When should I call an electrician for a dead outlet?

Call an electrician right away if the dead outlet, or one beside it, is warm, scorched, buzzing or smells of burning. Call soon if more than one outlet is out, a GFCI will not reset, or the same outlet keeps dying. If one outlet came back after you tested and reset a nearby GFCI and it stays on, you can wait, but keep an eye on it.

Call right away

The CPSC says unusually warm outlets or switches may indicate an unsafe wiring condition, such as a loose electrical connection, and to stop using them until an electrician checks the problem.^[1] Some dimmer switches may warm in normal use,^[1] but an outlet should not. Treat burn marks, melted plastic, a buzzing sound and a burning smell the same way: stop using the outlet and keep things away from it until it is checked.

An outlet that gives a plug a loose grip counts too. The CPSC says loose-fitting plugs can cause overheating and fires and that the outlet should be replaced.^[1]

Call soon

More than one outlet is dead. This often means the problem is upstream of the outlets, not in any one of them. A tripped GFCI can do it: Leviton describes the load wiring of a GFCI as delivering power from the GFCI to another receptacle in the circuit.^[2] If a test and reset of the GFCIs you can find does not bring them back, the next step is an electrician, not more guessing.

A GFCI will not reset. Leviton's instruction sheet says a GFCI has a lockout feature that prevents reset if no power is being supplied to it, if the line and load connections are reversed, or if it cannot pass its internal test.^[2] And if the light does not come back on when you press reset, the CPSC says to replace the GFCI.^[1] Any of those three needs someone licensed to sort out.

It keeps happening. An outlet that works after a reset and fails again within days is a fault being reported, not a fluke. Write down when it happens and what is running, and give that to the electrician.

It fails when you wiggle the plug or move something. The CPSC says outlets that do not work properly may indicate an unsafe wiring condition, and that a loose screw holding a wire or a worn out switch can lead to electrical arcing, overheating, or a fire.^[1]

What can wait, and what to check first

A single outlet that is not warm, not marked, and not sharing a circuit with other dead outlets is the least urgent case. Before you book, run the checks in what to check before calling an electrician about a dead outlet so you can tell the electrician exactly what you found. If a GFCI reset restores power and it holds, you may not need a visit at all. Keep testing it each month, as the CPSC recommends.^[1]

When to call a licensed pro

Leave opening an outlet or working on the wiring behind it to a licensed electrician. The Code of Virginia says "no individual shall engage in, or offer to engage in, work as a tradesman as defined in § 54.1-1128 unless he has been licensed",^[3] and DPOR says a valid Virginia Contractor's License is required when the work is valued at $1,000 or more.^[4]

Check the licence before you agree to anything. DPOR notes that a license number in an advertisement or on a business card does not necessarily mean the contractor's license is valid.^[4] Use how to check if a contractor is licensed in Virginia, and see what fixing a dead outlet costs in Virginia before you compare quotes.

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