Updating electrical recepticals
any ideas on how to update older polarized plugs to grounded? Fish from above or the try to do it along the baseboard? I tried to do a search and couldn’t find the appropriate threads. Thanks
any ideas on how to update older polarized plugs to grounded? Fish from above or the try to do it along the baseboard? I tried to do a search and couldn’t find the appropriate threads. Thanks
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Replies
I'm not an electrician, but, have asked this question of the local code inspector. He tells me that to ground an ungrounded receptacle, I must run the ground wire as part of the original bundle of wires, the hot and neutral. I say that's not practical, he says the codes make no allowance for economic considerations.
On other threads, I read that the best thing to do it to replace the most upstream receptacle in the circuit with a GFCI. That is permitted, but, you then use one of the labels to indicate that the outlet is not grounded, even though it has the three hole configuration. It will have the ground fault protection.
If you absolutely must have a grounded outlet, you might consider running a separate, grounded line to either an existing receptacle or a newly installed one. A run to an existing receptacle means you would use the box as a junction for the pass through wires as well as for the new Romex. Make sure your box is big enough to accomodate any new wires.
Bob
are you sure there is no ground?
my house was bult ~1960
the boxes are metal and the ground was connected to the box. not visible from outside the wall. Knew this because could see the ground wire in the light boxes in the attic.
so while I had 2 wire recepticles the boxes were grounded.
bobl Volo Non Voleo
Not enough info. What type of wire if it is? BX Cable with metal box you can ground it with a pig tail from the outlet to the box not perfect and may not be code but better then nothing. If post and tube nothing can be done except new wire to be grounded but Bob is right you can put in a GFI it won't be grounded but it would cut out if something goes wrong and the circuit goes to ground. To do this I think you need an GFI at each outlet with out the ground they can not be interconnected with other outlets down stream but I could be wrong>
As Bobl pointed out some boxes might be grounded. That would be the case if the wire was run in conduit or BX cable was used. Some areas required the use of those materials (and a few sill do) instead of romex.
And there might have been a conversion period where grounded Romex was available but the actual outlets where not or even some backwards code version/interpretation that prohibited the grounded outlets, but the electrican ran the grounding romex for the future.
But in most cases you won't have a ground in the box.
You have several choices.
1) run a new cable with ground. And there are a million different ways of doing this. It all DEPENDS. You can go up from the craw space, down from the attic, sideways with a little DW patching, sideways behing baseboards (with approprate nail protection) or even on the surface with wiremold. On the FHB web site free articles they some examples of this.
2) Run a SEPARATE GROUND wire. The code specifically allows this, however some local codes might prohibit it and even it is not prohibited some inspectors might not accept it and then you would get into a battel over it. So check first. That ground wire much run back to the ground bus in the pannel or to another box where it connects to a ground wire that goes back to the pannel. DO NOT RUN IT TO A WATER PIPE WHICH WAS COMMON PRACTICE IN THE PAST.
3) Install GFCI recptacles or breaker. They can also feed downstream recptacles and they give similar, and in some cases better personal protection, as a grounded outlet. But the recptacle needs to be labeled that it is not grounded. Most GFCI's come with such labels and in most cases the labels are just thrown away.
But do not use a GFCI on a refigerator, freezer, sump pump, or similar equipment that will cause problems if you have a false trip.
The only real prolbem with using the GFCI in place of a true grounded outlet is for surge protection used with computers and TV's. The surge protectors need a true ground for maximum protection. However, one solution would be to install a whole house surge protector at the pannel.