Electrical outlet melted why

Loosening is just one problem; regular use can see insulation damage and cause short-circuiting. With the advancement of technology, newer and safer electrical designs are in the market, making the old ones outdated. Your electrical installations may be old and inefficient enough to support new loads. All these can increase the risk of malfunctioning of the wires and electrical fire by melted outlets.

Electrical circuits are designed to run a certain amount of electricity through it. Overloading occurs when the circuit runs more electricity than it can handle. These usually happen when you plug in several devices at a time which collectively draw more electricity.

For safety, there are circuits breakers that can trip whenever there is an exceeding demand for electricity. But, when there are no breakers, such as in the case of older homes, overloading can overheat the wires and eventually ignites or melts the electrical outlet.

Circuit overloading can thus be dangerous enough to cause an electrical fire hazard. Inadvertent contact between the conductor and the grounding wire or grounding portion of the equipment is known as a ground fault. Apparently, during the fault, the electricity runs through the grounding system, any equipment, or person who is in contact with the electrical system, instead of the designated path. Damaged insulation, moisture, and dusty environment increase the chance of ground fault.

The main danger that can arise due to a ground fault is an electrical shock but, it can send a surge that can produce enough heat to melt the electrical outlet, even if the circuit breaker trips.

When electrical current breaks lose, it jumps a gap in a circuit and discharges to produce a flash called arching. It can generally happen due to overloading, faulty equipment, damaged wiring, and improper terminal connections.

A loose connection can overheat the wires and damage the circuit breaker. Instead of tripping, the circuit breaker can let electricity flow. As arcing produces flashes, it can melt the wires and the electrical outlet leading to greater damage. Electricity flows in a specified path through a closed circuit.

Rather than going through the ideal path which offers more resistance, when the current flow completes its journey through a shorter path, it is called a short circuit. Readable Font. Choose color black white green blue red orange yellow navi. Underline links. Highlight Links. Clear cookies. Images Greyscale. Invert Colors. Remove Animations. Any chance of a short in it's power cable?

Good luck, be safe. Turn off the breaker and pull the socket out of the wall. Check all the connections where the wire is connected to the socket. You may also want to check the male plug for loose connections if possible. Most often a hot plugis going to be the result of lose contacts of a poor connection.

I have seen things catch on fire this way, and once it goes down this road, it only gets worse if it's not repaired promptly. Don't burn down your house. Call an electrician if necessary. Thanks for the replies. I'll try to find out what gauge and what kind of wiring is in the apartment. My ballast however I don't think it's malfunctioning.

At my previous apartment I had a different actual ballast, but it was identical to it in every way. It runs spectacularly cool. I don't even have to put it on anything but the carpet, it's so mild. No abberations of fuckups in the wiring connected to either side of the ballast. The fact that this happened in a newer apartment as well though is what puzzles me. I spent a lot of money on this ballast, a Lumatek dimmable 4 setting w digital and I know it's pretty nice.

And it runs pretty cool. For what it's worth I'm just running one Hydrofarm 8" radiant. Turn it off and call an electrician. Nothing is worth a house fire. Red Well-Known Member. You already stated that the ballast melted the sockets in your old apartment. Only that it took longer. Sounds funny to me. Sounds like we have different meanings for what a "single circuit dual outlet" is.