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Old 04-15-2022, 04:06 PM   #1
Dilly541
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Electrical outlet dead...advice needed

I have one single outlet at the back wall of my trailer that is wonkey.

It is the one circled in red. I probed it but got no voltage so I removed it from the wall. The box seems fine and the wires were all in firmly. I cut it and bared the white and black wires and tested them with a meter. Strangely, I got 1.6V ac at that location. All the other recepticals show 119.7V

When I flip the breaker in the picture (rec/con), the voltage drops to zero.

Anyone have any idea what or where the issue is?
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Old 04-15-2022, 04:09 PM   #2
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If that is the last outlet in a chain of outlets then I would go to the one right before it…that one likely has loose wires or wire pulled out/bad receptacle.

You may have a hot wire and lost the neutral side at the outlet before it…turn the breaker off and see if the outlet on the left goes out also..that’s the one I would suspect is the issue
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Old 04-15-2022, 04:24 PM   #3
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Good thinking. That one on the left is on a different circuit that’s protected by a GFI. I will see what I can find along the wall on the right.
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Old 04-15-2022, 06:08 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dilly541 View Post
I have one single outlet at the back wall of my trailer that is wonkey.

It is the one circled in red. I probed it but got no voltage so I removed it from the wall. The box seems fine and the wires were all in firmly. I cut it and bared the white and black wires and tested them with a meter. Strangely, I got 1.6V ac at that location. All the other recepticals show 119.7V

When I flip the breaker in the picture (rec/con), the voltage drops to zero.

Anyone have any idea what or where the issue is?
At your dead outlet try measuring from black to ground wire. Should the reading be 120VAC then you'll be looking for an open neutral. I would be inclined as a first step to remave the cover at the breaker panel and verify that all of the white wires on the neutral bus are firmly anchored. Every year before first trip I check all of the connections in the distribution panel neutrals, hots and grounds given all the vibration that trailers are subject to, it's not unheard of for wires to vibrate lose or even snap off.
Good luck
Cheers
Gord
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Old 04-15-2022, 07:47 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by Dilly541 View Post
I cut it and bared the white and black wires and tested them with a meter. Strangely, I got 1.6V ac at that location.
Small AC readings on an outlet are typically noise and drawdowns generated by appliances on the same circuit when one conductor has become disconnected to that outlet. Someone else suggested an open neutral, which is consistent. It's also possible for black to be open, and you are seeing the neutral rise up slightly due to power that some other appliance is passing back through it.

If you already know what breaker controls it, turn that breaker off and run through all your outlets with a lamp or tester, to identify which ones share the breaker. Don't forget behind the fridge, outdoor kitchens, etc. Locate the closest outlet to the wonky one, and odds are that's the one with the loose conductor.
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Old 04-23-2022, 10:00 AM   #6
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Thanks again to everyone who provided advice. I went to a nearby outlet thinking it was the one that fed my dead recepticle, but it was not to be. I ended up putting a tone generator on the circuit and traced it to an obscure outlet behind the fridge. Once I cleaned the insulation off the wires and made sure there was good contact, it came back to life again!
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Old 04-23-2022, 01:48 PM   #7
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Luvz my toner. But I recommend it much more seldom than I'd like because so few DIYers have them.
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