Plug socket flashed and tripped switch in fuse box

silver17

Please can someone advise.

We have had a portable mini heater plugged into a standard UK double wall socket (just plugs, no USB) for an hour or so and once I turned it off and switched the socket off, it flashed behind the panel and blew the fuse, turning off all electric from the entire house with it.

On inspecting the fuse box, it tripped the switch for the upstairs sockets circuit but the main overall house switch was off as well? I flicked both back on, and everything on the downstairs level is working normally.

Nothing has been plugged into that socket since (and both switches are also off) and we've not used any of the other upstairs sockets just in case.

Is it safe to use that socket again? Or does it need checking by a pro? I'm terrified of fire and this is in a bedroom so our phones are usually plugged into it overnight.

I'd really appreciate any advice you can give.

Thank you.

bjorn_toby_wilde

No, don’t use it until you’ve had it checked out by an electrician, unless you’re completely comfortable to DIY it.

It could have an internal fault or a wiring fault.  Either way, don’t take chances.

QrizB

silver17 said:

We have had a portable mini heater ...

Is this one of those "miracle" heaters that's just a house fire waiting to happen?

I'm not saying the heater is involved, since the problem seems to have happened when you switched off the socket, but even so ...

Albermarle

I think checking a socket is one of the few electrical jobs you can DIY.

Make sure the electrics are switched off at the consumer unit ( modern name for a fuse box) and just unscrew the socket and have a look behind. It could be something as simple as a loose wire.

silver17

Albermarle said:

I think checking a socket is one of the few electrical jobs you can DIY.

Make sure the electrics are switched off at the consumer unit ( modern name for a fuse box) and just unscrew the socket and have a look behind. It could be something as simple as a loose wire.

I have never heard 'consumer unit', when did that change? You can tell my level of knowledge is pretty low if I didn't know that haha.

Thanks for this though. Whilst we love DIY, electricals is something neither of us have much clue on. We are renting, so I'll just give the landlord a bell and request someone comes to check it out  

TELLIT01

Many people still call it the fuse box so don't worry about that.  I would bite the bullet and get an electrician in.  You have no real idea what actually caused the problem and even if you do unscrew the socket are you really competent to attempt any repair.

QrizB

TELLIT01 said:

I would bite the bullet and get an electrician in.

OP rents, so this is the landlord's responsibility:

silver17 said:

We are renting, so I'll just give the landlord a bell and request someone comes to check it out  

OP please let us know what your landlord's electrician finds!

onomatopoeia99

Albermarle said:

I think checking a socket is one of the few electrical jobs you can DIY.

There are a lot of electrical jobs you can DIY without needing to involve LABC or get someone in that can self-certify.  Just because you can doesn't mean you should, but it's not the black art that some paint it as.

Given the OP is renting though that's irrelevant as it's the landlord's problem.

Ectophile

I have never heard 'consumer unit', when did that change? You can tell my level of knowledge is pretty low if I didn't know that haha.

Back in the olden days, fuse boxes were full of fuses.  Then miniature circuit breakers were invented.  So it no longer made much sense to call a box full of circuit breakers a "fusebox".

stuart45

I remember the old fuse boxes. If they kept blowing people used to put in a bigger fuse. Sometimes a cut down 6 inch nail was the last resort.

TELLIT01

QrizB said:

TELLIT01 said:

I would bite the bullet and get an electrician in.

OP rents, so this is the landlord's responsibility:

silver17 said:

We are renting, so I'll just give the landlord a bell and request someone comes to check it out  

OP please let us know what your landlord's electrician finds!

Apologies, I'd missed the fact that they were renting.