Patio outlet quit working.

[Jim Dunham]

Back patio outlet and switch just quit working. Outlet has 36V and switch has 0V. All other outlets on circuit work and measure 120V. Circuit breakers not tripping and measure 120V. Rat maybe ate through in attic? All connections are tight. Bought me outlet and switch. Any thoughts appreciated.
Jim

 

[Carolina]

Hi. I reckon this is an american installation and that you're using a multimeter to measure these voltages. What does live to earth read?

If the breaker is sending 120V and only a fraction is hitting the socket then there must be a problem with the wiring: a bare wire making contact with ground, a loose or damaged splice... T&E isn't common -or allowed as fixed mains wiring- where I live but in order to know why it's failing I'd first search for junction boxes and check everything's in order there.

Does the socket work if you wire the live wire from the switch to it? and the other way around, the switch using the live from the socket, don't connect the white wire from the socket to the switch as you'll create a short.