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Holiday lights make the season brighter — as long as they are installed safely. Most holiday lighting problems come from damaged strings, overloaded outlets, and indoor lights used outdoors.

Before you hang them

• Check every string for cracked bulbs, frayed wires, and damaged plugs. Throw out any string that is damaged — do not repair it with tape.
• Use outdoor-rated lights and extension cords outside, and indoor lights only indoors.
• Plug outdoor lights into GFCI-protected outlets, and keep connections off the ground and out of puddles.

While they are up

• Do not overload an outlet or a power strip. Spread lights across more than one circuit if you are putting up a lot of them.
• Keep lights away from curtains, bedding, and dry greenery.
• Turn holiday lights off before bed and when you leave the house, or use a timer.

Want a dedicated outdoor outlet or permanent landscape lighting so you are not running extension cords every year? McLeod Electric can help. McLeod Electric — Master Electrician #A 12769, Hanson, MA. Call (781) 447-6040. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergencies, call anytime.

When the outlets in one room go dead but the lights and other rooms still work, the cause is usually on that room’s circuit — a tripped breaker, a tripped GFCI, or a failed outlet or connection.

Check these first

• Check the panel for a tripped breaker on that circuit and reset it firmly — all the way OFF, then ON.
• Check for a tripped GFCI outlet in the room, or in a nearby kitchen or bathroom. One GFCI can protect several outlets, including ones in another room.
• Test with something simple, like a lamp you know works, and try another outlet in the room — is it all of them or just one?

Call an electrician if

• The breaker trips again right away.
• Only one outlet is dead while the rest of the room works — the outlet or the wiring behind it may have failed.
• You smell burning or an outlet is warm or discolored.

Do not keep resetting a breaker that trips again and again, and do not open outlets or the panel yourself. McLeod Electric — Master Electrician #A 12769, Hanson, MA. Call (781) 447-6040. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergencies, call anytime.

A GFCI outlet — the one with the TEST and RESET buttons — cuts power in a fraction of a second when it senses current leaking where it should not go. That is what protects you in kitchens, bathrooms, and outdoors. When it keeps tripping or will not reset, it is telling you something.

Try this first

• Unplug everything from the GFCI and from any outlets it protects, then press RESET firmly. If it holds, plug items back in one at a time.
• Check whether the outlet is wet, or whether the problem started after rain or cleaning. Moisture is a common cause outdoors and in bathrooms.
• Check the breaker — a tripped breaker will also keep a GFCI from resetting.

Call an electrician if

• The GFCI will not reset even with nothing plugged in.
• It trips again as soon as you plug something in.
• The outlet is warm, discolored, cracked, or buzzing.

A GFCI that will not reset may be worn out, wired wrong, or protecting a circuit with a real ground fault. McLeod Electric — Master Electrician #A 12769, Hanson, MA. Call (781) 447-6040. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergencies, call anytime.

A burning smell, a buzzing panel, or a warm outlet is not something to wait on. These are warning signs of overheating or a loose connection, and they can lead to a fire. Act right away.

What to do now

• If you smell burning or see smoke, turn off the breaker for that circuit if you can do so safely, and call an electrician immediately.
• If you see flames or heavy smoke, get everyone out and call 911 — do not stay to investigate.
• Unplug what is in a warm or scorched outlet, and do not use that outlet again until it has been checked.
• Do not remove the panel cover or touch wiring inside the panel.

What causes it

Loose connections, a worn-out breaker, an overloaded circuit, or damaged wiring can all overheat. The panel may buzz when a breaker is failing or a connection is arcing, and an outlet may feel warm when the connection behind it is loose.

If you notice any of these signs, call McLeod Electric right away — this is an emergency call, any time. McLeod Electric — Master Electrician #A 12769, Hanson, MA. Call (781) 447-6040. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergencies, call anytime.

One flickering light is usually a bulb or a fixture. Lights flickering all over the house is different — it points to a problem with the circuit, the panel, or the service coming into the home, and it should not be ignored.

What to notice

• Do the lights flicker when a large appliance — washer, dryer, air conditioner — starts up? That can mean the circuit or service is strained.
• Do they flicker in every room, or only on one circuit? Whole-house flickering is more serious.
• Is there any burning smell, buzzing at the panel, or a warm or discolored outlet? If so, treat it as urgent.

What not to do

Do not keep swapping bulbs and hoping it stops, and do not open the panel if anything smells hot or looks damaged. Loose connections can overheat and are a fire risk.

Whole-house flickering is a job for a licensed electrician, who can check connections, the panel, and the service. McLeod Electric — Master Electrician #A 12769, Hanson, MA. Call (781) 447-6040. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergencies, call anytime.

If half the house is dark but the rest is fine, the problem is usually inside your home — not a power outage on your street. Start by checking the obvious, safely.

Check these first

• Look at your panel. One tripped breaker often controls a whole room or a group of rooms. Reset it firmly — all the way OFF, then ON.
• Check whether a GFCI outlet has tripped. One tripped GFCI in a kitchen or bathroom can cut power to outlets downstream of it.
• Ask a neighbor if their power is out too. If the whole street is dark, it is a utility outage.

Call an electrician if

• Breakers trip again as soon as you reset them.
• You see or smell burning, or hear buzzing at the panel.
• Only some rooms work and the panel looks fine — that can mean a lost leg of power or a failing breaker, which needs a licensed electrician.

Do not open the panel cover or touch the main breaker if anything looks damaged or smells hot. McLeod Electric — Master Electrician #A 12769, Hanson, MA. Call (781) 447-6040. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergencies, call anytime.

A breaker that will not stay on is doing its job — it is tripping because something on that circuit is drawing too much current, or there is a fault. Do not hold it on or tape it in the on position.

Try this first

• Unplug or switch off what is on that circuit, especially space heaters, hair dryers, and other high-draw items.
• Push the breaker firmly all the way to OFF, then back to ON. A tripped breaker often sits in a middle position and needs a full reset.
• Plug things back in one at a time. If it trips again when one item is plugged in, that item — or that outlet — is the likely cause.

Call an electrician if

• The breaker trips again right away with nothing plugged in.
• The breaker, panel, or an outlet feels hot, smells like burning, or buzzes.
• The same breaker trips over and over.

That usually points to a short, a ground fault, a failing breaker, or a circuit that is overloaded and needs attention from a licensed electrician.

See our earlier post about this on Instagram: Breaker Won’t Reset on Instagram

McLeod Electric — Master Electrician #A 12769, Hanson, MA. Call (781) 447-6040. Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Emergencies, call anytime.