Signs of an electrical fire hazard at home

A burning or plastic smell

A smell unlike anything you know in the house deserves to be taken seriously. The Québec government lists an unusual smell among the cases where you should always call a master electrician.

The smell of hot plastic is a specific sign. In a notice on aluminum wire connections, Ontario’s Electrical Safety Authority lists the smell of hot plastic insulation among the clues of a connection that is overheating.

Look for where it comes from, without opening anything: an outlet, a switch, a plugged-in appliance, the panel. If you find the outlet or the appliance, stop using it and switch off its breaker if you can find it.

If it comes from the panel, don’t touch the breaker at fault: switch off the main breaker if you can do it without risk, move away and call us.

What is not a danger sign: the user guide for Stelpro’s BA series baseboard heaters says that at initial start-up, or after a long period unused, a smell and a thin whitish smoke are normal and temporary. For another model, see that manufacturer’s guide. A smell that lasts is not: our guide Baseboard heater not working covers it.

A hot or discoloured outlet, switch or cover plate

An outlet or a plug should not get hot. According to Ontario’s Electrical Safety Authority, an overheated plug or outlet indicates an overloaded circuit or a wiring or equipment problem, with a risk of electrical shock or fire.

The same source lists, in its notice on aluminum connections, warm cover plates and discoloured switches or receptacles. A discoloured or blackened cover plate should therefore be checked.

An outlet or switch that is hot, blackened or sizzling is no longer used: switch off its breaker if you can find it, then call.

The panel can heat up too. The Québec government is clear: if your electrical panel gives off abnormal heat, contact a master electrician. Its protective cover must stay in place.

Covers of outlets, switches and junction boxes are replaced as soon as they are damaged, according to the same website.

The causes of a hot outlet, and why it can stop working, are in our guide Outlet not working: what to check.

Sparks, sizzling, buzzing

Sparks at an outlet or in the panel are among the signs that call for a call right away. A spark is an electrical arc, which the Québec government defines as the visible passage of an electric current.

Ontario’s Electrical Safety Authority lists signs of arcing inside switches and receptacles among the signs of a failing connection.

Sizzling you can hear near an outlet, a switch or the panel is a sign of the same kind: it is one of the cases where you call an electrician without waiting.

A panel can give off a slight hum, and that is not necessarily serious. Sizzling, a smell or a panel door that is hot to the touch is: somewhere, a connection is arcing.

Sizzling or buzzing in the panel, sparks at an outlet or in the panel, a bare wire: these situations call for an immediate call, without waiting until the next day.

Flickering lights

A single flickering light can come from the bulb or the dimmer. The whole house flickering at the same time, or bulbs brighter than usual, is an emergency.

The full check, from the bulb to the service entrance, is in our guide Lights flickering in the house: when it’s urgent.

A breaker that keeps tripping

A tripping breaker is doing its job: it cuts the power when faced with an overload or a fault. But according to Ontario’s Electrical Safety Authority, circuits that trip often can indicate an overload or a wiring problem, with a risk of shock or fire.

A breaker that trips again as soon as it is reset, or that is hot to the touch, is not reset over and over: the causes and the right steps are in our guide Breaker keeps tripping: causes and what to do.

Winter: extension cords, power strips and space heaters

In winter, we plug in more devices, often anywhere. Here are the Québec government’s instructions.

• An extension cord is a temporary solution. If you need one permanently, have additional outlets installed by a master electrician instead.
• A damaged extension cord, or one that gives off heat, gets replaced.
• A coiled extension cord heats up at the core of the coil: its protective sheath can be damaged and cause an electrical arc.
• Power strips are for low-consumption devices only, like a table lamp, a radio or an alarm clock.
• A space heater plugs directly into an outlet, never into an extension cord, with at least 1 metre of clear space around it. It is not for continuous use.
• If a fuse blows, check whether too many appliances are plugged into the same circuit.

A frayed or damaged wire can start a fire, Québec’s Ministère de la Sécurité publique points out: a damaged extension cord gets replaced.

What to do right away

Faced with a sign with no smoke or flames, in this order:

1. Stop using the outlet, switch or appliance at fault, and switch off its breaker if you can find it.
2. If the smell, heat or sizzling comes from the panel, or if you don’t know where it comes from: switch off the main breaker if you can do it without risk, and move away.
3. Call us at 438 542-7304, 24 hours a day. A master electrician reaches your home in 90 minutes or less, anywhere in our service area.

With smoke or flames, the order changes:

1. Get out of the house and go to your meeting point.
2. Dial 911.
3. Never go back inside, even to save a person or an animal or to get your belongings.

If the fire is spreading or there is heavy smoke, the Québec government says to evacuate the house immediately and dial 911. Even a fire that seems to be out calls for 911: it may have spread inside the walls.

In Québec, repairing an electrical installation, after one of these signs as at any time, is a master electrician’s job.

Smoke alarms

Québec’s Ministère de la Sécurité publique asks for at least one smoke alarm per floor, basement included, and for checking that it works, and its batteries, at least twice a year by pressing the test button.

It also asks that the alarm be replaced 10 years after the date shown on the unit, and recommends a photoelectric model, which sets off fewer false alarms.

A hardwired alarm is connected to 120 V power; it cannot be replaced with a battery model. According to the Government of Québec, hardwired alarms should be interconnected, so they all sound together.

Everything about installing and replacing them is in our guide Hardwired smoke detectors: what you need.

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