Urgent - Water In Electric Sockets!!!

Smiley_Mum

My son had disappeared to the loo and after ten minutes wondered what he was up to as sometimes he falls asleep on the loo. Discovered he had been busily spraying his toy fire extinguisher full of water over sockets, hair drier and shredder. I've cut the supply which goes for the hall and the kitchen. Should I call an electrician to check it out. Wondered about sticking a fan heater on to dry up the socket or not. HELP!!!!!!!!

apsie

Try calling your electricity provider for advice - they can tell you if you'll need an electrician. Wouldn't recommend a fan heater to dry it out.

rushnowt

not an electrician so cant help hun, i'm trying to get hold of my brother in law for ya at the mo but he's not answering the sodding phone, hope someone can help ya out here quickly tho x

Smiley_Mum

Dried everything up as best I can. I had noticed when I moved into the flat that there was a socket which obviously had been affected by damp in Winter time as it looked like it had blown due to moisture within it.

He said he had been spraying from a distance so hopefully the water ran down the socket, rather than into it. He's been sent to his room with a hot behind and told not to come out.

I just hope it doesn't affect the electrics for the rest of the flat. The kitchen and hall are out of bounds and I've taped paper over the socket, otherwise in a moment of forgetfulness I'd plug in the Dyson and end up like Mary Poppins and her brolly, barbecued. Dried up the shredder and the hairdrier and hopefully they'll dry out ok.

I had a bad shock once from my mams vacum cleaner years ago, was leaning down the back of the dressing table (where the socket was) to plug it in and as I pushed the plug in my fingers (dry) touched the prongs of the plug, got burnt and my eyes were like saucers for the rest of the day.

Thanks for any advice you can provide.

2ax

The problem shouldn't spread through the rest of the place. If you've switched off the affected areas at the fuse/circuit breaker box, then you are safe. Even if you hadn't done that the worst case should be blowing a fuse or tripping a breaker at the box, not affecting other implements like the vac or endangering you. Don't use any of the wet things, obviously.

As for checking it out, get some advice from the electricity company, or do you have electrician friends that could come round later?

And I'd be keeping an eye on the lad, not leaving him on his own; I hope he's not likely to get into more experiments if he's upset or curious.

Smiley_Mum

He'd gone off to the loo and I was sorting out washing in the kitchen and had the dryer on. He hadn't appeared back in the lounge after ten mins or so went to get him as sometimes he nods off on the loo. Here he was merrily spraying away. :eek:

YorkshireBoy

Let me through, I'm an electrical engineer!! (well, doctor's say it don't they?)

If, as you say he was spraying the socket from a distance, and if the supply didn't trip/blow I wouldn't be "too" worried. The socket will dry out naturally, faster with the central heating on, and faster still with a fan heater blowing on it. NOT directly onto it but warming the general area.

Don't plug the heater into the affected socket, but into a different one - and preferably one on a different ring main* to the wet socket which will allow you to leave the affected socket ring main isolated.

Don't use any of the appliances until they've thoroughly dried out naturally.

From what you've said, there's no need to call the electricity provider although if you know anyone who is "DIY-handy" you could ask them to pull the socket front off the wall TOMORROW to ensure everything's dry behind it but SWITCH OFF AT THE CONSUMER UNIT FIRST.

* Houses generally have 2 ring mains for the sockets (upstairs & downstairs), but not sure with your flat?

Smiley_Mum

I spoke with my brother and he's pretty DIY handy as you say and states more or less what you say, YB. Thanks for all the help. I've got the fan heater on, and on a different circuit, I hope. I just won't go near the affected socket for a while and then, next time my brother is out, he said he'd take a look at it. There's been no shorting or tripping fuses so hopefully it's ok. Looks like the water had just ran down the front of the socket, and hadn't been sprayed directly into the sockets. I'll get someone to check my drier and shredder too as he had sprayed quite a lot of water over them. £50 for my shredder and £20 for my drier, hope I don't need to replace them. Thanks all for the advice/info. Appreciated as always.

Savvy_Sue

Smiley_Mum wrote:

£50 for my shredder and £20 for my drier, hope I don't need to replace them. Thanks all for the advice/info. Appreciated as always.

If you do, Robert Dyas seem to have shredders on special at the moment, haven't looked at them but if you have a branch nearby then worth a look if the 'Great Cheap Shredder Hunt' thread is hard to find. Oh, and you can order online as well!

Boys and their toys, eh?

I love the idea of him falling asleep on the loo - sometimes think my DH does that! (And no he's not reading in there!)

rushnowt

Thank goodness for you Yorkshireboy :j

hope your ok now Smiley_Mum, little tikes run ya crazy with the stuff they get up to at times, just glad your all safe and sound x

Smiley_Mum

Savvy_Sue wrote:

I love the idea of him falling asleep on the loo - sometimes think my DH does that! (And no he's not reading in there!)

He supports himself on the side of the wash hand basin with his forehead.