WCrane
Well-Known Member
So I am beating my head against the wall here gang. Maybe someone with the proper background can help or at least point me in the right direction before I give up and call an electrician.
So here it is: Live in a townhouse. On the back side of the house we have a deck and a walk out patio below. On the deck their is a light and an outdoor receptacle. On the patio their is the same (light and recp. below it). both have switches inside the slider door.
The issue - The Deck recp. basement patio light (and switch), and basement patio recp. all quit working after some rain. Has happened in the past a few times but always comes back on, sometimes on its own sometime when I reset the GFCI. This time it has been a few days. It is a issue some of my neighbors said they deal with from time to time as well.
All my GFCIs in the house are fine. They have power on the line and load side. There are no apparent issues with any of the breakers. (I don't have the stones to open the breaker box). I've check most Recps in the house which I assume are on the line, but everything in and out that I have check so far are working normal. I have a few more to check.
I know without looking at my house or pictures its hard to solve. but here is some more info
The Deck light works and the deck light switch works fine. The Switch for the deck light has three cables in the box. One for the light, one coming in and one sending out farther down the line (I assume). All three hot wires have juice.
- The Deck ecp. has two wires in the box, BUT neither hot wire has juice. I assume from the deck the wire travels down to the patio below. I replaced this recp with a new outdoor (non-gfci) one.
- I've replace the basement patio recp a few years back, but have a new one I can install.
-I've check all the connection on this line on things and all tightly twisted under the cap, no signs of corrosion or burning.
I'm not 100% sure that that one of the lines leaving the deck light switch feeds the deck recp. because the Deck recp has now power in either line entering the box.
I'd prefer to fix myself because I know I can, I just don't know where to look now.
I do have a multi-meter, and wire tester, but am unsure how to do a continuity test on the line. I'm thinking its is a loose neutral or that the basement patio recp went bad cause the issues up the line.
Any discussion would be greatly appreciated.
So here it is: Live in a townhouse. On the back side of the house we have a deck and a walk out patio below. On the deck their is a light and an outdoor receptacle. On the patio their is the same (light and recp. below it). both have switches inside the slider door.
The issue - The Deck recp. basement patio light (and switch), and basement patio recp. all quit working after some rain. Has happened in the past a few times but always comes back on, sometimes on its own sometime when I reset the GFCI. This time it has been a few days. It is a issue some of my neighbors said they deal with from time to time as well.
All my GFCIs in the house are fine. They have power on the line and load side. There are no apparent issues with any of the breakers. (I don't have the stones to open the breaker box). I've check most Recps in the house which I assume are on the line, but everything in and out that I have check so far are working normal. I have a few more to check.
I know without looking at my house or pictures its hard to solve. but here is some more info
The Deck light works and the deck light switch works fine. The Switch for the deck light has three cables in the box. One for the light, one coming in and one sending out farther down the line (I assume). All three hot wires have juice.
- The Deck ecp. has two wires in the box, BUT neither hot wire has juice. I assume from the deck the wire travels down to the patio below. I replaced this recp with a new outdoor (non-gfci) one.
- I've replace the basement patio recp a few years back, but have a new one I can install.
-I've check all the connection on this line on things and all tightly twisted under the cap, no signs of corrosion or burning.
I'm not 100% sure that that one of the lines leaving the deck light switch feeds the deck recp. because the Deck recp has now power in either line entering the box.
I'd prefer to fix myself because I know I can, I just don't know where to look now.
I do have a multi-meter, and wire tester, but am unsure how to do a continuity test on the line. I'm thinking its is a loose neutral or that the basement patio recp went bad cause the issues up the line.
Any discussion would be greatly appreciated.