The average house is going to have multiple GFCI outlets found throughout it. They are there to protect the home should the outlet get exposed to any water. This is why they are so common in kitchens, bathrooms, and even out by pool areas. As helpful as these outlets are in protecting your home, it can be frustrating when they won’t reset and you can’t use your outlets. Burley Electrical Services is here to share some troubleshooting tips to help you successfully reset your GFCI outlets and restore power to the outlets in your home.
Understand Why the GFCI Outlet Tripped in the First Place
It is important to understand why a GFCI outlet will trip in the first place. When you have a GFCI breaker, it is in place to detect faults by comparing the power that goes out of the hot wire and into the neutral wire. If it detects even the smallest imbalance, it will shut off power within a tenth of a second. This is a huge safety measure in place in your home. In fact, when they were first used in the 1970s, the injury and deaths by electrical shock decreased by 80%.
Troubleshooting a GFCI Outlet Reset
Most of the time, to reset your GFCI outlet, it is as easy as hitting the reset button on the outlet itself. However, it is important that you determine what made it trip in the first place so that you can fix that problem. Usually, it is an easy thing to figure out because you will be doing something like using a blow dryer that caused a power surge or water splashed onto the outlet. However, sometimes, it just isn’t that easy to tell.
– Can’t Find the Button: If you haven’t ever had to press the reset button, you might not realize where it is located. The outlet you’re next to might not have a reset button on it. This is because it is connected to a different outlet that has the reset button. Look around the room and see if you can find the outlet that has the reset and test buttons on it.
– Check the Electrical Panel: If you have tried the reset button and it isn’t working, the next place you should try is the electrical panel. You will notice that there are many different switches in the electrical panel. Look for the one that isn’t turned on and flip it to the on position.
Electrical Wiring Inspections & More in Pompano Beach, Imperial Point, Plantation, Deerfield Beach, Boca Raton, Davie, Lighthouse Point, Parkland & Fort Lauderdale, Florida
If you are still having problems with the power in your home, you can turn to the professionals at Burley Electrical Services to get to the bottom of it. We can diagnose any problems that you are having with your electrical system and fix them. It is always our goal to make sure that your electrical system is working properly and not posing any electrical risks to your home. Call us today!
