If you happen to smell a strange fishy smell inside your home, it could signify what’s for dinner that evening. However, save from that, it could be a harbinger of a hazardous problem.
One mom grew concerned over a fishy smell coming from her little boy’s room. After searching high and low in his room, she found the source of the foul odor. Electrical outlets can give off a particular order when they are melting on the inside.
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Damaged electrical outlets can smell like fish
When you notice a fishy smell taking over your home, the last person people think of calling is an electrician. A mom named Katie Rose first noticed the odor a few weeks ago in her son’s room. The smell was nearly unbearable and intense, and something had to be done immediately. When her son went to school, she turned over his room, searching high and low for where the smell could be coming from. However, she discovered no rotting food or dead animals. Not even a deep clean could rid his room of the scent, so Katie began searching the internet.
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After some googling, Katie discovered the shocking reason behind the mysterious fishy smell. After investigating further, she found the source of the stench was just as the website suggested; it was coming from an electrical outlet. Somewhere in that socket’s line, it was beginning to overheat, and the wires were melting. She quickly contacted an electrician who discovered a loose faulty wire.
Katie decided to share this information with her followers on Facebook. She even included a few pictures of the melting plugs for good measure.
“I am so glad I caught it before a fire started,” she concluded her post. “If you smell eggs it can be from a gas leak. If you smell fish it could be electrical. I did not know this.”
Life-saving electrical safety
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The smell of rotten eggs warns of a gas leak for many people. It usually requires decisive action as these leaks are linked to life-threatening repercussions when breathing in gas. However, a fishy smell inside your home is not very common, and unless you’re simply a vast seafood eater, the scent of fish should be pretty suspicious. But what does one do when confronted with a fish smell?
Who do you call?
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The first thing you should do is contact an electrician. The fish smell is a sure sign that the plastic inside the outlet is melting due to the heat. The plastic that’s used inside outlets is an electrical component called Bakelite.
The outlet could cause an electrical fire if it continues to melt down. Simon Williams from Phillip Services Ltd in Swansea said:
“It could cause an electrical fire long-term,” says Simon. “Obviously it’s a nuisance if your socket stopped working – but that’s not the end of the world, that could be repaired. But if parts of your home burned down, then it’s a different story.”
Why prevention is the best strategy
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The best strategy is to prevent this from happening altogether. For that, you may want to practice a few prevention practices.
First, ensure that you don’t pile too many appliances onto one electric outlet. Overloading these outleads can lead to overheating and will undoubtedly melt your wires.
Secondly, ensure you routinely check your outlets and all the plugs inserted.
Third, remove the plugs gently to prevent any damage that could cause the outlet to overheat. Never rip out a plug or push one in roughly.
Finally, if your house has not had any work done in quite some time, it’s very likely your electrical outlets are outdated. Make sure you replace old ones with new ones.
Check out this informative video below that features how to prevent electrical outlet fires.
Thanks for reading. Please be so kind as to pass this story along to your friends and family?
Sources:
- “Mom Warns Others About The Link Between A ‘Fishy Smell’ And Melting Electrical Outlets” Secretlifeofmom.
- “Mom Warns Others About The Link Between A ‘Fishy Smell’ And Melting Electrical Outlets.” Making Home. Lauren Kochanowski. July 17, 2019
- “5 electrical outlet safety tips every homeowner should know.” Fmins. Frankenmuth Insurance. November 24, 2020.
- “What to do if you notice fishy smell in your home – as it could be electrical fault.” Daily Record. Reem Ahmed & Lucy Farrel. May 4, 2022.
