Top 10 Electrical Mistakes
Jan 21, 2021 07:31:41 #
Every day, Family Handyman sends me instructions for how to live my life. The one they sent today made me laugh - Electrical Mistakes. I thought the picture accompanying it was funny.
Here's how I saw that picture: "Electricity will not flow to your device unless the plug is actually inserted into the outlet."
Yes, the article did comment on the outlet being too far back - away from the wall plate.
Here's how I saw that picture: "Electricity will not flow to your device unless the plug is actually inserted into the outlet."
Yes, the article did comment on the outlet being too far back - away from the wall plate.
Jan 21, 2021 07:35:33 #
Jan 21, 2021 07:44:27 #
The problem in the photo is that since the outlet is too far back, the screw holding the wall plate has broken the plastic wall plate by bending it too much.
Jan 21, 2021 10:25:10 #
DirtFarmer wrote:
The problem in the photo is that since the outlet is too far back, the screw holding the wall plate has broken the plastic wall plate by bending it too much.
Right, and as a solution, they show those little spacers you can use between the outlet and the box.
Jan 21, 2021 11:15:15 #
jerryc41 wrote:
Right, and as a solution, they show those little spacers you can use between the outlet and the box.
All the outlets I have bought in the last decade or two have those little spacers included. You just break them off the corners and put them on the screw that holds the outlet onto the box.
Jan 21, 2021 11:58:49 #
DirtFarmer wrote:
All the outlets I have bought in the last decade or two have those little spacers included. You just break them off the corners and put them on the screw that holds the outlet onto the box.
Right, but these are thick spacers. There are different kinds.
https://smile.amazon.com/Gardner-Bender-GSP-04-Electrical-Receptical/dp/B000BQK0FS/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=electric+outlet+spacers&qid=1611248154&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFHME5SUUUwVUVLREkmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA2NTczNDcyT1dETFpVQVE0VTRDJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA5NTQxNzcxRTJOWklMRTQwOU5IJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==
Jan 21, 2021 12:33:27 #
You might think "Why wasn't the box installed at the right depth in the first place?"
The answer is that sometimes a wall is repaired or reconstructed and comes out thicker. Sometimes you just don't have time to remount all the boxes (or the electrical work is being done by someone other than the carpenter who re-installs the wall).
The answer is that sometimes a wall is repaired or reconstructed and comes out thicker. Sometimes you just don't have time to remount all the boxes (or the electrical work is being done by someone other than the carpenter who re-installs the wall).
Jan 22, 2021 17:08:21 #
rick_n_wv
Loc: Charleston WV
There is another problem. As far as saftey goes it is potentially bigger than a cracked plate or the outlet to far back. The plug itself is upside down. Not sure if it is code but it is "best practice." The logic is that something falling has much less chance of shorting because round hole is the ground.
Jan 22, 2021 22:17:14 #
rick_n_wv wrote:
There is another problem. As far as saftey goes it is potentially bigger than a cracked plate or the outlet to far back. The plug itself is upside down. Not sure if it is code but it is "best practice." The logic is that something falling has much less chance of shorting because round hole is the ground.
Perhaps the picture is from Canada that is the standard orientation for plugs in Canada whereas the US is the opposite, it’s not code they can go either way.
Jan 22, 2021 22:40:46 #
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