giddyap

Outdoor gfi outlet.
test/reset buttons push in, but dont seem to work or click.
Circuit tester/probe does not light when put in sockets, nor when outlet is pulled out and touched to wire terminals inside.
In basement, behind where outlet is, tucked awkwardly into the wall behind a high cabinet there is a light switch.
No breakers in panel are tripped.
I have only lived in this house for several months. I have not done any electrical work on this house.

dmclean701

No power is going to the GFI. Was it in use when tripped, or did you just discover it? Did you try the switch? Any other outlets not working? Are you sure the CB is not tripped? Just pushing the handle to "on" won't reset it, it must be moved to "off" and then back on.

giddyap

It was simply noticed.
Have never seen it operating.
Used switch. Doesnt seem to make any difference.
I will now flip every breaker to OFF and back to ON.

giddyap

Also, is it weird that when I pull out the receptacle there exist only two wires? They are connected, but only two. When I see instructions for replacing them it shows to be more complicated than just two wires.

dmclean701

If it is the end of the run there will be just a black and white wire hooked to the line side. Load side is to feed other receptacles down stream. If you have a ground it should also be attached.

dmxtothemax

if there's no power to the gfci ?
you will need to trace backwards and see where the power
is supposed to be coming from.
It could be on a switched line for instance.
Can you see what direction the cables go off on, behind the gfci ?
Then find the nearest switch / recepticule check behind it.
Are there any markings on your panel that might help ?
Could even be a loose splice.

joed

Look for other GFCIs somewhere. Possibly someone used more than one when they didn't need to. Look in place places around outside of house, in garage, basement, possibly even in bathroom.

curiousB

ditto. My bet a cascaded GFCI. Look for one upstream. My brother had one for all the outdoor outlets. It was inside a cupboard in his garage. Oh brother....

joed

They are often found in the garage behind the pile of stuff that never moves or the beer fridge.