your circuit breaker or fuse box is located. Usually this is in the basement or storage area. Open the door, if you have round glass fuses, check that there is no black dot in the center of any of them. If there is, then you have a blown fuse, unscrew it and replace it WITH THE SAME SIZE FUSE. If you have switches, check that all handles are tight. When I say tight I mean the era is no game at all on the switches. If you have a blown switch, then that handle is likely to be a lot looser than the rest. Turn the switch completely off and then back on again. It should click and stay in place. If not, you probably have another hidden problem and it’s probably best to call a professional. When you screw in the glass fuse, same if you screw it in and it flashes or you see it turn black inside then you know there is another problem hidden.
3) If you’ve done the other two things and everything is fine so far, you may have a GFI shot. The receptacles that don’t work, where are they located? Are they in the bathroom, kitchen and basement or outside? If so, you probably have a GFI triggered. Take a look around your house, a GFI can power other downstream receptacles and cause them to not work. A GFI is a plug that has 2 buttons. One button test and reset. If you find a GFI, press the test button. If it appears, you know one was set up before. Press the reset button again and it should click and hold that button again. If not, one of two things could be wrong. The GFI may have gone bad or there may be no power to that outlet. In either case, if you’re not familiar with electrical troubleshooting, you’ll want to call a professional at this point.
What you have done up to this point will be invaluable information to your service technician. This will save you time and save you money.
