Swingerhead
Premium
join:2004-04-06
Richmond, VA
 ·Verizon FIOS
 ·Comcast
| New electrical outlets. Jam in hole or wrap around screw
Ive been installing new outlets in my 1984 house. The new outlets from Lowes have a hole in the back that you can just jam the wire in and it holds.
Ive mentioned this to a friend whos an electrician and he about flipped out saying those arent safe and that I need to go back and wrap the wire around the screws on the side.
I cant imagine that they make these things and then not be safe. Is there maybe more of a chance of a fire with it that way or some other reasoning that he may have to not use the jam in the hole method? |
|
cowspotter
join:2000-09-11
Ashburn, VA
| Back stab connections suck. First of all its a PITA to get the wire out once it's in there. I've also had situations where the connection gets loose and the outlet started buzzing.
The screw method gives you longevity and the ability to work on the outlet without resorting to cutting the wire. |
|
Warzau
Premium
join:2000-10-26
Naperville, IL
clubs: | reply to Swingerhead
Stab in are terrible! Screw it down. I have not heard ONE good thing about stab in from ANYONE. |
|
dgilbert
Good Bye My Friend
Premium,MVM
join:2002-06-15
none
clubs:
| reply to Swingerhead
IF they are just backstab you want to redo them. they do make some that are screwed down but you insert the wire thru a rear hole, they look similar to regular backstabs but the screw still puts the tension on them. the latter ones work fine. but you will be hard pressed to find any real pro who uses the regular backstabs.
--
Lack of Preparation on YOUR Part does NOT Constitute an Emergency on Mine! |
|
morbo
Complete Your Transaction
join:2002-01-22
00000
clubs: | reply to Swingerhead
poke vs screw?
screw. |
|
PoloDude
Premium,VIP
join:2006-03-29
East Northport, NY | reply to Swingerhead
Amateurs poke.Professionals screw. |
|
sharondippity
Premium
join:2000-12-26
San Jose, CA | Read that in a Hallmark card once. |
|
KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
 ·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
·Cox HSI
| reply to Swingerhead
They are called "back stabbed" and are common timesavers builders use. Having said that, most pros highly frown upon backstabbed outlets and recommend that you always use the screws.
--
"Fascism should more properly be called corporatism because it is the merger of state and corporate power." -- Benito Mussolini
|
|
cowboyro
join:2000-10-11
Shelton, CT | reply to Swingerhead
Professional installers backstab, unless they install for themselves or friends - when they use the screws. I have replaced some of my 70's outlets, some came out and left the wires behind. |
|
Loco
Premium
join:2002-11-09
So Cal
·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to Swingerhead
If i remember correctly, when we built our house back in 2002....all the rooms with the 14 gauge wire had the "back stab" connect switches and receptacles.
All the rooms with 12 gauge wire (kitchen, bathrooms, etc..) had the "side screw" switches and receptacles. |
|
ncbill
Premium
join:2007-01-23
Winston Salem, NC
| reply to cowboyro
The outlets I've replaced in the mountain cabin (built around 1975) were the backstab spring connection kind, and they were not the least bit loose.
Some idiot had wired them above a baseboard strip heat module, so after 30 years the plastic was disintegrating from exposure to the heat.
I replaced them with the outlets with the screw-down plates (still inserting a straight length of wire from the back) rather than bending the wire around a screw. |
|
Doctor Four
My other vehicle is a TARDIS
Premium
join:2000-09-05
Dallas, TX
·AT&T U-Verse
| reply to Swingerhead
You should check whether the jam in method violates your local electrical code. If it does, use the screws instead. That is perhaps the #1 concern here other than safety.
--
"The trouble with computers, of course, is that they are very sophisticated idiots." - Doctor Who (from Robot)
|
|
james
join:2001-02-26
antarctica
| reply to Loco
said by Loco  :If i remember correctly, when we built our house back in 2002....all the rooms with the 14 gauge wire had the "back stab" connect switches and receptacles. All the rooms with 12 gauge wire (kitchen, bathrooms, etc..) had the "side screw" switches and receptacles. I lol'd.
--
said by Metatron2008 :But people who download thousands of movies and games.... Yes, they are as bad as any murderer |
|
marigolds
Gainfully employed, finally
Premium,MVM
join:2002-05-13
Saint Louis, MO
| reply to Swingerhead
Like dgilbert mentioned, there are two kinds of backstab receptacles. With one type, as you tighten down the screws it tightens downs a plate in the holes as well. Those are pretty tough to pull lose. Those kind also cost twice as much as a regular outlet and really do not save you any time (though you end up with no exposed wire at all, use less wire, and have less risk of a wire snapping with no bends). For those kind, when you unscrew the terminals, the wire comes out with no resistance (easy way to tell the difference).
But the cheaper backstab ones that contractors use to save time and money; don't bother using those for the reasons mentioned.
--
ISCABBS - the oldest and largest BBS on the Internet
telnet://bbs.iscabbs.com
Professional Geographer
Geographic Information Science researcher |
|
joako
Premium
join:2000-09-07
/dev/null
·AT&T U-Verse
| said by marigolds :Like dgilbert mentioned, there are two kinds of backstab receptacles. With one type, as you tighten down the screws it tightens downs a plate in the holes as well. Those are pretty tough to pull lose. Those kind also cost twice as much as a regular outlet and really do not save you any time (though you end up with no exposed wire at all, use less wire, and have less risk of a wire snapping with no bends). For those kind, when you unscrew the terminals, the wire comes out with no resistance (easy way to tell the difference). But the cheaper backstab ones that contractors use to save time and money; don't bother using those for the reasons mentioned. I find it a pain in the ass to get the wire into the screws properly so I use the backstab method, it has never given me a problem.
If I ever need to change an outlet and come across the ones you describe I might be inclined to use them, otherwise I will continue to use the "unsafe method"
--
PRescott7-2097 |
|
Vertickle
join:2003-08-05
Madison, AL
·Knology
| reply to Loco
said by Loco :If i remember correctly, when we built our house back in 2002....all the rooms with the 14 gauge wire had the "back stab" connect switches and receptacles. All the rooms with 12 gauge wire (kitchen, bathrooms, etc..) had the "side screw" switches and receptacles. My house was wired with 12 AWG and using the "back stab" is not an option. The hole isn't big enough. Thats probably why they're "screwed" instead. |
|
steve1515
Premium
join:2000-08-07
Peabody, MA
·Speakeasy
| said by Vertickle :said by Loco :If i remember correctly, when we built our house back in 2002....all the rooms with the 14 gauge wire had the "back stab" connect switches and receptacles. All the rooms with 12 gauge wire (kitchen, bathrooms, etc..) had the "side screw" switches and receptacles. My house was wired with 12 AWG and using the "back stab" is not an option. The hole isn't big enough. Thats probably why they're "screwed" instead. Yes, the backstabs on regular residential grade receptacles are not rated for use with 12AWG or 20A circuits.
But, like the others, I wouldn't use the backstabs for any type of wire. I always screw. |
|
nunya
SEE ROCK CITY 475 MILES
Premium,MVM
join:2000-12-23
O Fallon, MO
clubs:
 ·AT&T CallVantage
| reply to Swingerhead
Never use a backstab receptacle. How they ever got UL approval is beyond me.
My professional opinion is that backstab receptacles are, indeed, a safety hazard. Especially when the receptacle is being used as a "pass through" device.
If you have a junction box with a circuit looping through, ideally, you should "pigtail" the circuit and only have one set of conductors going to the device (white, black, ground).
--
Looks like Reverend Wright got his wish - God Damn America.
Nancy Pelosi - House Minority Leader 2010
Harry Reid - Senate Minority Leader 2010 |
|
dgilbert
Good Bye My Friend
Premium,MVM
join:2002-06-15
none
clubs:
| reply to joako
how is it a PITA? you use needle nose pliers to wrap the wire around the screw in a clockwise direction. takes all of 10 seconds longer than a backstab, and that counts time to tighten the screw. backstabs are notorious for loosening over time due to heating up/cooling down. i ain't a pro, but i have seen several backstabs that overheated and almost caused fires. and many more partially dead circuits where a backstab was at fault.
--
Lack of Preparation on YOUR Part does NOT Constitute an Emergency on Mine! |
|
incognito_2u
"Virtus et Honos"
join:2005-03-15
Malverne, NY
·Verizon FIOS
| reply to Swingerhead
Short story.....
Had a GFI outlet with a microwave oven plugged into it....every time I used the microwave, the GFI would pop. Thinking that I had a defective GFI, I went to remove the outlet only to find that it was connected via the "stab" method. Seems that over time, the heat generated loosened the connection.
Rewired it the "correct" way and it has worked ever since!
--
"I want my MLB in HD!" |
|
