How to Wire an Outlet
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- Опубліковано 28 сер 2024
- In this video, Chris shows 3 different ways to wire an outlet, including the "wrong" way.
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I have a handy dad. It's the greatest thing ever. Everybody needs a handy dad.
Thanks 😊
I very much appreciate gave me more confidence for my DIY , thank you pops!
Glad it was helpful 👍🏻
This will be a nice reference playlist for DIY’s. Great work!
Thanks so much 😊
So much information in a short clip. Well done and thank you.
Glad it was helpful 👍🏻
Just found your channel and i like the way you go out of your way to not just explain but to give your own experience. Very helpfull!!!!
Thanks. I’m not a trained electrician so my experience is all I have to share.
It has been said in the comments already, but I will repeat it here: backstab connections ALWAYS work loose eventually...the only variable is how many years go by before they do. Any contractor I hire that is caught doing this is fired immediately, and a new contractor hired (and warned not to do this). The only exception is to tap a light circuit from the backstabs; that way, when (not if) these connections begin to fail, you will get a very noticeable signal (intermittent lights). As a matter of fact, all the receptacles I see in the stores around here will ONLY accept 14 gauge wire in the backstabs, which tells you they are for lighting taps only. Stay safe - do things the right way!
Thanks for the advice
Thanks to your videos, I will be using pigtails, they appear to be the safest way.
Glad it was helpful 👍🏻
Thanks for the detailed video. I will comment regarding the pigtail debate for once more, and about those electricians you speak of who do big projects and want to "finish" the job quickly. Of course they are not going to take the extra step for extra step means extra time for the job. I get it. But in the other video, when I mentioned it, it was because you are showing it on your video to the average homeowners who have time to do the better practice. So it is great that you did here and showed both, however a lot would look -unfortunately- to your content and try to copy it. I am not saying it is a bad practice to connect through the screw, i am just saying it is poor practice vs the pigtail choice. Either way, I love the way you explain things. Definitely worthy of an actual TV show. Not many has that skill of "explaining". Cheers~
There is no lack of opinions on the Internet. If I say, “do it like this”, I’ll get 100 people telling me I’m wrong.
@@handydadtv I am not going to argue that. LOL
Several great tips here, thanks for making this video!
Glad it was helpful 👍🏻
This is precisely the video that I was looking for! Thank you
My pleasure
Thank Chris for another very informative video. This will be very helpful to refer too if I need to do any outlet work. I’m also going to forward this to friends of ours who have been wanting to do outlet work in their garage.
Thanks. Many more on the way.
I sure wish I could give this video more than one thumbs up...
I'm looking to add LED lighting under kitchen cabinets. How can I add an outlet inside the cabinets that can tap on to an outlet I have outside the cabinet so I can connect the LED lights to the inside one?...
Thanks! If you’re talking about lighting upper cabinets, I recommend putting the outlet above the top of the cabinet. ua-cam.com/video/BU5Yjy5GrGg/v-deo.html
Thanks. Very nice video and description. Like you mentioned in the end, electrician like using back stab and no pigtail. I swapped 5 outlets yesterday and it has the same issue. I ended up wiring without pigtail on outlet which will be barely used in the future. I am thinking it will be fine. But for the one I am always using, I probably will do pigtail.
Good plan 👍🏻
Thanks for sharing, I'd learned a lot from your video.
Glad it was helpful
Here is the problem using the back stab method. Over time, the wires heat and cool, which makes them stretch. That causes the wire to work themselves loose, and they can and do pull out, which then leads to arcing, loss of power, and if you're really lucky, you get fire inside your wall. So wrap your wires around the screw and then wrap black tape to cover all the screws. ( Consider the tape as insurance. You probably never need it, but you are sure glad you have it in case you do)
Thanks for the advice
Do tell. How is it that the wago’s that just about everyone is using now, is any more safe than the back stab method, which is essentially the same type of connection….
@@jamesbizs wagos work by lever compression, not spring compression.
I was trying to figure out why they will work themselves lose out of the backstab method if they're just sitting in a box bolted into the wall and not moving? And I'm not trying to be funny it's just a question
Wires get warm depending on the amount of current flowing through them. So they expand and contract normally and that can loosen the connection.
Awesome video Thanks for sharing. You make it sound so easy. Thanks.
My pleasure
I’ve always used the screw to hold the wire ever since my old house about burned down. Whoever did the wiring ran it through the back stab and it was able to slip out. Checked a few others and they was not seated fully inside. Definitely recommend using the screws.
Oh my! Did the outlet melt or burn? Do you have pictures?
@@handydadtv when I noticed it the outlet was actively melting. The back of it was burned when I got it out of the wall. I don’t have any pictures.
Edit: it happened late at night and I would’ve never seen it if I didn’t go to get a drink.
Great channel, great teacher. Subscribed
Thanks for subscribing! Welcome to the family!
I went to add a plug to my sunroom and theres a plug in living room i can jump from theres power in and what i think is power up to a switch? Can i pigtail the 2 blacks and 2 whites together tie th into top screw on the plug then jump the new plug from the bottom screws?
Sounds like you know what you’re doing.
So thats a yes lol
As always great content! I have a gfci outlet that I want to add to my garage. I have outlet that’s on the other side of garage wall but not sure it’s the first line coming from panel. So my question is how do I find the first outlet so I replace it with the gfci. Thanks. I guess anyone who’s know could answer my question.
Garage outlets are usually GFCI protected. I use a tester in this video ua-cam.com/video/dbmRETinw0A/v-deo.html that can test if any outlet is GFCI protected. Try that first.
If it’s not GFCI protected already, the best way to trace a circuit is with a cheap tool from Harbor Freight, as shown in this video ua-cam.com/video/UAEq-yvjryQ/v-deo.html. Beware: the circuit breaker must be off to use it.
If your receptacles are wired from one receptacle to the next (using both sets of screws) you would disconnect the downstream ones, one receptacle at a time until all the other receptacles are out. The one that still live will be the first one. If all your receptacles are pigtailed, you would have to undo the pigtails and recreate the original scenario. If your pigtails were created using Wago's you may want to try if you're ambitious. If the pigtails were created using wire nuts, then I wouldn't attempt it.
Pick the one that is most likely to problematic as far as getting wet is concerned and put a GFCI there. No downstream receptacles will be protected. That's what I would do.
Thanks a lot for the video. Any plans to release one explaining how to create such a simulation board for us DIYers to play at home?
😂 nobody would watch that
I don't recommend pigtails because they're not as secure as hooking up all five wires only the ground gets pigtailed
I get tons of comments saying pigtails are better. Both are acceptable.
@@handydadtv I know the debate on pigtails versus attaching all 5 wires but the reason I'm letting you know this is because I have had pigtails vibrate loose and cause shorts now the resepticals are designed to have all 5 wires attached if you have power coming in and power going out they don't give you two extra screws for nothing the only wire that you have to pigtail is the ground and also make sure you are using tamper resistant resepticals because that is code now days part of this is my opinion by the way I do really like your channel and I am subscribing right now
Thanks for subscribing! Welcome to the family! And thanks for the input.
Pigtails are way to go. If not your using outlets like wire it’s wire nuts.
If 5 outlets on 20A circuit, each outlet has a 3A load the first outlet has 15A flowing through it. If pigtails used same scenario, the outlet in use has 3A through it and others have none
Nice vid.
For me, I hate using pig tails as that is that much more wire to cram into a receptacle.
It's more effort and time (I'm not a trade electrician), but I feel more comfort not having a bunch of wire crammed in the box.
That, and I have zero faith in wire nuts. I hate the bloody things. I know they have their place and purpose, but I've seen a few fires over the years from them being misused, or poorly implemented.
Thanks for the feedback
Pls teach how to convert regular light into Led retrofit
I’ll add it to my list.
Good info.
Thanks
Well shown, thank you...
Appreciate it 👍🏻
You joined two Black wires onto a pig tail. Doesn’t it matter whether you connect to a Load or Line side on the brass screws
Only GFCI outlets have Line and Load. Normal outlets don’t.
Thanks for the video! btw - all the receptacles in my house are 15 y.o. and were backstabbed by the builder and I have a problem to release them and have to cut wires, which makes me doubtful they are gonna loosen themselves plus there's nowhere to go inside a box.
Hope they left you enough wire.
My question to you Chris is instead of using electric tape to wrap the screws would liquid tape work just as well?
I never tried
I'm no professional so I guess that's why I use the back stab method... but Question can it only be used for 14 awg wiring? not 12 awg? I would imagine the 20 amp receptacles would allow for the bigger wire size?
I don’t recommend back stabbing, but it only works with 14 awg wire. I’ve never seen a 20 amp receptacle with back stabs.
Thank you.
My pleasure
no backstabs..become faulty after age..just experienced that on an older house..backstabs failed
I don’t recommend using them.
Scenario. I have a plug that I want to run an outlet on the other side of the wall from. It's in the middle of the run, so there are already 2 blacks, whites, grounds coming into that outlet. Can I put a third (to the new outlet), and pigtail back to the original, or should I somehow remove the outgoing line and run it on the outgoing of the new receptacle? (Connecting the outgoing from original to incoming of new, then "old" outgoing into outgoing of new receptacle).
Does that make sense?
Yes makes sense. I did the same thing here: ua-cam.com/video/klL8XhKMNT8/v-deo.html
My house is wired with 12 gauge wire. It’s very difficult to get under the screws. What’s the solution?
Needle nose pliers.
omg I was this a video of what not to do then he said now lets do it the right way,
👍🏻
Lol tighter connection? Looked like you had trouble removing the wire, when you were TRYING to.
Go figure
Can I use wago 221 clips for the ground connection?
Absolutely
@HandyDadTV thank you! I had a couple more questions I was hoping you might be able to answer. I'm replacing a small forced air wall heater (which never had issues, just 30 years old) with a new convector style with built in thermostat. I removed the old wall thermostat and was going to connect the wires, but the ground wires coming from each romex are only connected to the metal box and not to each other. What should I do? Leave as is or connect the grounds and the box? Also curious to know, in an outlet installation, what would happen if a metal box was not grounded, but the outlet was? Can you get shocked from touching the box?
Sounds like you already know the right thing to do: All grounds need to be connected and pigtailed to the outlet. If you have a metal box, it needs to be bonded to ground with a screw (no need for a dedicated pigtail; just loop one of the wires around the screw).
If the outlet is grounded but the metal box is not, this is a code violation because the box isn’t grounded if you remove the outlet.
@HandyDadTV I finally got everything connected, but as I was turning the breaker on, I heard a very loud buzz, and immediately turned it off. I checked my connections, and one of the copper ground wire connections turned black. Any idea what I did wrong?
That’s called a short circuit. The ground wire touched a hot wire.
Please call an electrician.
What if the out let has only 2 wires? No ground wire
You can only install a 2-prong outlet unless you run a ground wire.
why are there 2 bronze screws and 2 silver screws? thanx
The chrome screws are for the white wires. The brass screws are darker - they’re for the black wires.
@@handydadtv yeah but why are there 2.
So you can split them and switch half.
As I'm struggling (now), to pack the 12/2, wire into the (2 gang) box...(ugh) Someone aught to put out a video of "how to stuff 5lbs of "wire" into a 1lb box! Jesus! (WTF). Think now electricians make $100 an hour because of their patients! I'm using a carpenter pencil to ("gently" as possible), but dam!
If it’s too tight, the box is likely too small. Code has rules for box sizes based on the devices and wires in them. Consider replacing the box with an extra deep one.
Nope, standard 4" × 4" x 3" deep. #12 wire is just stiff, and dimmer switch, & decore outlet are bulky. I got-er-done, but took time.
BOTH...
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