Said It Here

Why does my electrical outlet only work sometimes?

An electrical outlet may work only part of the time or stop functioning shortly after plugging in an appliance. This prevents your devices from staying powered consistently.

What people tried

Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.

  1. 1
    Checking for switch control
  2. 2
    Inspecting internal tabs
  3. 3
    Replacing the receptacle
  4. 4
    Looking for loose connections
  5. 5
    Put a potted plant, small table, or chairs in front of it to hide it
  6. 6
    Replace the bulky cover with a more compact or standard outdoor faceplate
  7. 7
    Have the electrician unhook and relocate the outlet

In their words

Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.

“Top one works 100% of the time. The bottom works 20% of the time and when it does it only powers my appliance for a few minutes before it stops working.”source ↗

Whatisitmom · r/askanelectrician · 39 upvotes

“I feel like this bad boy is sticking out a long ways. I know that the GFCI needs the room and I can replace the cover with a more compact one, but the install does not seem right.”source ↗

“Not really sure if this setup can be changed as concrete has been poured and the wall is glued. Just seeing if we need to go back to the contractor to see if there is a better way to position this outlet or if there is a way I can make this look better.”source ↗

cldirk01 · r/Landscaping · 22 upvotes

“I messed around with all the outlets down stairs it made no difference.”source ↗

Whatisitmom · r/askanelectrician · 3 upvotes

Where this came up

r/Landscapingr/askanelectriciancontractorselectricalhome improvementhome maintenancelandscapingtroubleshooting

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