Thanks for sharing this. I have a bathroom outlet the used to work intermittently. It stopped completely. I am measuring less than 4 volts. This outlet is on the load side of a GFCI outlet that also protects a couple of other outlets. I am suspecting a similar situation as the outlet was used for a hair dryer. They pull a fair amount of amperage. Thanks again!
Licensed electrician here, your problem was a loose neutral at the gfci. That's why it tripped the gfci first and not the breaker. Gfci senses the difference in current flow between hot and neutral. Wich is why you had 120v from hot to ground, but 40v hot to neutral. Also it was the neutral side of the gfci that was burnt in your video. Hence the term...loose wires cause fires
Hi what if I’m using electric mower on outdoor outlet, suddenly it stops working. Also our upstairs master bathroom at sinks are also dead? Nothing tripped either. Thank you if you have any suggestions
I've been having power issues, half my house would flicker and sometimes just go out, my house is old so a electrician came out said my old fuse box was burned up, so he upgraded and put it a breaker box with new breakers, worked for 2 days, now same thing is happening, no tripped breakers, and I don't see a single GFCI outlet to reset, any suggestions? Thanks
i threw away the heater i use at work for 8yrs...(sunbeam brand,very durable)because i thought after 8yrs it given up on me..where it could be the freakin outlet...so i bought a new heater...after a day of use the whole power in the office went off but the circuit breaker didnt trip so i figured its the freakin outlet..now i feel bad for throwing my awesome heater who acompanied me all those cold and lonely night at work while watching movies or playing games...
Some things u just don’t have to think about most of the time. Usually u don’t think outlet itself. I only checked because my old house has had plenty of things wiring wise that cause a bit of concern here and there
This was the problem we had after a short in the Christmas lights but just had to hit the reset button. The lights were plugged in an outside outlet that popped the GCFI outlet in another location inside the garage (never knew they were on the same circuit until the GCFI popped). Same AC voltage reading(Craftsman multimeter, too, ha!), etc. THANK YOU!
This is indeed a very helpful video. I like to share what I just experienced with my issue. I have a circuit that starts with a GFCI, then a bunch of outlets and lights in 3 bathrooms and an outside outlet. I used to have the problem that when I used a circular saw from the outside outlet, it killed power of everything except the GFCI (1st in the circuit) and the one in downstair bathroom (EXCEPT I did not know that this outlet is on that circuit, see the following). And about a day later, power came back on everything. When the issue occurred, using the outlet tester, it showed hot/ground reversed for all outlets except the one in downstair bathroom. Using a meter, the voltage difference between hot and neutral is about 17 volts and between neutral and ground is about 100 volts and between hot and ground is full 120 volts on every outlet except the downstair batch outlet. I did not know that the outlet in the downstair bath was the culprit because it kept working with proper voltage and outlet tester result. I only found out that it is the 2nd one on the same circuit immediately after the GFCI once I shut the circuit from the breaker box and noticed that that outlet did not have power any more. So this is the lesson that I learned : Any outlet, not just GFCI, can lead to this kind of odd issue. And a bad outlet can itself still works but cause issue downstream. Turning off the circuit on the breaker box can help identifying such bad outlet - it would lose power after the circuit is shut off from the breaker box.
Great video! Your troubleshooting led me to figure out my problem as well,it was similar as yours. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻. Thank you so much. But in my case,i was pretty close to get fried like a chicken. the fact that i’m still alive it’s just a miracle. The outlet prong was literarily melted.
@@bbreaks-it8207 for sure it did. And i thank you for that. Just to think on how much an electrician was going to charge me if i weren’t able to find the problem myself,gives me a headache. But thanks to your video,i was able to find the problem. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🤩🤩🤩.🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻.
Thanks for this information. My electricians who have been stumped by this problem for years now have some useful information that will help them finally solve our problems. You're a lifesaver mate.
Thanks for the video. All of the electricity in my moms four seasons room is out and I tested every circuit breaker in the panel.They all check out just fine so it is a matter of figuring out which outlet or wall switch in the four seasons room is bad. I guess I have to just start at one and keep going till I find which is bad. Do you know how to check if the outlet is bad without evidence of melted wires or anything visible?
Ahh yes the good old loose neutral. Kind of a quick and dirty method of discovering why you have low voltage to a receptacle is the method you just showed. Low voltage hot to neutral, and normal voltage neutral to ground is a sure indicator of a loose neutral. Now the tracking down the source. If the gfci is tripped most likely the loose neutral is at the gfci, however if the gfci isn't tripped then the best thing to check is the neutral at the panel. The real complicating factor comes in when it's something like an electric stove, dryer, or AC isn't working as those are all single phase 240Vac. This means that both of the hot leads coming into the panel are supplying power to the load. This is why they are on a double breaker where a kind of scissors lift style contact makes connection to the leads on both sides of the panel. All US household currents are 240Vac, and a single hot lead (ie single breaker) takes 120Vac from the panel. Now losing one of those appliances could mean a loose neutral grounding one side of the panel, a bad breaker (melted, burned contacts), or a loss of one of the two hot leads to the panel (in which case that is normally the power company's issue at that point). The first thing to do is check for 120Vac on each hot lead, and 0V neutral to ground. If either lead has less than 120Vac you've found your problem. Now checking that hot lead you should check the resistance from hot to a clean ground and reference it to the resistance of the good lead. If there's a significant difference then your problem lies in loose lugs, burned wires, or something outside of your house like the transformer (that once again is the power company's problem). Now assuming both your hot leads at the panel are pulling 120Vac then the problem is within the breaker itself. Look for a loose breaker (not mounted properly), burned contacts/points, or a broken contact mechanism causing the breaker to contact only one of the two bus bars. I am not a licensed electrician most of my knowledge comes from hands on learning, and schooling in automotive service especially as we get into hybrids, and plug in electrics. This being said I have done a lot of hands on learning by trial and error, read and understood hundreds of articles dealing with AC electrical testing, and have a very solid comprehension of the basics of electricity. As a closing note I want to caution the panel testing I described as it requires taking the cover off, and that will expose you to potentially lethal currents. So unless you have a very good understanding of the danger, parts, and working of an electrical panel please leave that diagnostic work to a qualified electrician. Any licensed electricians out there who would like to review or correct my methods please leave a reply, and I will do so.
Had a microwave oven kicking out but checking voltage, it looked good. Put another microwave in, seemed to be alright. Took the old microwave to work the next morning and threw it in the dumpster. Came home and my wife said the new one was kicking out. Changed breaker and all was well. She started to say, well then that means the....I said the old microwave was bad!
Had the same exact issue…tuned out to be exactly what I thought…was a lose neutral at a GFCI. The electrician that was here said he wasn’t sure but if he hooked it up through the ground he could get us power back. Lesson learned, never do business with someone you don’t know just because you don’t want to mess with it.
I had a similar problem, but half the outlets worked and half didn't, even on the same circuit (detached garage has one line going in and only half of those outlets worked). Microwave was going on and off. Breakers were all good. I had a couple splices in my service line coming into the house and one of them (hot) had burnt through (mostly). I threw the main breaker and called the Power Company. They had to replace the service line as it had 2 splices already and the burnt out section. I suggest that anyone having similar problems do a visual on the service line coming in, it can cause surges that will possibly melt outlets and surge protectors, not to mention TV's and computers.
A few years ago I lost power to half of my living room outlets and lights but no breakers tripped. The electrician traced the problem to a busted rarely-used outlet (not GFCI though) behind the piano.
i had 2 outlets in my master bedroom all of a sudden go out, no main breaker switched, i turn off all breakers and turned back on. didnt fix problem, i replaced 2 outlets in bedroom and still didnt work, i watched this video and tested all outlets in the series, the first 2 in video were giving 80 and the ones connected in living room were giving 80 and then 120 all of a sudden. now the outlets in my master bedroom are working now. i dont know how or what did i complete the circuit somehow with the multimeter and now everything is working and reset it? i dont know..
This is why new NEC residential code in my state has made it mandatory for your microwave to be on a dedicated circuit because of the power draw microwaves create when you start one.
I couldn’t tell you. I know it’s an old house. My assumption is when they installed the last they left the wire more exposed and old wiring just gave out
So I’m not losing power in my outlet however, my microwave, coffee maker and fridge are making most of the rest of the house lights get really dim and flickering too
I pulled out an old electric outlet, to replace it with a GFCI. I accidentally touched some part of the old outlet while removing it on the metal box, and saw a small spark. (I thought the fuse was out, but maybe I had the wrong fuse out). Now, I am reading 14 volts from hot to neutral, and from hot to the metal box(ground). I've pulled every fuse in the panel, and still see 14 volts! Note, the outlet was working fine before my accident (although the hot/neutral were reversed). What did I do break when that old receptacle sparked? Did I burn/short a wire, or junction? How do I find the problem. I cannot use continuity tests since I have 14 volts present. Help!
I’m not an electrician but I know that microwaves toasters blenders tvs and some other appliances “store” energy inside them even when they’ve been unplugged for years. It’s not enough to run the appliance off, but it’s enough to kill in many cases of suicide and such. Again I’m not a licensed electrician so I’m just guessing but maybe the outlet was storing residual power the same way those appliances do? If the hot and neutral wires were switched maybe try putting them the correct way and reusing the old one. Best of luck to you and let me know if you found a good solution.
I was cutting electrical wires in our master bedroom. I cut one cable from one outlet and beaker tripped, fixed the breaker. Then I realized 3 out of 6 outlets are not working and the light switch is also not working. Should I remove all the outlets in the room and see any of them got burned cables or something? I have a simple electric pen, not a device like yours, none of the 3 outlets and light bulb has electric.
That’s a 15 amp GFCI is that 12 gauge wiring going into a 20 amp circuit breaker in the electrical panel? In NJ I believe the kitchen has to be 20 amp GFCIs with 12 gauge to a 20 amp breaker, that 15 amp GFCI can’t handle the load over time ..DIY Homeowner 🍺🍺
That is the gfci plug that was installed when we purchased the house 5 years prior so I am unsure if it meets code since then. I believe I put in a new 20 amp one when I replaced it but pulling that out and seeing that was scary cause that is the one that’s supposed to protect us
B Breaks-It! The 20 amp GFCIs have the slot /cross ,did you go to the panel and see the size of the breaker that circuit is on ? You can have 12 gauge wire on 15amp breaker though I don’t believe it’s code compliant everywhere But 14 gauge wire on 20 amp breaker is a No No very dangerous ,see what size that wire is can’t tell from the vid ..
Also the receptacles down stream connected to that 15 amp GFCI are 15 amp also ..better check that wiring for size and it going to the right size breaker.. maybe an electrician might comment here..
Yeah. If I found the right breaker it’s a 20 amp. But I’m not certain. Previous owners added 2 panels and those panels are only kind of labeled. Wiring is all original in this house from the 50s so it makes things interesting
@@bbreaks-it8207 then that wire Must be 12 gauge to be safe ,if that’s 14 gauge to the GFCI its heating up but the load you put on that wire from time to time is anywhere from 13-16 amps like toasters ,fryers etc but not enough to trip the breaker ,I have 1940s home too did a lot of rewiring still have ungrounded cloth from place to place ,a kitchen draws a lot of current from the everyday day use of appliances,a Microwave should be on a dedicated circuit or plug rated for 20 amps ,in NJ a kitchen and Bathrooms and unfinished basements must be up to code with GFCIs and proper wiring and breakers No “ Grandfathered in” compliance accepted 🍺🍺
You never know where the GFCI that's feeding other outlets may be in the home. I had a garage outlet and an outdoor receptacle that were fed from my bathroom GFCI! It took me a while to figure that one out. Once you know, always indicate which outlets are fed by which GFCI with written notations in your electrical panel, as you may not remember later. It will also be appreciated by future owners of the home.
at work we had two circuits melt together inside a j-box. weird effects caused by it. would only trip if one circuit was switched on, the other breaker would not trip but would put a 120v float onto the second circuit. weird stuff. easy fix.
We had the same thing happen except it started with the outlet in the kitchen. Stove didn’t work and coffee pot But the lower part of the plug that the coffee pot was plugged into worked! . Now two days later (today) the tv plug just died! Any suggestions/advice is appreciated
OK I need your help we have a barn we have a room out in our barn one of the outlets burnt out and almost got fire but now all of the outlets in the room are not working but it says that the breaker is on and like the breaker box it’s on that Bb Kies that outlet needs to be changed or is it something bigger I really need help
I’m having a problem where I only have 45 to like 100 and volts to a receptacle but when I go in my kitchen and flip the switch that actually turns on the light and fan upstairs then I can go over and get a reading at 1:20 whenever I turn off the switch I’m only getting 50 to 100 votes there again can you may help me please and thank you
It was connected correctly but either the GFCI was really old or was not the proper amperage. This I believe cause the wire to either jump to the very close wiring of the switch next to it or it overheated a bad GFCI outlet.
Shoot, now I am worried about having to replace our wires. We have a GFC outlet, two regular outlets, and two wall switches that all went out one day (all are in a line above our kitchen counter), no breaker has been tripped. I really hope it isn't the wiring because that will be expensive.
You guys are killing me! "I found the problem." Same thing I've seen in like 8 videos now. "I replaced it. Now it works." Okay, and what preventative measures have you taken to make sure it doesn't happen again and burn your house down next time? WHY did the GFCI melt? Was it a problem with the GFCI, the wiring in your wall, the breaker, a bad appliance on the circuit somewhere. You may have fixed a symptom and left the problem for the next homeowner to have to figure out in the future. Is this a common practice in electrical work?
As stated in the video I’m not an electrician. The problem didn’t persist after. I don’t know how old the gfci was that previously was in there. Gfci could have worn out. Looks like lots of folks saw it and believed it was an issue with the neutral. I didn’t just replace it either. I removed the damaged portion of wire. We also had mice in the house prior that caused issues, but in an old house you could be chasing issues like that for a long time
I know exactly what you are talking about! I am dealing with a previous owners DIY electrical issues as we speak… Going to cost an arm and half a leg at the kneecap to fix it properly. 🤨
Ok so i know NOTHING about electricity. My brilliant husband of 30yrs died recently & then i realized that my elderly parents needed help (they were hiding it) so now I’m temporarily living with them in their older house. Ok i thought i misunderstood this gentleman bc i KNOW 1) first - make sure it’s not the appliance. If it’s okay … 2) i can hear hubby saying: “do NOT use this outlet for anything until i locate & fix problem!” … so this guy _KNEW_ there was an issue & it wasn’t the microwave … lol again i can hear my husband “do you want to burn the damn house down?!?” … i get that this guy isn’t an electrician but isn’t it simply common sense to DISCONTINUE USING something that’s malfunctioning? The idea of just leaving the appliance plugged in & hoping it will resolve itself is INSANE to me - let alone scary! Sorry. So basically, youtube is my stand in husband now, but in this case guess we’re not compatible - think i’d better find someone who takes issues like faulty electricity wayyy more seriously. lol best part is that my damn outlet is _STILL DEAD!_ Yes. Time to call the professionals. … TYTYTY for reading this! i have no choice but to take everyone at face value & it’s extremely comforting to see that it’s “not just me”. Like i don’t have enough to worry about, now i was sitting here worrying about the safety of this dude & his family - TY so much for pointing the issue out, hope he listened to you. No one was going to listen to the confused & paranoid? widow! 🙋🏻♀️
I know there was a lot going on around this time. A lot has changed. I may not have known the microwave was going out. I think that happened around that time. We also had an issue with mice chewing electrical near by that I had to replace with guidance from a family electrician. He did check everything at the time and said it all checked out. My wife and I were on opposite shifts so I probably didn’t think much about that. I know we replaced it shortly after as well.
My husband did the exact same process to replace the outlet (blk wires to the gold screws, wht with the silver screws and copper to green screw) and the outlet still did not work. All plugs work including Gfci plugs and the breaker box has been reset 3x and still no luck. Any suggestions anyone??
Do you have a normal breaker at the panel or a GFI breaker? I would start off with pulling the panel cover and putting a amp meter on that circuit and see how many amps it is drawing. Good rule is less than 80 % of breaker rating. If more you need to remove part of the load. With this said breakers do go bad so you may have a bad breaker. This is a easy fix. Good luck.
@@bbreaks-it8207 I need to know how to replace the wire? Like is it just bad where its burned and I can just cut it back some inches? The whole wire from where ever to the outlet doesn't have to be replaced does it?
my radar repair instructor always told us that the OG repairers always keep one hand in pocket when testing suspect hardware, as to not complete circuit in testing path, thus allowing current to jump to path of least resistance... he also always said that its not the voltage it's the amperage that'll kill ya ...
I can only tell you the possible options I could come up with given the situation. We did have a microwave that was 15-20 years old plugged in that could have started failing. I have heard those can cause issues. The outlet itself may not have been rated right for that circuit. We had a mouse issue for a few years that caused electrical issues for the dishwasher. I had previously solved the mouse issue about a year earlier. The failure seemed to be on the neutral right at the outlet, so I’m inclined to say the outlet and microwave may have been the issue. I can also tell you it did not happen after I trimmed the wire back to remove damaged area and replaced the outlet for a year and half. We sold the house a few months ago
Recently, I had an entire room of ac outlets, a stairway light and two closet lights go dead in my house. I inspected the breaker box, but the breaker wasn't tripped. Additionally, other lights in another room (on the same circuit) were working just fine. I measured the voltage at all the nonworking outlets. They measured between 10 and 40 volts, nowhere near the normal 110-125 volts. I thought one of the outlets must be bad, and it must be the one feeding all the other outlets, the stairway light switch and the two closet lights switches. I inspected the outlets. They looked fine. Before I started replacing an outlet or two, or more, I used my trusty Commercial Electric MS102H outlet tester on each outlet. The fault reading I got was one red light and one amber light. This indicated a HOT/GND Reverse. This was bizarre. I hadn’t changed any wires so why, without any warning, did this anomaly occur? I began to check the empty outlets in the other room. The outlet tester indicated the same problem, a HOT/GND Reverse fault. One of the outlets, behind a headboard, had a USB charging cube with a Dollar Tree USB-C cable plugged into it. I unplugged the charging cube and rechecked the outlet with the outlet tester. It tested normally, as confirmed by two, side-by-side amber lights on the outlet tester. I rechecked every other outlet that previously showed a fault. All the outlets tested normally. Still uncertain, I tested the USB charging cube. It tested fine, so I knew the problem was with the cheaply manufactured, Dollar Tree USB-C cable. A visual inspection of the cable showed no breaks or cracks, but the USB-C plug was slightly bent. Apparently, this was all it took to short out all the wall outlets in the run. However, the defect in the Dollar Tree cable was not potent enough to trip a 20 AMP breaker. This incident is one of the strangest electrical problems I have ever encountered.
You look EXACTLY like my good friend, Sean Weems. He passed away a few years ago (he was an electrician too!) I started crying when I saw you. I originally clicked on this bc my baseboard heater in my one bedroom won't turn on. I can hear a click in the thermostat, but the bastard won't come on. There aren't any tripped breakers in the box, so idk wtf the problem is.....I'm going to open up the heater on the floorboard to see if I can figure it out....
I’m sorry for your loss. Must be especially hard during the holidays when we all think of friends and family. By no means am I an electrician. Just trying to keep the house from starting on fire haha
STOP SAYING "SO" so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hes placing red plug first that is an electrical no no suppose to use the black lead first in the ground or nutreal then the red ? hum and he claims to know electical work
I didn’t claim to “know” electrical at all. And the use of “red” wire isn’t even an option here and I am not sure what you are getting to regarding this.
for one you should never use the red power lead to test by inserting it first, and should never place the re lead in the nuetral or ground plug , use the black lead first then the red lead , this is what professional electricians say and recommend, it can be dangerous to put the red lead in first or at wrong pin@@bbreaks-it8207
i'm sure you found the problem...........i know a 5 min. video is not a long time but you could have got this down to 2minutes, and please get a real camera , i was getting seasick with all that moving around...........i appreciate all your work for the video but please make it a little more professional.................just my opinion..........
I’m sorry it bothers you. I use my cell phone and this was on a quick fly. It’s hard to justify a good camera independent of my cell phone as it’s expensive and I don’t make any money on this. We all do the best we can
I’m sorry you feel that. I don’t know that this is a super productive comment. If you have suggestions or can assist with making it more entertaining I’m open to suggestions. This was kind of just something that popped up
Tony…lighten up (no pun intended)!!! Guy had a problem and the video has sparked (pun intended) lots of conversations. People learn from each other. That’s what TH-cam is all about!
Simple but well explained, not overtalked great illustration and demonstration. Thank you.
Thanks for sharing this. I have a bathroom outlet the used to work intermittently. It stopped completely. I am measuring less than 4 volts. This outlet is on the load side of a GFCI outlet that also protects a couple of other outlets. I am suspecting a similar situation as the outlet was used for a hair dryer. They pull a fair amount of amperage. Thanks again!
You are the man! I watched a dozen other videos about dead outlets and got no where.
Licensed electrician here, your problem was a loose neutral at the gfci. That's why it tripped the gfci first and not the breaker. Gfci senses the difference in current flow between hot and neutral.
Wich is why you had 120v from hot to ground, but 40v hot to neutral. Also it was the neutral side of the gfci that was burnt in your video. Hence the term...loose wires cause fires
Prolly why my electrician contract said it should be fine. Great explanation!
Hi what if I’m using electric mower on outdoor outlet, suddenly it stops working. Also our upstairs master bathroom at sinks are also dead? Nothing tripped either. Thank you if you have any suggestions
@@samuraioodon find the gfci that’s connected to all those circuits. If a single gfci trips as many as 3-4 outlets stop working
@@samuraioodon usually in older style homes the outside receptacles are fed from the bathroom gfci. Reset the bathroom gfci, you should be fine.
I've been having power issues, half my house would flicker and sometimes just go out, my house is old so a electrician came out said my old fuse box was burned up, so he upgraded and put it a breaker box with new breakers, worked for 2 days, now same thing is happening, no tripped breakers, and I don't see a single GFCI outlet to reset, any suggestions? Thanks
Thank you for this video. It depicted a similar situation in our home. Saved me $$$$.
Thank you so much, this was a huge help. I just went to Home Depot and got a replacement, and everything works fine now.
Huge thank you, same issue and this video got me on track to fixing the problem
Glad to see it helped
i threw away the heater i use at work for 8yrs...(sunbeam brand,very durable)because i thought after 8yrs it given up on me..where it could be the freakin outlet...so i bought a new heater...after a day of use the whole power in the office went off but the circuit breaker didnt trip so i figured its the freakin outlet..now i feel bad for throwing my awesome heater who acompanied me all those cold and lonely night at work while watching movies or playing games...
Some things u just don’t have to think about most of the time. Usually u don’t think outlet itself. I only checked because my old house has had plenty of things wiring wise that cause a bit of concern here and there
Where do I apply I want to play video games and watch movies while at work.
Seriously.
Thank you. A problem solved. You are great!
This was the problem we had after a short in the Christmas lights but just had to hit the reset button. The lights were plugged in an outside outlet that popped the GCFI outlet in another location inside the garage (never knew they were on the same circuit until the GCFI popped). Same AC voltage reading(Craftsman multimeter, too, ha!), etc. THANK YOU!
The digital reader is funny. I got mine from an uncle who gave us tools for Xmas every year
@@bbreaks-it8207 That's a cool uncle 😎 🍻
Yes he was. Unfortunately he passed a few years ago, but using some of those tools always reminds me of him.
This is indeed a very helpful video. I like to share what I just experienced with my issue. I have a circuit that starts with a GFCI, then a bunch of outlets and lights in 3 bathrooms and an outside outlet. I used to have the problem that when I used a circular saw from the outside outlet, it killed power of everything except the GFCI (1st in the circuit) and the one in downstair bathroom (EXCEPT I did not know that this outlet is on that circuit, see the following). And about a day later, power came back on everything. When the issue occurred, using the outlet tester, it showed hot/ground reversed for all outlets except the one in downstair bathroom. Using a meter, the voltage difference between hot and neutral is about 17 volts and between neutral and ground is about 100 volts and between hot and ground is full 120 volts on every outlet except the downstair batch outlet.
I did not know that the outlet in the downstair bath was the culprit because it kept working with proper voltage and outlet tester result. I only found out that it is the 2nd one on the same circuit immediately after the GFCI once I shut the circuit from the breaker box and noticed that that outlet did not have power any more. So this is the lesson that I learned :
Any outlet, not just GFCI, can lead to this kind of odd issue. And a bad outlet can itself still works but cause issue downstream. Turning off the circuit on the breaker box can help identifying such bad outlet - it would lose power after the circuit is shut off from the breaker box.
Great video! Your troubleshooting led me to figure out my problem as well,it was similar as yours. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻👌🏻. Thank you so much. But in my case,i was pretty close to get fried like a chicken. the fact that i’m still alive it’s just a miracle. The outlet prong was literarily melted.
Glad it helped
@@bbreaks-it8207 for sure it did. And i thank you for that. Just to think on how much an electrician was going to charge me if i weren’t able to find the problem myself,gives me a headache. But thanks to your video,i was able to find the problem. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🤩🤩🤩.🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻.
Thanks for this information. My electricians who have been stumped by this problem for years now have some useful information that will help them finally solve our problems. You're a lifesaver mate.
Thanks for the video. All of the electricity in my moms four seasons room is out and I tested every circuit breaker in the panel.They all check out just fine so it is a matter of figuring out which outlet or wall switch in the four seasons room is bad. I guess I have to just start at one and keep going till I find which is bad. Do you know how to check if the outlet is bad without evidence of melted wires or anything visible?
Ahh yes the good old loose neutral. Kind of a quick and dirty method of discovering why you have low voltage to a receptacle is the method you just showed. Low voltage hot to neutral, and normal voltage neutral to ground is a sure indicator of a loose neutral. Now the tracking down the source. If the gfci is tripped most likely the loose neutral is at the gfci, however if the gfci isn't tripped then the best thing to check is the neutral at the panel. The real complicating factor comes in when it's something like an electric stove, dryer, or AC isn't working as those are all single phase 240Vac. This means that both of the hot leads coming into the panel are supplying power to the load. This is why they are on a double breaker where a kind of scissors lift style contact makes connection to the leads on both sides of the panel. All US household currents are 240Vac, and a single hot lead (ie single breaker) takes 120Vac from the panel. Now losing one of those appliances could mean a loose neutral grounding one side of the panel, a bad breaker (melted, burned contacts), or a loss of one of the two hot leads to the panel (in which case that is normally the power company's issue at that point). The first thing to do is check for 120Vac on each hot lead, and 0V neutral to ground. If either lead has less than 120Vac you've found your problem. Now checking that hot lead you should check the resistance from hot to a clean ground and reference it to the resistance of the good lead. If there's a significant difference then your problem lies in loose lugs, burned wires, or something outside of your house like the transformer (that once again is the power company's problem). Now assuming both your hot leads at the panel are pulling 120Vac then the problem is within the breaker itself. Look for a loose breaker (not mounted properly), burned contacts/points, or a broken contact mechanism causing the breaker to contact only one of the two bus bars. I am not a licensed electrician most of my knowledge comes from hands on learning, and schooling in automotive service especially as we get into hybrids, and plug in electrics. This being said I have done a lot of hands on learning by trial and error, read and understood hundreds of articles dealing with AC electrical testing, and have a very solid comprehension of the basics of electricity. As a closing note I want to caution the panel testing I described as it requires taking the cover off, and that will expose you to potentially lethal currents. So unless you have a very good understanding of the danger, parts, and working of an electrical panel please leave that diagnostic work to a qualified electrician. Any licensed electricians out there who would like to review or correct my methods please leave a reply, and I will do so.
Damn! That’s a whole book of info beyond most comprehension. I’ll just go with the video version
It could have been just as likely to be the neutral wire loose on the bar inside the electrical panel.
Had a microwave oven kicking out but checking voltage, it looked good. Put another microwave in, seemed to be alright. Took the old microwave to work the next morning and threw it in the dumpster. Came home and my wife said the new one was kicking out. Changed breaker and all was well. She started to say, well then that means the....I said the old microwave was bad!
I did this SAME thing with a weed eater.
Fished the old weed eater out before trash day. Now I have a pair of them.
@@k.hendrickson8735 Ha!
Excellent. Thank you!
Had the same exact issue…tuned out to be exactly what I thought…was a lose neutral at a GFCI.
The electrician that was here said he wasn’t sure but if he hooked it up through the ground he could get us power back. Lesson learned, never do business with someone you don’t know just because you don’t want to mess with it.
Troubleshooting is the hardest thing to do electrically especially in residential.
This is helpful I'm gonna check mine asap
Great video
Thank you. Appreciate it
I had a similar problem, but half the outlets worked and half didn't, even on the same circuit (detached garage has one line going in and only half of those outlets worked). Microwave was going on and off. Breakers were all good. I had a couple splices in my service line coming into the house and one of them (hot) had burnt through (mostly). I threw the main breaker and called the Power Company. They had to replace the service line as it had 2 splices already and the burnt out section. I suggest that anyone having similar problems do a visual on the service line coming in, it can cause surges that will possibly melt outlets and surge protectors, not to mention TV's and computers.
That is a great suggestion!
good diag skills my guy! ever thought of trying the electrical trade? we always need good people with the ability to problem solve!
Great video. Thanks gives me someone to check.
A few years ago I lost power to half of my living room outlets and lights but no breakers tripped. The electrician traced the problem to a busted rarely-used outlet (not GFCI though) behind the piano.
It’s crazy sometimes like that
GFCI outlets have a lifespan - yours reached it.
Thanks, I checked the circuit, was good. Then I checked the socket. was loose, everything powered back on
Thanks! You kind of help me) in my case the problem was wire in the box
i had 2 outlets in my master bedroom all of a sudden go out, no main breaker switched, i turn off all breakers and turned back on. didnt fix problem, i replaced 2 outlets in bedroom and still didnt work, i watched this video and tested all outlets in the series, the first 2 in video were giving 80 and the ones connected in living room were giving 80 and then 120 all of a sudden. now the outlets in my master bedroom are working now. i dont know how or what did i complete the circuit somehow with the multimeter and now everything is working and reset it? i dont know..
This is why new NEC residential code in my state has made it mandatory for your microwave to be on a dedicated circuit because of the power draw microwaves create when you start one.
I'm going to try that,,much thanks
This was extra helpful
I wonder why the GFCI burnt up like that! Looks like it was on a 14 guage romex, was there too much power draw on that circuit?
I couldn’t tell you. I know it’s an old house. My assumption is when they installed the last they left the wire more exposed and old wiring just gave out
Had microwave and a coffee maker on the circuit. That was it and had been connected for years
@@bbreaks-it8207 What was/is the amperage on the breaker that covers the circuit the bad GFCI outlet was on?
I couldn’t tell you today. We sold the house and I can’t remember these days
Most likely a lose connection.
So I’m not losing power in my outlet however, my microwave, coffee maker and fridge are making most of the rest of the house lights get really dim and flickering too
I pulled out an old electric outlet, to replace it with a GFCI.
I accidentally touched some part of the old outlet while removing it on the metal box, and saw a small spark. (I thought the fuse was out, but maybe I had the wrong fuse out).
Now, I am reading 14 volts from hot to neutral, and from hot to the metal box(ground). I've pulled every fuse in the panel, and still see 14 volts!
Note, the outlet was working fine before my accident (although the hot/neutral were reversed).
What did I do break when that old receptacle sparked? Did I burn/short a wire, or junction? How do I find the problem. I cannot use continuity tests since I have 14 volts present. Help!
I’m not an electrician but I know that microwaves toasters blenders tvs and some other appliances “store” energy inside them even when they’ve been unplugged for years. It’s not enough to run the appliance off, but it’s enough to kill in many cases of suicide and such. Again I’m not a licensed electrician so I’m just guessing but maybe the outlet was storing residual power the same way those appliances do? If the hot and neutral wires were switched maybe try putting them the correct way and reusing the old one. Best of luck to you and let me know if you found a good solution.
I was cutting electrical wires in our master bedroom. I cut one cable from one outlet and beaker tripped, fixed the breaker. Then I realized 3 out of 6 outlets are not working and the light switch is also not working. Should I remove all the outlets in the room and see any of them got burned cables or something?
I have a simple electric pen, not a device like yours, none of the 3 outlets and light bulb has electric.
question. WAS THE GFCI WORKING?
That’s a 15 amp GFCI is that 12 gauge wiring going into a 20 amp circuit breaker in the electrical panel? In NJ I believe the kitchen has to be 20 amp GFCIs with 12 gauge to a 20 amp breaker, that 15 amp GFCI can’t handle the load over time ..DIY Homeowner 🍺🍺
That is the gfci plug that was installed when we purchased the house 5 years prior so I am unsure if it meets code since then. I believe I put in a new 20 amp one when I replaced it but pulling that out and seeing that was scary cause that is the one that’s supposed to protect us
B Breaks-It! The 20 amp GFCIs have the slot /cross ,did you go to the panel and see the size of the breaker that circuit is on ? You can have 12 gauge wire on 15amp breaker though I don’t believe it’s code compliant everywhere But 14 gauge wire on 20 amp breaker is a No No very dangerous ,see what size that wire is can’t tell from the vid ..
Also the receptacles down stream connected to that 15 amp GFCI are 15 amp also ..better check that wiring for size and it going to the right size breaker.. maybe an electrician might comment here..
Yeah. If I found the right breaker it’s a 20 amp. But I’m not certain. Previous owners added 2 panels and those panels are only kind of labeled. Wiring is all original in this house from the 50s so it makes things interesting
@@bbreaks-it8207 then that wire Must be 12 gauge to be safe ,if that’s 14 gauge to the GFCI its heating up but the load you put on that wire from time to time is anywhere from 13-16 amps like toasters ,fryers etc but not enough to trip the breaker ,I have 1940s home too did a lot of rewiring still have ungrounded cloth from place to place ,a kitchen draws a lot of current from the everyday day use of appliances,a Microwave should be on a dedicated circuit or plug rated for 20 amps ,in NJ a kitchen and Bathrooms and unfinished basements must be up to code with GFCIs and proper wiring and breakers No “ Grandfathered in” compliance accepted 🍺🍺
You never know where the GFCI that's feeding other outlets may be in the home. I had a garage outlet and an outdoor receptacle that were fed from my bathroom GFCI! It took me a while to figure that one out. Once you know, always indicate which outlets are fed by which GFCI with written notations in your electrical panel, as you may not remember later. It will also be appreciated by future owners of the home.
at work we had two circuits melt together inside a j-box. weird effects caused by it. would only trip if one circuit was switched on, the other breaker would not trip but would put a 120v float onto the second circuit. weird stuff. easy fix.
ELFEN LIEDDDDDDDD
We had the same thing happen except it started with the outlet in the kitchen. Stove didn’t work and coffee pot But the lower part of the plug that the coffee pot was plugged into worked! . Now two days later (today) the tv plug just died! Any suggestions/advice is appreciated
Check and make sure the neutral in the panel is tight and the ground is tight
Also make sure your ground wire is connected and tight on the outside of your house by the meter.
Luckily I know ours was
Thanks
I just show my experiences
So this happened to me today in my room during the day it randomly turned off we checker the breaker nothing was tripped
OK I need your help we have a barn we have a room out in our barn one of the outlets burnt out and almost got fire but now all of the outlets in the room are not working but it says that the breaker is on and like the breaker box it’s on that Bb Kies that outlet needs to be changed or is it something bigger I really need help
I would seriously consult an electrician
Did you ever find out what was going on?
How can you have voltage on an outlet but there's no power to anything from the outlet?
Push in connectors creating heat and becoming loose creating sporadic electro connections need to use screws on the outlets and wire nuts
I’m having a problem where I only have 45 to like 100 and volts to a receptacle but when I go in my kitchen and flip the switch that actually turns on the light and fan upstairs then I can go over and get a reading at 1:20 whenever I turn off the switch I’m only getting 50 to 100 votes there again can you may help me please and thank you
The neutral is not connected properly?
It was connected correctly but either the GFCI was really old or was not the proper amperage. This I believe cause the wire to either jump to the very close wiring of the switch next to it or it overheated a bad GFCI outlet.
Shoot, now I am worried about having to replace our wires. We have a GFC outlet, two regular outlets, and two wall switches that all went out one day (all are in a line above our kitchen counter), no breaker has been tripped. I really hope it isn't the wiring because that will be expensive.
Exact same thing happen to me
Not to expensive if its at a terminal and easy to troubleshoot
@@UnifiedInfo We tightened the wires, and attached a grounding wire that had come off, and it worked. I don't know.
Nice alot safer now Im sure👍
@@UnifiedInfo it is a lot safer
What if you don't have any gfci outlets
Keep in mind that one outlet can feed power to another outlet or outlets, and check for outlets with more than one set of conductors.
Howard you fix the wire?
The one that burnt up? Stripped away the damaged wire and just connected up the clean wire to the new gfci outlet
You guys are killing me! "I found the problem." Same thing I've seen in like 8 videos now. "I replaced it. Now it works." Okay, and what preventative measures have you taken to make sure it doesn't happen again and burn your house down next time? WHY did the GFCI melt? Was it a problem with the GFCI, the wiring in your wall, the breaker, a bad appliance on the circuit somewhere. You may have fixed a symptom and left the problem for the next homeowner to have to figure out in the future. Is this a common practice in electrical work?
As stated in the video I’m not an electrician. The problem didn’t persist after. I don’t know how old the gfci was that previously was in there. Gfci could have worn out. Looks like lots of folks saw it and believed it was an issue with the neutral. I didn’t just replace it either. I removed the damaged portion of wire. We also had mice in the house prior that caused issues, but in an old house you could be chasing issues like that for a long time
@@bbreaks-it8207 Yep. I hate mice. Thanks for the response!
I know exactly what you are talking about! I am dealing with a previous owners DIY electrical issues as we speak… Going to cost an arm and half a leg at the kneecap to fix it properly. 🤨
Ok so i know NOTHING about electricity. My brilliant husband of 30yrs died recently & then i realized that my elderly parents needed help (they were hiding it) so now I’m temporarily living with them in their older house. Ok i thought i misunderstood this gentleman bc i KNOW 1) first - make sure it’s not the appliance. If it’s okay …
2) i can hear hubby saying: “do NOT use this outlet for anything until i locate & fix problem!” … so this guy _KNEW_ there was an issue & it wasn’t the microwave … lol again i can hear my husband “do you want to burn the damn house down?!?” … i get that this guy isn’t an electrician but isn’t it simply common sense to DISCONTINUE USING something that’s malfunctioning? The idea of just leaving the appliance plugged in & hoping it will resolve itself is INSANE to me - let alone scary! Sorry. So basically, youtube is my stand in husband now, but in this case guess we’re not compatible - think i’d better find someone who takes issues like faulty electricity wayyy more seriously. lol best part is that my damn outlet is _STILL DEAD!_ Yes. Time to call the professionals. … TYTYTY for reading this! i have no choice but to take everyone
at face value & it’s extremely comforting to see that it’s “not just me”. Like i don’t have enough to worry about, now i was sitting here worrying about the safety of this dude & his family - TY so much for pointing the issue out, hope he listened to you. No one was going to listen to the confused & paranoid? widow! 🙋🏻♀️
I know there was a lot going on around this time. A lot has changed. I may not have known the microwave was going out. I think that happened around that time. We also had an issue with mice chewing electrical near by that I had to replace with guidance from a family electrician. He did check everything at the time and said it all checked out. My wife and I were on opposite shifts so I probably didn’t think much about that. I know we replaced it shortly after as well.
Ok you found the problem, but what caused it?
Is it possible not burnt but still broken?
Yea if the gfci is malfunctioning in anyway it could cause something like this
Wellsame thing but while room isn't working
Gross
So you just have to change that outlet and get back power on every other outlet
My husband did the exact same process to replace the outlet (blk wires to the gold screws, wht with the silver screws and copper to green screw) and the outlet still did not work. All plugs work including Gfci plugs and the breaker box has been reset 3x and still no luck. Any suggestions anyone??
Oh no. I’m sorry to hear that. I’m not the biggest electrician myself just something I found that worked for me
Do you have a normal breaker at the panel or a GFI breaker?
I would start off with pulling the panel cover and putting a amp meter on that circuit and see how many amps it is drawing. Good rule is less than 80 % of breaker rating. If more you need to remove part of the load. With this said breakers do go bad so you may have a bad breaker. This is a easy fix. Good luck.
We don’t own the house so I don’t have access anymore. The house was nearly 70 years old at the time so there are many possibilities
I have the same problem. How did you fix it????
I had it where my gfci was not good so the neutral wire must have been jumping and burned up
@@bbreaks-it8207 thanks brother. I will get one. Are they hard to replace???
At worst u will no the gfci is good. No they are not hard to replace. I do suggest shutting off the circuit. It will give u a good buzz otherwise.
@@bbreaks-it8207 Thanks brother. You are the man. More footage please and also my son has ADHD. You are helping!!!!!!
@@bbreaks-it8207 I need to know how to replace the wire? Like is it just bad where its burned and I can just cut it back some inches? The whole wire from where ever to the outlet doesn't have to be replaced does it?
You should always use a multimeter with one hand when checking your outlet
And he should have inserted black/neutral first. Otherwise you energize the tip with red/hot in first.
my radar repair instructor always told us that the OG repairers always keep one hand in pocket when testing suspect hardware, as to not complete circuit in testing path, thus allowing current to jump to path of least resistance... he also always said that its not the voltage it's the amperage that'll kill ya ...
Looks like it was used too much when it was new.
Bad nutural?
Well the gfci outlet melted and stopped working. Thinking it just gave out. Replaced gfci and issue appears fixed
Yeah I commented before i finished watching...lol... but it was on the nutural side...lol...
Looked like burnt cheese initially. Super scary that was behind the walls
Yep bad neutral. Something wasn't tightened correctly and it's started to arch! Over time it gets hot and will melt. Good find!
Still scary cause it had been that way since we bout the house 5 years ago
Holly Molly
He said "interwebs"
I sure did. Gotta have some fun sometimes.
Looks like you lost the neutral
Yeah it was still fully connected but that’s the crap that comes with old houses
But what caused it??
I can only tell you the possible options I could come up with given the situation. We did have a microwave that was 15-20 years old plugged in that could have started failing. I have heard those can cause issues. The outlet itself may not have been rated right for that circuit. We had a mouse issue for a few years that caused electrical issues for the dishwasher. I had previously solved the mouse issue about a year earlier. The failure seemed to be on the neutral right at the outlet, so I’m inclined to say the outlet and microwave may have been the issue. I can also tell you it did not happen after I trimmed the wire back to remove damaged area and replaced the outlet for a year and half. We sold the house a few months ago
Open neutral return
Recently, I had an entire room of ac outlets, a stairway light and two closet lights go dead in my house. I inspected the breaker box, but the breaker wasn't tripped. Additionally, other lights in another room (on the same circuit) were working just fine.
I measured the voltage at all the nonworking outlets. They measured between 10 and 40 volts, nowhere near the normal 110-125 volts. I thought one of the outlets must be bad, and it must be the one feeding all the other outlets, the stairway light switch and the two closet lights switches. I inspected the outlets. They looked fine. Before I started replacing an outlet or two, or more, I used my trusty Commercial Electric MS102H outlet tester on each outlet. The fault reading I got was one red light and one amber light. This indicated a HOT/GND Reverse. This was bizarre. I hadn’t changed any wires so why, without any warning, did this anomaly occur?
I began to check the empty outlets in the other room. The outlet tester indicated the same problem, a HOT/GND Reverse fault. One of the outlets, behind a headboard, had a USB charging cube with a Dollar Tree USB-C cable plugged into it. I unplugged the charging cube and rechecked the outlet with the outlet tester. It tested normally, as confirmed by two, side-by-side amber lights on the outlet tester. I rechecked every other outlet that previously showed a fault. All the outlets tested normally. Still uncertain, I tested the USB charging cube. It tested fine, so I knew the problem was with the cheaply manufactured, Dollar Tree USB-C cable. A visual inspection of the cable showed no breaks or cracks, but the USB-C plug was slightly bent. Apparently, this was all it took to short out all the wall outlets in the run. However, the defect in the Dollar Tree cable was not potent enough to trip a 20 AMP breaker.
This incident is one of the strangest electrical problems I have ever encountered.
A microwave oven needs to be put on a dedicated line with it's own breaker. Problem solved.
That's from a loose connection.
Do you have something....
OK, now show us how to fix it!
I. Have 2 gfci right next to eachother. By next to eachother I mean about 2 feet at most.
ACROSS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!NOT: ACROST
You saved big money on an electrician ! Spend $ 20 on an haircut...
Haha yeah. I tend to not take care of things like hair cuts. Wife just tells me she set an appointment up for me and my son.
You look EXACTLY like my good friend, Sean Weems. He passed away a few years ago (he was an electrician too!) I started crying when I saw you.
I originally clicked on this bc my baseboard heater in my one bedroom won't turn on. I can hear a click in the thermostat, but the bastard won't come on. There aren't any tripped breakers in the box, so idk wtf the problem is.....I'm going to open up the heater on the floorboard to see if I can figure it out....
I’m sorry for your loss. Must be especially hard during the holidays when we all think of friends and family.
By no means am I an electrician. Just trying to keep the house from starting on fire haha
STOP SAYING "SO" so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hes placing red plug first that is an electrical no no suppose to use the black lead first in the ground or nutreal then the red ? hum and he claims to know electical work
I didn’t claim to “know” electrical at all. And the use of “red” wire isn’t even an option here and I am not sure what you are getting to regarding this.
for one you should never use the red power lead to test by inserting it first, and should never place the re lead in the nuetral or ground plug , use the black lead first then the red lead , this is what professional electricians say and recommend, it can be dangerous to put the red lead in first or at wrong pin@@bbreaks-it8207
@3:33 covid
Lol definitely. No we have all stayed healthy during this time frame. I think there was one or two colds and we tested clean each time
i'm sure you found the problem...........i know a 5 min. video is not a long time but you could have got this down to 2minutes, and please get a real camera , i was getting seasick with all that moving around...........i appreciate all your work for the video but please make it a little more professional.................just my opinion..........
I’m sorry it bothers you. I use my cell phone and this was on a quick fly. It’s hard to justify a good camera independent of my cell phone as it’s expensive and I don’t make any money on this. We all do the best we can
So boring
I’m sorry you feel that. I don’t know that this is a super productive comment. If you have suggestions or can assist with making it more entertaining I’m open to suggestions. This was kind of just something that popped up
Tony…lighten up (no pun intended)!!! Guy had a problem and the video has sparked (pun intended) lots of conversations. People learn from each other. That’s what TH-cam is all about!
Thanks