ELECTRICAL FIRE Danger ----------- HELP///?!?!?!?!?!?

Question

I was in the shower okay, I heard the fire alarm go off, didnt think much of it, because it always used to go off (we got it fixed now)...I get out of the shower, and my room smells like burned rubber and plastic, and I'm thinking that is the cause that set the alarm of, now I'm thinking it could of been an electrical fire? but nothing is burned, and the smell is long gone, all the currents seem fine, and not burned, I checked all of them, my windows are open, could something form the outside come into my room and be strong enough to set the fire alarm off? or was it an electrical fire??? I'm scared to go to sleep, what should I do?!?!?!?

Answer 1

Highly unlikely that something could come in through your window and set off your smoke alarm.. It is possible, but not likely.

If you are smelling that electrical fire smell, something should be malfunctioning...but not necessarily.

I would certainly call an electrician to analyze your house... Hopefully you get lucky and get an honest one.  But you certainly need someone to come out and take a look as you could have a serious situation on your hands.  

Get an electrician and don't tell them the problem...tell them you just want a check up.  This way they don't have something they can play off to get you to cough up big bucks.

Good luck, hope it works out for you!

Answer 2

That is DANGEROUS!!!

It's probably a faulty plug, or power strip, but there's no way to know for sure.

Yes, I'd unplug everything.

Power strips do not last forever, and they should be replaced every few years.

If you have a bunch of stuff plugged into an extension cord, or power strip, or wall plug, STOP DOING THAT!

There is a max of what can be plugged into any one circuit, and going over this is the reason a LOT of houses burn down and people die.

You should call your fire department and tell them this,

They might even send someone over to look things over for you, to make sure you're not going to have a house fire.

Answer 3

Electrical fires start with arcing due to a bad connection, nail in the wire, or too much draw on that circuit and no breaker trip. An electrician can pin point the problem with a volt meter. However an electrician charges by the hour so be up front and informative. You can rest easier by having arc fault breakers installed in your panel. These will sense arching behind the walls and trip out the circuit. However this is some what  new and the cost is up there for this breaker. Call an electrician but monitor the room often till a professional can get there and look at it.

Answer 4

These answers seem like excellent advice. We had a friend in the fire department years ago.He said that a fire inside your walls can go undetected at first, and can spread even through something as small as a nail hole to break out elsewhere in the house. So I am glad you were concerned enough to do something! Make sure those smoke alarms are fully operable at all times and that you will be able to hear them. Have an evacuation/exit plan and make sure everyone in the home knows the drill. Take care an all the best..

Answer 5

Call the fire department.

Explain to them your concern, and ask them to send someone over to check out the place.

Electrical fires can smolder behind walls, or above ceilings for quite some time, before breaking out into open flames... but the structure is burned none the less, for the fact it is burned slowly.

Burned rubber and plastic are very distinct smells, and you should have it checked out.  EVEN IF something from outside was the source, the fire department needs to be aware of a potential danger.

IF everything checks out ok, then have an electrician scheduled to check things out.

Good Luck