Outlets dead in the bathroom, kitchen or garage
When several outlets stop at once, a GFCI outlet has usually tripped. How to find it and reset it safely.
About 2 minutes · no tools needed
Safety first. Keep hands dry and stay away from outlets near standing water. If you smell burning or see scorch marks, do not touch anything and call maintenance.
- 1
Find the GFCI outlet
It has two buttons, TEST and RESET. It may be in a different room than the dead outlet: check bathrooms, the kitchen counter, the garage, outdoor outlets and the basement.
- 2
Press RESET
Press RESET firmly until it clicks. If it won't stay in, unplug everything on that circuit and try again.
- 3
Check the breaker panel
If there is no GFCI or it won't reset, open the breaker panel door. A tripped breaker sits in the middle. Push it fully OFF, then back ON, once.
Stop and contact maintenance if
- · The GFCI or breaker trips again right away
- · There is a burning smell, buzzing or scorch marks
- · The outlet is wet or near a leak
What to tell them: Tell them which outlets are dead, that you pressed RESET on the GFCI and checked the breaker, and whether anything trips again.
For property managers
FixRoute walks your residents through this by text, at 2am, and only sends a vendor when it's really needed.
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