SBay_ecologist

Hello All:

A week ago I started smelling something burning when I use the microwave.

Then my wife pointed out that sparks are coming out of the outlet.

I opened the outlet out and filmed it. (See the following. "wmv" movie is a bit shorter. https://picasaweb.google.com/Keep.Earth.Clean/Sparks?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCNuVvfjalNSFugE&fe at=directlink )

My questions are as follows:

- Why all of a sudden this started happening?

- Do microwaves start consuming more power as they get older? Could this be the reason for the sparks?

- Would changing the outlet solve the problem?

Thanks!

nealtw

Turn the breaker off now, You have house fire looking for fuel. I think you just need a new outlet and clean out the box.

JoeD

You have a loose connection. Turn off the breaker and replace the receptacle. You might need to cut a small amount of wire off to get a clean connection.

DO NOT CONTINUE TO USE IT LIKE THIS.

SBay_ecologist

How did this loose connection come about? I have been using this outlet for well over three years withou any problem.

Thanks!

nealtw

It's done what do you need to know? You want to check the wires, if you have aluminium you want to get an outlet that matches.

JoeD

Heat. Once it is loose heat develops. When it heats it expands and contacts making it even looser.

SBay_ecologist

The reason I want to know is to see if I can prevent this happening in the future.

Regards

SBay_ecologist

So, do I need to periodically open the outlets where there is high current draw and tighten the screws?

Thanks

nealtw

I just wanted to make the point that it was dangerous, Perhaps when you have it out and tell us what you found, and someone can tell you what caused it. You do want to match it to the wire and don't buy the cheapest one.

JoeD

It is possible it was never tighten properly when first installed.