On the off-chance that it’s not the electrical outlet but rather a burnt-out light bulb that is the problem, plug something else into the same outlet, such as a blow dryer or a cell phone charger.

When you see an upside-down wall outlet, your first thought might be that's it's somebody's quirky preference. However, there's actually a defined reason.

The fire burned the outlet, the wires and plugs that were plugged into it, and the fire extended into the wall space behind ...