Comeback: new outlet is browning again
2017 fifth wheel, 50A service, RV-style outlets that clamp onto the wire without stripping it. 50A shore
Customer says: The outlet by the recliner turned brown and smelled hot. Another shop replaced it three weeks ago. Now the new one is turning brown too. We run a space heater on it in the evenings.
The faceplate around the wide (neutral) slot is tan. The heater is labeled 1,500 W.
Tests you can run
- Read the other shop's invoice
- Clamp amps on the heater cord
- Volts at the outlet with nothing plugged in
- Heater in one half of the outlet, volts at the other half
- Heater still running: volts at the outlet that feeds this one
- Heater running: drop on the hot side and on the neutral side between the two outlets, with a long test lead
- Infrared on both outlet faces after 10 minutes of heater
- Breaker off, verify dead, then pull the browned outlet and look
- Pull the outlet out of the wall with the heater running to watch the connection
- Replace the outlet again