How to fix an outlet or light switch that stopped working

If your light switch or outlet stopped working, this may be one idea on how to fix it. It's easy and free!
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[@AverageMe]

If you ever wondered what that funny-looking outlet is, wonder no more! It's easy to use and an easy fix if it causes you problems.

[@AverageMe]

A GFI does NOT have to be on the other side of the wall to affect an outlet. I have a GFI outlet in my garage, and it affected a completely different outdoor outlet a substantial distance away (my Christmas light would not turn on). It could also be a faulty outlet, a blown fuse or a tripped circuit breaker.

[@taveheyer7644]

3 years later and your still helping people out with this thank you! Saved my day!

[@elainie6784]

Outlet in garage wasn't working. I found the GFI outlet in second level closet. The outlets were nowhere near each other. I reset it and it fixed the problem. Thank you!!!

[@hostarepairman]

After my disposal switch AND under cabinet lights switch wouldn't work, I found your video while searching KZbin for a cure, hit the reset button on the outlet on same wall as disposal switch, and . . . . . . . BINGO! Never would have thought one would effect other, but now I know, and my wife (again) thinks I'm very handy man! Thanks, on Father's Day.

[@morcuilo]

Hi Mark. I've seen so many of your ride share vids, but came across this when I searched for my lighting problem. Your a jack of all trades man. It was the bathroom circuit breaker that caused the kitchen and dining room lights to go out. Brilliant! Thanks bro!

[@michaelpowers3668]

Hi Mark! My dishwasher stopped working and would not turn on. After spending hours troubleshooting the issue, I determined it was a power issue and not the dishwasher. I was about to call an electrician until I saw your video. Your explanation was clear, focused, and easy to understand. I grabbed a flashlight, inspected the outlet under the sink, hit the reset button, and power was immediately restored to my dishwasher. Made my day guy ... I appreciate your help. Thanks Mark!

[@AverageMe]

I appreciate hearing your story! Thanks for sharing

[@tonyrojay]

Thank you my friend for posting this video You solved my problem in 2 minutes flat. God bless you sir

[@acs4872]

Thank you Sir for saving me $$$ on an electrician. This video solved my problem.

[@MrMotoMike]

1:53 The separate outlet in my kitchen is in-line with the breaker as said in the video. THANK YOU SO MUCH, I never would have checked that! I guess my outlet under the sink popped the mini-breaker outlet above the dishwasher. This caused all my kitchen outlets to be offline. I tried an extension cord to plug in my sink disposal from the other side of the kitchen (with water running), and it still didn't work. I thought I fixed the problem when the main breaker for the kitchen was somehow 10% popped, lol. I flicked the switch around and it was able to stay in the ON position, but didn't fix it until I found this video. Oh boy. You have no idea the things I've tried to fix lately, and problems everywhere from the DMV to my sink disposal lol. Finally another one solved! May have took 2 hours answering questions at the DMV, but got this disposal installed and working in 20min thanks to you haha

[@baren6755]

Thank you .I replaced a broken wall switch in bathroom .New one did not work .After watching your video I went to see if the ac outlet has one of those and it did .New light switch works great thanks to your video.

[@AverageMe]

So glad to hear!!

[@riekodi5508]

Thanks so much for taking the time to share your knowledge on fixing seemingly dead outlets and for saving me “$” for an electrician service call. I just tried your method and it worked. I had an issue with an outlet in the living room where the TV and cable box are plugged in. I simply reset the GFCI outlet in the adjacent kitchen and it worked. God bless.

[@raulguevara8792]

Thanks for this video. I came over to my mother house to fix this issue but once I opened the switches n found that everything was fine I got puzzled. After u said gfci I turned n looked towards the nearest one n sure enough it was off. Again thank u for this video!!!

[@d.l.l.6578]

Very articulate and explanatory! Thank you for a clear explanation.

[@LiveLifeGolden]

DUUUUDE!!! You are the man. That quick tip just worked for two of my outlets that were out and I didn't see that covered in any other troubleshooting videos. Thank you so much!!

[@AverageMe]

So glad to hear it!

[@ryanthemepark]

Thank you. I had outlets stop working in the garage, outdoor patio, one upstairs and downstairs bathroom. Hitting the the GFI in my 2nd upstairs bathroom fixed all my outlets. Saved me time and money in not having to call an electrician. Thank you!!

[@AverageMe]

Thanks for sharing your story!

[@michaelcuratola1183]

Almost exactly my issue. And gfi upstairs bathroom reset button solved the problem. Thanks to Average Me!

[@aslmad1]

@@AverageMe what if you don’t have any gfi

[@shakilcs]

Great fix, i was struggling with an issue, and suddenly your video helped me in 2 minutes fix. Thanks for sharing.

[@AverageMe]

Glad to hear it!

[@santhoshb6764]

I blindly booked electrician and he quoted $150 for 1hr service, and I luckily got your solution and It worked perfectly!! Thanks Man!! you saved my $150 😁

[@lagoxtull]

Thanks . That worked!!!

[@chithomas972]

I am so glad, I watched this video before messing with the sockets. I forgot about the light switch. Thank you. Nice video too

[@kishit23]

This just saved me a call to an electrician! Thanks so much.

[@AverageMe]

That’s great!

[@oliverwilliams5367]

Great information. This saved me from calling an electrician.

[@jameswinward4354]

GFI's are wonderful, they have saved a lot of lives!

[@AverageMe]

Yep, but they put them in crazy places sometimes, and connect them to circuits you wouldn't expect. The more people understand them the better.

[@jessicac5971]

Man you just saved me money I was about to call home warranty I went to find the button you showed and it worked for the entire house thank you so much. The button was actually down stairs and the issue was upstairs

[@AverageMe]

Thanks for sharing that. Yes, this is the kind of thing that nobody tells you about.

[@ryanh.5529]

Dear Mark: Thanks very much for posting this helpful video!! My water heater stopped working sometime today and I did not know until the evening when being back from work. I checked and learned that the electrical outlet where the water heater be plugged in stopped working for some reasons. I searched KZbin and firstly found your video. I went back down to the utility room and found the outlet with GFI near by and saw it had the reset light in red. I just followed your steps and the electical outlet worked again, especially my water heater be running again. You solved my electrical outlet problem. Again, thanks very much for sharing this video!! You saved my day and made my family happy. We greatly appreciate it.

[@AverageMe]

What a great story! Thank you for sharing this!

[@richardsuggs8108]

Thanks. Used a known good lamp to test the outlet and it didn’t work. So I went around the house and hit the reset button on all of the GFI outlets . Problem solved and I found an outside light that needs replacement. This simple suggestion saved me $100. for a service call to my electrician.

[@AverageMe]

Thanks for sharing! Now make note of which circuit the GFI & outlet are on for next time

[@shivani6372]

Well that worked fine. Thanks for this amazing and simple solution to check first hand. Saved my day and not burn my pockets.

[@kylefei]

THANK YOU VERY MUCH! Honestly at the first I was thinking: That's BS, what are the chances I get the exact same problem like yours, and then I go to my bathroom and I see the exact "test" button was pushed out LOL. Thanks so much, this video definitely helped me solved my problem!

[@AverageMe]

Great comment! Thanks!

[@francescacrofts1]

Thank you!! This was exactly what I needed. You're wonderful!!

[@jonathancollins8072]

This was exactly my problem. GFI in the garage for the circuit across the house. Thanks!

[@aslmad1]

Glad it helped someone. I don’t have any gfi outlets

[@nw4090]

Yay my water fountain stopped working outside...found that reset button in the garage! Lol thank you!

[@AverageMe]

That’s great!

[@ManpreetKaur-it3mq]

Hey! I was trying to solve the issue and nothing worked but as soon as i saw your video, i was just able to fix that problem in a single click! Thanks

[@telagraf]

thank you soooooo much. this worked for me. I was just about the call a electrician then decided to check youtube. thank you!!!

[@lovinghawaii2010]

great advice....I have to check that.....thanks!

[@lambertoheras8325]

Amazing video. Turns out my issue was a gfci in the garage!!! Thank you.

[@automat9226]

Thank you, good first step advice as an inspection item.

[@AverageMe]

Very true, and it’s amazing some of the strange outlets and lights they sometimes include on a GFI circuit.

[@luisoti1743]

Thank you so much I just fixed mine.it’s been disabled for about a year.I had no idea it was an easy fix.God bless

[@AverageMe]

I'm so happy to hear that!

[@raulpadilla6487]

@@AverageMe I had two outlets outside the house disabled for about a year, I was going to call an electrician. But It was an easy fix. I checked both outlets and they are working fine (=^-^=) THANK YOU SO MUCH, BLESSINGS

[@eselblue]

Thank you for this video , it’s very helpful.

[@scud-runner]

Thanks man this fixed my problem.

[@sumatibansal9865]

That is awesome!! Worked like a charm!! Thank you very much sir for making this video. Much appreciated!!

[@michaelnguyen954]

Works for me. Thank you sir!

[@melf4777]

Thanks a million! Worked like a charm.

[@AverageMe]

Glad to hear it!

[@ashulucky6]

i love you it gr8 vedio its help me a lot sir thank you so much

[@jasonmccord7507]

Thank you thank you thank you!!!!! Months of scratching my head fixed with a push of a button!

[@AverageMe]

Great to hear! Let's not forget that the GFI outlet could be nowhere near the outlet that is not working, just on the same circuit.

[@HanhLe19]

You are sooooo good 👍 about Electricity . I wonder why you don't make more videos about this issue. Thank you.

[@binhminh417]

My study room has the same problem and none of the light/fan switches and outlets is in the GFI circuit. Appreciate your help.

[@sarahhasan4667]

Thank you. So helpful

[@Scooter9480]

Thank you dude ! Solved mine !

[@bobbymorino5329]

My outdoor lights stop working. Everything started going off and on after a storm last year. I changed every outlet and switch and still the same. It's in the kitchen so I hooked up the appliances to an extension unfortunately temporarily. I even check the lights outside. Only thing I guess is the wires in the wall. Because I don't have a GFI outlet switch.

[@logan197777]

Thank you, saved me. 😁

[@solomonobih5222]

Thanks so much cause I had no power in my room went to the closest bathroom and did this and worked thanks a lot

[@w1swh1]

I have a plethora of receptacles and switches that don't work however I am slowly finding the reasons. For example, my daughter was staying here the other day and plugged her dryer into the guest bathroom which is rarely used. The GFCI had tripped (not sure why). Resetting it not only reactivated the bathroom receptacles but also reactivated receptacles in the garage and outside on the patio! Not sure why all these receptacles are on the same circuit but glad they now work 😀😀

[@jesusreigns4222]

Thank you Mr Mark God bless you

[@Mrrockluo]

Thank you.It is very helpful

[@pgovenderable]

Thank you very informative

[@barbievu8523]

THANK YOU SO MUCH ❤️❤️❤️! New subscriber!

[@AverageMe]

I'm glad it worked for you! And thank you.

[@premro]

Thank you

[@colleenmurphy5335]

That really worked thanks for your time and help!!!!!!

[@AverageMe]

I am glad it helped! Thanks for letting me know!

[@mahindasubasinghe8383]

Thank you so much for your vedio, it helped me to save my money!!

[@breezy15101]

Saved me.. thank you!

[@MarkBakerPhotographer]

Good morning Mark. First I wanted to say thank you for your video. It went right to the point. My issue after installing a GFI , the outlet behind the stove immediately stopped working. I checked the GFI, everything was fine. I believe the stove outlet is the last outlet in that line, can that do it? I put the GFI near the sink so I believe that must stay as well. Hope you get this message and can enlighten us more ;) thank you. Mark

[@ice319p9]

tha actually helped me a lot thanks to you!!

[@AverageMe]

Happy to hear it, Ice!

[@Myplac152]

Thanks for your video, you solved my problem

[@AverageMe]

Awesome!

[@TheJudeJane]

Problem is that the failed outlet is on a far wall that has no other outlet behind it or near it. Thanks for your demo, though.👍🏽😊

[@ayoooooodaniel]

There shouldnt be a receptacle behind it according to code, might be different where u are but it is stated in the NEC

[@trillaalure]

It worked thank you!!

[@AverageMe]

Great to hear that!!

[@luisvazquez-dj3ec]

thanks for the great video I did what u said and wow it did work thank you very much 😊

[@Ace-fk6os]

I plugged my charger in to a extension cord and it wouldn't work so I taped it but it still wouldn't work so I went to go cut the tape off with scissorsand it sparked and then none of the outlets round it would work either so let's see if this helps

[@greenmount73]

Life saver !

[@AmitSharma-fj1hv]

Thanks this is amazing trick

[@carlyg8051]

wow, thanks for the help it worked!!! i'm shocked!! it seems so easy Lol

[@AverageMe]

I certainly hope you weren't ELECTRICALLY shocked! Glad it worked for you!

[@carlyg8051]

Average Me Nooooooo LOL not electrically shocked haha Good one! thanks so much

[@Zebizenette]

SIR. THANK YOU. Just moved in and I reset an outlet far from the wall, flipped the reset and it worked!

[@TSgtOzzy]

Solved my problem.

[@w1swh1]

I have two light switches that don't work anything but are positioned in such a way that they probably switch receptacles. It could be the receptacles were installed or replaced without breaking the hot and neutral tabs on the receptacles. How can I validate that by looking at the receptacles and wiring?

[@nikolasdang5196]

I have a switch in the room right under it is an outlet and that outlet is controlled by the switch, now the switch is not working and I can’t use the outlet. Do I need to replace the switch or both the outlet as well? Thanks

[@richard5981]

OK what if you have light to a ceiling fan your bathroom lights work but your outlets in your bedroom where the fan is and closet light doesn’t work Circuit breaker is ok. I found a GFI switch but the reset button doesn’t say press in like it supposed to. What could be the problem? I don’t have $5000 to fix this problem and I’d like to fix it as soon as possible and as cheap as possible please any advice

[@pablomier8133]

Worked, thank you.

[@luceromendoza509]

Thanks sooo much

[@AverageMe]

Glad it helped!

[@msny278]

This is helped me to keep looking. My house is just under 2 years old and I was wondering what was going on. My master bathroom plugs did not work however the lights did. I do not have any GFI's in my bathroom but after this video I kept looking and noticed that the main bathroom does have a GFI. This bathroom is on the same side of my house and only a bedroom separates them. Well what do you know that the GFI in the main restroom controls the outlets in the master bathroom. I'm back up and running.

[@AverageMe]

Great story! Thanks for sharing it!

[@jamesmckinnie4103]

The man you are

[@dominick408]

Thanks man

[@AverageMe]

You're welcome, I hope it was helpful. Funny, I just encountered this problem again yesterday when using a trimmer plugged into an outdoor outlet. The GFI on the garage outlet was tripped!

[@HerbertAtkinson]

What causes half of an outlet to work but the top half doesnt work, it suppose to work with the light switch, i replaced both switch & outlet there are two areas in the bedroom that are doing this they all been replaced I even broke out the center tab on each of rhe outlets still top of outlets dont work only bottom does.

[@AverageMe]

Before you install the new outlet, did you check the wires to see if power is even reaching them? I'd start there before looking at the outlet, assuming to broke the tabs out & wired correctly.

[@treyvaughnlevac2566]

Hey mark, can you do the 2006 Chevy equinox cd player next ?! I appreciate you big boss . 😊

[@AverageMe]

Pretty specific! Unfortunately I don't have a 2006 Chevy equinox cd player. Heck, I don't even have a 2006 Chevy equinox!

[@victorias2372]

My problem is I have a house where the switch goes mostly to outlets. I'm trying to find which outlet the switch goes to in the bedroom. The outlets work but the switch doesn't do anything. The other 2 bedrooms it does

[@shannonwolf-lloyd1062]

I have 3 outlet that don't work outside. 2 of them are in my backyard which 1 outlet is connected to my light switch outside which doesn't work either. I really can't afford a Electrition to come out either. Can you PLEASE help me because I'm trying to put up my christmas lights in my front yard.

[@realjls]

My GFI outlet stopped working. I cut the breaker and replaced it and still nothing. The breaker seems fine. And my simple electrical test doesn’t show power. I need expert help.

[@AverageMe]

Maybe so. I had the same thing and I replaced it with a SECOND GFI and it's worked ever since. So it could be a bad replacement unit. I'm no electrician, but I'd start by making sure you even have power going to the outlet, and that everything is properly grounded.

[@mccaylababer]

My outlet is different doesn't have a reset button it...for some reason it has stopped working when I plugged the vacuum inside of one of the outlets then it just stopped, I've tried changing outlets to the otheside of the bedroom or even changing the four-way plug..still nothing is working

[@shaimarahimmm7354]

Life saver

[@treyvaughnlevac2566]

I love you😮

[@SFLConstrictors]

Thanks. Problem solved. Testosterone grew 10 pts with the wife😂

[@steveevets4923]

That’s what it was!!

[@AverageMe]

It just happened to me at home last night! I was shooting a video in my home studio and my lights wouldn’t come on. Sure enough, it was the GFI!

[@gamingwithdave387]

Q

[@treasureman1198]

Thats not my situation my outlets don't work but i don't have any gfi outlets in my room but there is a bathroom right across from my room,what could be a problem only one outlet workin my room

[@red0means0go]

I literally looked this up cause my lights didn’t work. Thanks.

[@AverageMe]

It can be crazy. Both my previous home an the one I live in now have these outlets in the garage, and they will trip the outdoor lights and outlets. It can be very frustrating if you don't think to look for a GFI that might be in that circuit.

[@StonerforLifeWeed]

I but a cut up cored in one out let now my 3 living room don't work help

[@c00raw67]

What if a light switch and a plug on the Same out lit and the light switch doesn't work but plug does! Fan switch is also out in the bathroom

[@c00raw67]

Can't find a GFI in the bathroom

[@AverageMe]

There should be one. If not, I’d spend the $10 or so to get one.

[@cauliflowerpower41]

Dude needs to leave that hotel😅

[@AverageMe]

Haha! Well, there weren't many options in the desolate Canadian north!

[@strongjohn7078]

What if you don’t have a reset button on the outlets. Thanks

[@AverageMe]

This video was showing how many outlets and lights are on the same circuit as a GPI, which always has a reset button. Look around and see if you have one in another room that might be on the same circuit. If not, maybe you blew a fuse or tripped a circuit breaker, or perhaps you have a bad outlet.

[@shivan682]

you saved me..

[@AverageMe]

These things can be maddening, can't they? Glad it worked!

[@saraginorio]

My bathroom have the same problem but they Dont have the reset part ?

[@serenetao1094]

My problem is that when ever I turn my room light off my led lights cut off

[@rileybecerril7554]

What if mine is in my bedroom and doesn’t have that type of outlet

[@AverageMe]

Check and see if a nearby outlet has it, such as a kitchen, bathroom or garage. Your non-working outlet or switch could be on the same circuit. This is only one possibility; it could be a fuse, circuit breaker, or even a bad outlet.

[@rileybecerril7554]

@@AverageMe I still have yet to change the switch out for a new one I will check thankyou

[@DirectBrakes]

👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

[@nict5828]

I dint have either. What Now?