# Peeing in an electrical outlet



## trickyspark (Aug 16, 2008)

One of my kitties decided to pee in the outlet today...the outlet began smoking. 

Shut power off, cleaned it up. This is the first time it ever happened...question is:

Are there any outlets that are safe to be peed on? I am not always home, and cannot cover every outlet, nor disconnect all power to the house each time I leave. Kitty is fine, no UTI, hasn't done it anywhere else again, but now I am paranoid.


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## Emph66 (Mar 28, 2013)

A GFCI (ground fault circuit interrupter) safety outlet may be a solution, they cost from $6.50 to 9:99 each. In the event of a fault the circuit breaker on the outlet would trip, shutting off the power at the outlet. The outlet circuit breaker can be reset by just pushing the red button. The are not too difficult to install but I would recommend an electrician or someone knowledgeable with wiring to perform the install.


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## Cat'sHouse (Apr 5, 2012)

water and electricity never mix well. Lucky the cat is still alive. If it started smoking then the 'hot' wire was grounded to metal and shorted out. The breaker should have tripped or if a fuse, that should have blown. You need to remove the cover plate with the circuit off and look to see if the outlet shows signs of melting. I would change it out regardless...smoking means something got hot in there.

They have small plastic caps that go into each outlet to cover them so children can't insert something in there. One side is neutral and one is 120v so if a child puts something metal in there, they can be shocked easily or electrocuted. A hardware store carries those childproof caps.

Why the outlet? Only that one? There must be some product (or bleach) that will keep them away from that spot?

GFI's are not all that easy to install and they need a ground wire to work....might be overkill as replacing the outlet and using the covers would be a lot cheaper. I/m guessing this will not be a regular habit?


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## jusjim (Jun 30, 2009)

I think there are child safe outllet plugs. It might be worth checking around. Until you find out, a strip of duct tape might form a seal.

And thinking as I type, maybe an unatached plug would seal it against further flood.

Yes! Google or Bing "Chilld safe electical outlet plugs".


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