Warning: Black smoke should never come out of your electrical outlets

That happened to my best friend and his wife a few weeks ago. A lightning strike or power surge caused electrical wires to melt and smolder in their attic. This led to fuming outlets reminiscent of the Smoke Monster on Lost.

Fortunately there were no flames and firefighters prevented any serious damage from happening, but the home’s 50-year-old electrical system needed to be replaced.

Luckily, a thoughtful person (me) gave them an Angie’s List membership for Christmas.

Once the smoke settled and my friend and his wife were safely lodged at an extended-stay hotel, they logged into the List and found a highly rated electrician to bring power back to their dormant home.

It took a few weeks, but my friend and his wife are back in their newly rewired house with the peace of mind that smoke won’t be coming out of their outlets any time soon.