Before You Call an Electrician: Safe Checks and What to Have Ready

Licensed electrical contractor EC13012832

Five Minutes Before the Call

Why a few minutes first is worth it

Many of the calls we get start with a tripped breaker or a tripped GFCI outlet that is easy to miss. A quick check sometimes brings the power back with no visit at all. When it does not, what you noticed while checking is the most useful thing you can tell us: which rooms are affected, what was running, and whether anything was warm, buzzing or smelled of burning.

None of the checks below involve opening a panel cover, touching wires, or using tools. If any step makes you uneasy, skip it and call. That is always the right answer.

Safe checks you can do

1. Is it just you?

If the whole house is dark, look at the neighbors and the streetlights. If they are out too, it is a utility outage and FPL is the company to call, at 1-800-4OUTAGE (1-800-468-8243). Our guide to telling an FPL outage from a problem in your house walks through it.

2. Check the breakers

Open the panel door (the hinged door, not the cover behind it) and look for a breaker that is off or sitting slightly away from the others. A tripped breaker can look almost on. Push it firmly to OFF, then back to ON, once. If it trips again straight away, leave it off.

3. Reset GFCI outlets

GFCI outlets have TEST and RESET buttons. One GFCI often protects other outlets downstream, sometimes in a different room. Press RESET on the GFCIs in bathrooms, the kitchen, the garage, the laundry area and outside. If a dead outlet comes back, the GFCI did its job. If the GFCI will not reset, or trips again at once, note which one.

4. Rule out the device

If one outlet seems dead, plug in a lamp you know works. If one appliance trips a breaker, try it on a different circuit. If a single light is out, try a new bulb. These tell us whether the problem is in the wiring or in what is plugged into it.

What not to do

• Do not remove the panel cover or open outlet and switch boxes.
• Do not hold a breaker in the ON position or tape it there. It is tripping for a reason.
• Do not replace a breaker with a larger one. The breaker protects the wire; a larger one lets the wire overheat.
• Do not keep resetting a breaker or GFCI that trips immediately. Once is a test; more than that is pushing power into a fault.
• Do not touch an outlet, switch or cord that is hot, scorched or melted, and do not plug anything back into it.
• Do not touch the panel or anything electrical if the floor is wet or you are standing in water.

When to skip the checks and call

Some things are not worth troubleshooting yourself. Call an electrician without working through the list if you notice any of these:

• A burning, hot plastic or fishy smell near an outlet, switch, fixture or the panel.
• Smoke, sparks, or scorch marks.
• An outlet, switch or the panel cover that is warm to the touch.
• Buzzing, crackling or sizzling from the panel or a device.
• Lights in one part of the house getting brighter while others dim.
• Water near the panel or in a fixture, for example after a roof leak or flooding.

If there is smoke or fire, get everyone out and call 911. If someone has had a shock and is hurt, call 911. If a power line is down outside, stay well away from it and call FPL and 911. Our burning smell and buzzing guide covers what to do in the first few minutes.

What to have ready when you call

These details help us judge urgency, plan the visit and bring the right parts:

• Your address and neighborhood, and gate, parking or condo access details.
• What is affected: which rooms, outlets, lights or appliances.
• When it started, and what was running at the time.
• Whether it is constant or comes and goes, and whether weather or time of day seems to matter.
• Anything you noticed: heat, a smell, a sound, flickering, a breaker that will not reset.
• Any recent work on the house: a remodel, a new appliance, landscaping, a storm.
• Roughly how old the house is, if you know.

Photos that help

If you can take them safely, a few photos save time. Text or email them when we ask:

• The panel with the door open, showing the breakers and the handwritten directory.
• The label inside the panel door, which shows the brand and model.
• The outlet, switch or fixture that is the problem, from a short distance, without touching it.
• Any scorch marks, melted plastic or corrosion you can see without opening anything.

Panel photos are especially useful. The brand and age of a panel tell us which breakers fit it and whether it is one of the older panels that need a closer look. See electrical panel repair for more.

Same-day service in Pinecrest, Coconut Grove, South Miami and Miami Beach

KRW Electric offers same-day service for electrical troubleshooting and repair in Pinecrest, Coconut Grove, South Miami and Miami Beach when scheduling permits. Call (305) 359-7312 and describe what is happening: which rooms or devices are affected, when it started, and whether you have noticed heat, a smell or any sound. That description usually tells us how urgent it is and what to bring.

If a same-day slot is not available, we tell you so on the call and give you the earliest time we have, along with what is safe to leave until then. If something you describe sounds dangerous, we will say that plainly too, and our emergency electrician page explains what counts as an emergency.

What customers say

“Kyle was amazingly responsive, came the same day to give a quote and then fixed the issue the following day. So happy to have found him!”

Nicole S., Google review

“Very professional, gave us a quote on the day of our appointment and fixed the issue same day.”

Allan P., Google review

“Called them to take a look at an issue we were having. Very professional, quick, and courteous. Most importantly honest and reasonable!”

Dessiree P., Google review

Reviewed by Kyle White, KRW Electric Company LLC — licensed electrical contractor EC13012832.