My fiancée and I had recently bought a house this past fall, and being in the house with our first Christmas approaching I hung some exterior Christmas lights, not know that the ice dams on the edge of the house grow to very large.

Anyway one day I noticed that one outlet in the kitchen and the dining room outlets were not working, and I also noticed that the Christmas lights weren't turning on, I had them set on a timer. I had looked at the extension cord that the lights were plugged into and the water from the ice/snow melting on the roof had ran down to the connection of the two cords, the Christmas lights and the extension cord. I know the basics of outlets and how they work, but is there an easy fix to this or am I going to have to call an electrician.

Look for a GFI device that has tripped. It can be a circuit breaker, it will have colored reset button on the face.Or there is a GFI receptacle that needs resetting. These have a Test and Reset button on the face. GFI outlets can be found in kitchens, bathrooms, garage, basement, and outdoors.

Look for a GFI device that has tripped. It can be a circuit breaker, it will have colored reset button on the face.Or there is a GFI receptacle that needs resetting. These have a Test and Reset button on the face. GFI outlets can be found in kitchens, bathrooms, garage, basement, and outdoors.

So am I looking for a GFI on the same circuit as the other outlets? Because I am pretty sure that none of the outlets that are working have a GFI device.

I assumed you checked the circuit breakers. Keep in mind that often a breaker will be tripped, but not noticeable. If this or a GFI is not the problem, then there is a loose connection in the wiring. Each outlet and junction box will need to be opened looking for a bad connection. Or, and this is most likely, if the wire connections are the push in the back type, these are popular for loose connections. Check each pushed in wire by pulling out firmly. Change any to the wrap around the screw type connection.

Check each device also, and change any the connection damaged the plastic.