If one of your electricity outlets with the reset and test buttons went off when your son was playing TV games so you got a new outlet and replaced it why are other outlets and lights not working now?

Answer 1

Answer for USA, Canada and countries running a 60 Hz power supply service.

Those are called "ground fault interrupter" (GFCI) outlets. They test to see if a fault exists anywhere on the circuit. They were once only used to protect kitchen and bath outlets and sockets fitted outside the house. Because of the extra safety they give, nowadays they often used to protect general inside circuits too. They help protect people from getting a dangerous electric shock if a fault occurs somewhere in a plugged-in appliance or in the protected circuit itself.

If the ground fault still exists, replacing the GFCI while that ground fault still exists will be frustrating, since the GFCI will immediately trip as soon as you turn it on. Often the problem is a wet electrical outlet or cord. If one of your outdoor outlets became rain-soaked the GFCI will not allow the circuit to turn on. When replacing the GFCI you may have accidentally left the wire off that feeds the other outlets and lights.

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(LIFE SAFETY WARNING! [disclaimer]

Electricity is dangerous!

You can be injured or killed!

Improper installations can cause fire, injury and death!

Should you be doing this yourself?)

1] Call a licensed electrician!

2] It is likely that your boy had nothing to do with the problem

3] Many new GFIs reset "open" when the power fails and need power to be reset [part of a safety self-test].

4] GFIs work by measuring the difference between hot and neutral current at the device, they don't "check" anything else.

5] In the USA it is allowed to replace a non-grounded receptacle with a GFCI device in a circuit without an equipment grounding conductor as long as the device is labeled to show that there is no equipment ground. [The US National Electrical Code does not allow any other installation of grounding-type receptacle device in a circuit with no equipment grounding conductor.] It is allowable to protect other devices after the GFI and install grounding type receptacles in the protected circuit thereafter, if they are labeled to indicate there is no equipment ground.

6] Troubleshooting can be a problem for experienced technicians. I love nothing more than a caller who says "I've had four other people here to look at it, but ..."

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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.

IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB

SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY

REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.

If you do this work yourself, always turn off the power

at the breaker box/fuse panel BEFORE you attempt to do any work AND

always use an electrician's test meter having metal-tipped probes

(not a simple proximity voltage indicator)

to insure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.

Answer 2

because it is no good any more Sounds like a defective or very dirty/corroded GFCI. In either case you can replace it easily and cheaply......pkazsr