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Why do 6 wall sockets not work suddenly? |
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#1 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Scotland
Posts: 721
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Why do 6 wall sockets not work suddenly?
Hello all
I was just sitting down today and all of a sudden all the sockets went off, the lights were fine. I checked the fuse box and one of the switches were down and I tried to switch it up but it would not stay up. So I turned everything off and then the switch did stay up. So I slowly started to turn everything back on and when I turned on the wall socket which had an extension cable plugged into it which had my laptop and a few other things plugged in the switch on the electric board turned off again. So I turned off the plug that I turned on which caused the fuse to switch off and pulled the switch up again and turned everything else on and all the sockets work ok now. Except for 4 sockets in the hallway and in the living room. All the switches on the fuse box are on now. I have had to plug the boiler in using an extension cable as the socket it was plugged into doesn't work now. SO I am not sure if thats safe or not. What could be wrong and what should I do? |
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#2 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Reading
Posts: 27,887
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Call an electrician.
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#3 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Lancashire
Posts: 8,253
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#4 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Scotland
Posts: 721
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#5 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Reading
Posts: 27,887
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Nobody on DS can give you any sort of definitive reason why the sockets are not working. That can only be determined by testing and inspection of the system. Which obviously cannot be done over the internet.
If you do not have the knowledge, skill and tools required to do this yourself then the only option is to call someone who does have the knowledge, skill and tools required to do the job for you. |
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#6 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Scotland
Posts: 721
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#7 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 10,733
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Quote:
Nobody on DS can give you any sort of definitive reason why the sockets are not working. That can only be determined by testing and inspection of the system. Which obviously cannot be done over the internet.
If you do not have the knowledge, skill and tools required to do this yourself then the only option is to call someone who does have the knowledge, skill and tools required to do the job for you. ![]() But i can say its amazing what you find under the floor from 1970's porno's to wiring so thin you are amazed that you can still shower. I set up a test for our HA's latest electrical test and the two sparkies never bothered to see if a nice brass light switch was actually earthed so really i wouldn't trust every qualified sparky as all they pretty much did was measure the Z's and test trips and out the door...very little actually checking the actual sockets etc. |
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#8 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Scotland
Posts: 721
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If I had too many things plugged in and that caused the switch to flip, would that have burned the fuse which then caused the 6 wall sockets to stop working?
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#9 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 10,733
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Quote:
If I had too many things plugged in and that caused the switch to flip, would that have burned the fuse which then caused the 6 wall sockets to stop working?
Looks a 16th edition board so who knows how long theres been wiring just about to fail and all it took was your extension block etc. |
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#10 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Reading
Posts: 27,887
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Quote:
If I had too many things plugged in and that caused the switch to flip, would that have burned the fuse which then caused the 6 wall sockets to stop working?
In any case even if it was possible to tell you exactly why those sockets are not working what good would that do? If you do not have the necessary knowledge and skill to fix the problem you will only have to employ a sparky to do it for you anyway. |
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#11 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2006
Posts: 19,566
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Wonderful how people seek advice and then ignore it.
Electric is not to be messed with. |
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#12 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 10,733
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Quote:
Electric is not to be messed with.
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#13 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Scotland
Posts: 721
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I am asking questions about how electrics work and possible causes of this problem, yes I know an electrician can tell me the answer when he comes, but I am interested in understanding a little about the possible reasons by people who have a better understanding of electrics than me.
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#14 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: It's Grim
Posts: 24,400
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Anyone who knows about stuff like this is certainly not going to start giving advice to a person who is not qualified.
I don't know about stuff like this. 6 sockets (or is it 4?) not working seems odd to me, either they all work or they don't. |
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#15 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Mar 2016
Posts: 488
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Quote:
I am asking questions about how electrics work and possible causes of this problem, yes I know an electrician can tell me the answer when he comes, but I am interested in understanding a little about the possible reasons by people who have a better understanding of electrics than me.
In buildings, there are many factors to consider, not the least as an example, water ingress in wiring. |
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#16 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Southern East Anglia
Posts: 75,207
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Quote:
I am asking questions about how electrics work and possible causes of this problem, yes I know an electrician can tell me the answer when he comes, but I am interested in understanding a little about the possible reasons by people who have a better understanding of electrics than me.
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#17 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 3,858
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Get the electrician in and then ask them how it works.
The problem is that without seeing what you have no one can tell you how your system is wired. Obviously there is a standard that all wiring should be up to, but depending on who did the original work on your system, there could be a vast difference between someone who did it by the book and someone who was doing the minimum possible to get the sockets working. |
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#18 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Scotland
Posts: 721
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Had an electrician in who said there is a break somewhere but couldn't find where the break was, he said would be a big job and means getting an electrical company in, probably involve pulling up the carpets etc...So he couldnt fix the issue sadly.
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#19 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 10,733
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Quote:
Had an electrician in who said there is a break somewhere but couldn't find where the break was, he said would be a big job and means getting an electrical company in, probably involve pulling up the carpets etc...So he couldnt fix the issue sadly.
When sometimes you look beneath the floorboard you are amazed at the ability of some people to be able to f---- up so much. |
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#20 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: North Derbyshire
Posts: 41,779
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Quote:
So basically there is a problem and recommended that someone else fix it, not unusual as having to shift carpets, pull up floorboard and shift beds and whatever is a very time consuming and thus expensive effort probably for a single guy.
![]() This is what they do, it wouldn't be fast or cheap - but that's his job, and he would obviously charge accordingly. Getting a big firm in to do the job is certainly going to cost the OP considerably more. |
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#21 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 10,733
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Quote:
Doesn't sound like a very competent electrician
![]() This is what they do, it wouldn't be fast or cheap - but that's his job, and he would obviously charge accordingly. Getting a big firm in to do the job is certainly going to cost the OP considerably more. |
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#22 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: A small Greek island
Posts: 3,651
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I would switch off the main power switch, make sure the suspect wall socket is not live then unscrew it to check for loose wires and/or melted insulation. (A loose wire could trip the switch and could disconnect other sockets on the same spur.)
Any other possibility is unlikely to be a DIY fix. |
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#23 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Londonia :o>
Posts: 11,144
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OP if you don't have someone in the family or a friend who's an electrician or know a good deal about electrics, I would call another electrician for an 2nd opinion, then you will know if what the first one said was warranted or not.
I had something similar a few years ago when a kettle that had been used for months/years suddenly was the cause for a power failure. I couldn't believe it at first until the power put back on, the kettle was plug back in and the same thing happened. Even then I had someone who knew a little about electrics with me and another on the phone at the time.
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#24 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Devon
Posts: 12,830
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You might have a Ring Circuit and a Radial Circuit for some sockets and a break has caused some to be disconnected
(also a possible fault on one of your things plugged in to extension block. Assuming it always trips the RCD/MCB and not just a random trip). Water ingress, pipe leaks or rain, can also cause RCD trips, including outdoor sockets, but I don't think so in this case. Call a decent local electrician when convenient. |
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#25 |
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Forum Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Scotland
Posts: 721
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Well he wasnt cheap and spent the whole afternoon trying to fix it. He checked all the wall sockets and said none of them were causing the issue. He said my flat is run on two electric circuits and one of those circuits is now broken which is why half the plugs in the flat dont work now and need to find the fault in it but the fault must be in a cable under a carpet or in the loft though and he left.
I dont know why the other circuit that does still work cuts off randomly, even when nothing is getting plugged in or turned on? which when it does its cuts off ALL the electrics ie the boiler, all remaining sockets etc. I then have to flip the switch back up again. Problem is if I am out and it does this then my fridge freezer goes off. Also it does this at night and when it does it sets off the smoke alarms as smoke alarms reset and causes other electrics to beep in the flat. Not much fun at 4am! last night it was 4am the other night 2am. I noticed that the switch that was flipped this time was only one switch not two, wonder if that has any indication of anything? It was the switch to the right that has the arrow was the only one switched off, the switch which has the button above it. Heres the pic again. https://postimg.org/image/mazw58iz1/ |
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