Electric outlet and light switch - no power

[RazorsEdge]

A friend of mine just bought a house. In the bathroom, there's an electrical outlet right next to the light switch. I tested with one of those cordless battery outlet tester and it detected no power. I tested light switch with the cordless tester and it detected no power as well.

I will be taking a digital multimeter over to the house Thursday to see if there's power in the wiring.

What I'm thinking is,since both the outlet and light switch are not working ( not verified yet with multimeter ) I'm thinking there's possibly a faulty breaker.

 

[KJSmith]

How old is the house?

Could be a tripped gfic breaker.
Could be a tripped gfic receptacle that feeds that one.

 

[RazorsEdge]

How old is the house?

Could be a tripped gfic breaker.
Could be a tripped gfic receptacle that feeds that one.

House is around 100 years old.

 

[Lubener]

If it is indeed a breaker, there should be other outlets affected, not just the one in the bathroom.. If that is the only one affected, there is likely a problem in a junction box somewhere or at a nearby outlet where the connection for the bathroom outlet is connected as the outlets are likely daisy chained.

If the house is 100 years old as you stated, if wiring is original, it would be knob and tube with fuses.

 

[Hall]

Could be a tripped gfic breaker.
Could be a tripped gfic receptacle that feeds that one.

This is where I would start - good chance there's a GFCI breaker upstream that's tripped. Then again, it shouldn't break power to the switch. Also, on an older home, I'd be surprised that the bathrooms were wired together so that they could even share a circuit to put a GFCI on.

If it is indeed a breaker, there should be other outlets affected, not just the one in the bathroom

Yeap, in an older house, unless the electrical was extensively upgraded, there will be TONS of shared rooms on the same circuit.

 

[KJSmith]

House is around 100 years old.

Find a new friend.

 

[RazorsEdge]

So I guess I don't need to worry about this project anymore. She had an electrician come over and look at it, oh boy what a mess!

Someone had a mess up job of wiring it's no wonder things weren't working correctly.

Speaker wire was used at some point

 

[Donald]

I like those orange connectors. I have used them for low voltage LED wiring.

If it were my house I would fill the circuit breaker box with arc fault circuit breakers.

Rewiring an old house is tough. Unless you are going to gur the house.

Could be knob & tube wiring and aluminum and the worst being a homeowner trying to do wiring on his own.

 

[Pablo]

So I guess I don't need to worry about this project anymore. She had an electrician come over and look at it, oh boy what a mess!

Someone had a mess up job of wiring it's no wonder things weren't working correctly.

Speaker wire was used at some point

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Actually other than "old" you are not telling the crowd what the real problem was. I don't see speaker wire in the picture.

Nothing wrong with Wago connectors, in fact I prefer them.

Is the cut in the old impregnated cloth insulation the problem?

Glad (the owner?) had the problem fixed no charge to you.

 

[RazorsEdge]

Actually other than "old" you are not telling the crowd what the real problem was. I don't see speaker wire in the picture.

Nothing wrong with Wago connectors, in fact I prefer them.

Is the cut in the old impregnated cloth insulation the problem?

Glad (the owner?) had the problem fixed no charge to you.

Not sure on all the details honestly. We talked about it on the phone briefly and my friend said electrician has not seen a wire mess like this in his 30 plus year career.

 

[Hall]

Speaker wire was used at some point

I don't see speaker wire. I see 100 year old K&T wiring though.

 

[RazorsEdge]

I don't see speaker wire. I see 100 year old K&T wiring though.

Yes, again I wasn't there for all that was done. Speaker wiring was used by someone previously and was removed by the electrician.

 

[Pablo]

Yes, again I wasn't there for all that was done. Speaker wiring was used by someone previously and was removed by the electrician.

I'm guessing what we used to call "lamp cord" type speaker wire.

I mean I hope not tiny cheapo speaker wire - :YIKES:

OTOH you know some huge concert speakers have monster cables.............so who knows, twas carp and I would still be worried about the rest of the wiring!

 

[RazorsEdge]

I'm guessing what we used to call "lamp cord" type speaker wire.

I mean I hope not tiny cheapo speaker wire - :YIKES:

OTOH you know some huge concert speakers have monster cables.............so who knows, twas carp and I would still be worried about the rest of the wiring!

Yeah I'm sure that's what was used most likely. Yeah, if it was my house I'd be updating the wiring for sure, but again not my house.

 

[Hall]

I like those orange connectors. I have used them for low voltage LED wiring.

They're 100% suitable for household voltage as well. I know a lot of "experts" dislike them but when reputable companies like IDEAL make them, as well as making wire-nuts, plus they're UL listed, they're fine. In fact, it's pretty hard to use them wrong but you can certainly install wire-nuts incorrectly, use the wrong size, and so on.

 

[RazorsEdge]

They're 100% suitable for household voltage as well. I know a lot of "experts" dislike them but when reputable companies like IDEAL make them, as well as making wire-nuts, plus they're UL listed, they're fine. In fact, it's pretty hard to use them wrong but you can certainly install wire-nuts incorrectly, use the wrong size, and so on.

 

[TimWelch]

If neither of them is getting power, it could be due to a few issues, like a tripped breaker, a loose wire, or a faulty connection somewhere in the system.If everything looks good there, a thorough inspection of the wiring connections might reveal a loose or disconnected wire. If you're still stuck, it might be a good idea to consult a professional.

 

[nomas]

If neither of them is getting power, it could be due to a few issues, like a tripped breaker, a loose wire, or a faulty connection somewhere in the system.If everything looks good there, a thorough inspection of the wiring connections might reveal a loose or disconnected wire. If you're still stuck, it might be a good idea to consult a professional.

You're late to this party . The pro is already on it .

 

[TimWelch]

If neither of them is getting power, it could be due to a few issues, like a tripped breaker, a loose wire, or a faulty connection somewhere in the system.If everything looks good there, a thorough inspection of the wiring connections might reveal a loose or disconnected wire. If you're still stuck, it might be a good idea to consult a professional.

I’ve seen situations like this where an electrician Ottawa can quickly diagnose the problem and fix it safely.