Oulet boxes too shallow. Am I screwed?

[ripsnortMN]

After drywalling all of my garage and mudding half of it I noticed that the outlets are mounted too shallow in the wall. Like if I put an outlet cover on, the outlet would not protrude through the cover. Is there an easy fix for this? In some areas I could take a couple sheets down. But there areas that I allready mudded it would be impossible. Do they make a ring that goes around the box that would push the outlet out a bit? I need about a half inch. Thanks fellas.

 

[minglis44]

there is a spacer ring available to retrofit. something like these
http://electrical.hardwarestore.com/14-45-box-extensions.aspx

 

[ripsnortMN]

I only need about a half inch.

 

[e-tek]

You have some play in the screws that attach the receptacles to the boxes. Leave them out (loose) a bit, then when you put the covers on they will pull them flush. Many times electricians don't get them right on either - so there has to be some adjustment.

 

[ripsnortMN]

You have some play in the screws that attach the receptacles to the boxes. Leave them out (loose) a bit, then when you put the covers on they will pull them flush. Many times electricians don't get them right on either - so there has to be some adjustment.

Will this be secure enough when plugging things in?

 

[mrb]

You have some play in the screws that attach the receptacles to the boxes. Leave them out (loose) a bit, then when you put the covers on they will pull them flush. Many times electricians don't get them right on either - so there has to be some adjustment.

dont do that, they make these little spacer blocks that give you around 1/4in at a time. Another trick is to wrap some #14 or 12 around the screw to make a standoff.

 

[ripsnortMN]

dont do that, they make these little spacer blocks that give you around 1/4in at a time. Another trick is to wrap some #14 or 12 around the screw to make a standoff.

Do you know who sells these spacers?

 

[triplethreat]

Home Depot and Lowes around here.

 

[mrb]

Home Depot and Lowes around here.

yep. As I recall, theyre bright green or yellow.

 

[Fast Orange]

Easy answer ,Guys-
Arlington cat# BE-1 for 1 gang box,BE-2 for 2 gang,BE-3 for 3 gang and BE-4 for 4 gang.Available at a real electric supply house near you.
These are plastic box extenders made to be self adjusting for up to about 1 inch additional depth.There's even a version for 4" round boxes-BE-1R.
Single gang units are less than a buck each. Get a box of 6/32x1 1/4 flat heads and your're set.

George

 

[walrus]

Thats why I like adjustable boxes,

 

[ripsnortMN]

Easy answer ,Guys-
Arlington cat# BE-1 for 1 gang box,BE-2 for 2 gang,BE-3 for 3 gang and BE-4 for 4 gang.Available at a real electric supply house near you.
These are plastic box extenders made to be self adjusting for up to about 1 inch additional depth.There's even a version for 4" round boxes-BE-1R.
Single gang units are less than a buck each. Get a box of 6/32x1 1/4 flat heads and your're set.

George

Do you know of a store by name that would have these? I cant think of anything locally that would be considered a "real" electric supply house. Just Grainger but they will only sell to businesses.

 

[rickairmedic]

Ripsnort you should be able to get these at Homie Desperate or Lowes and just cut them down to the depth you need. I would say these look like your easiest out.


http://electrical.hardwarestore.com/14-45-box-extensions/pvc-electrical-box-extender-102845.aspx


Rick

 

[kbs2244]

Are you saying the face of the box is flush to the front of the stud and thefore 1/2 inch back from the surface of the drywall?

 

[Mattlt]

Not saying this is right, but it does work in a pinch...

Insert 1-2 nuts, one size larger than the screw on the outlet. (What would that be, a #8??) This will allow the outlet to stand off slightly, yet still firm it up enough to not be a problem.

 

[Tarheelgarage]

Are you saying the face of the box is flush to the front of the stud and thefore 1/2 inch back from the surface of the drywall?

Not to hi jack this thread, but I have this problem with boxes in my shop. The boxes were orginally installed thinking I was going to use sheetrock, but I went with OSB. I think the thickness difference caused this issue.
Not a big deal, but am interested in what "extension" I can use that will allow my outlet face plates to reach the screw holes in the box.
thanks

 

[ripsnortMN]

Are you saying the face of the box is flush to the front of the stud and thefore 1/2 inch back from the surface of the drywall?

The outlet boxes were installed with the little "notch" against the stud. Its like a guide for the box depth. Like you push the box towards the wall on the stud until that little "notch" or "bump" hits the stud. Its like a preset thing. But now I am drywalling with 1/2" rock and the oulet is too shallow.

I tried to put the outlet cover on and the outlet itself is to shallow. It should be raised just above the drywall surface so you can get the outlet cover on. The outlet will not protrude through the outlet cover when installed.

The outlet box isnt flush with the stud so I don't know why its not working

 

[Kevin54]

Do you know of a store by name that would have these? I cant think of anything locally that would be considered a "real" electric supply house. Just Grainger but they will only sell to businesses.

Grainger will sell to anyone. I have ordered quite a few items in the past from them

 

[Torque1st]

If one is careful when they install the drywall or other wall coverings and get the box cutouts right the "plaster ears" on the outlets and switches should rest against the drywall supporting the wiring device at the proper height. If you have removed the ears (they are scored for breaking off), or the drywall cutout is sloppy then you can use the little plastic shims available at the box stores to support the wiring device.

If your sheet rock or wall covering holes are sloppy (can happen to anyone) you may need oversize wall plates also.

With wood or combustible wall coverings a steel band is required to protect the combustible covering if the box is too deep. I forget what the maximum exposure is for combustible coverings but it was in the NEC the last time I looked. Homie Depot had those metal bands for duplex boxes last year when I needed some.

 

[south pier garage]

...... I forget what the maximum exposure is for combustible coverings but it was in the NEC the last time I looked. Homie Depot had those metal bands for duplex boxes last year when I needed some.

half inch.


get some extention rings and tape the receptacle terminals before screwing it to the box

 

[nadogail]

half inch.


get some extention rings and tape the receptacle terminals before screwing it to the box

These are also called "Mud Rings".

 

[chevelle64]

Ripsnort,
These are the plastic spacers that you need, the same ones that others have been eluding to. I got mine from Home Depot. On outlets that require 3 or more spacers, I had to use longer screws to secure the outlet to the box. AND they're made in the USA.
Good luck.

 

[Aceman]

half inch.


get some extention rings and tape the receptacle terminals before screwing it to the box

My codebook says 1/4" 314.20

Your wasting time and resources taping recep screws in a plastic box.

Arlington cat# BE-1 for 1 gang box,BE-2 for 2 gang,BE-3 for 3 gang and BE-4 for 4 gang.

Agreed. If your using anything other than these for more than a 1/4" you're doing it wrong. For 1/4" and less you can get away with just Gardner Bender GSP-04's. Dottie makes a similar product also.

 

[nadogail]

Ripsnort,
These are the plastic spacers that you need, the same ones that others have been eluding to.... Good luck.

They look a lot like pieces of 5 gallon oaint sticks.

 

[Torque1st]

My codebook says 1/4" 314.20

Thanks for the info, I thought it was something like that. I added 1/4" paneling on top of a couple layers of wallpaper so I used them.

 

[walrus]

http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/(t...aspx?SKU=3050440&Image=3050440_010307I_mk.jpg

 

[ripsnortMN]

Great info, thanks guys. I will go poke around some local stores and see what I come up with. Thanks again.

 

[kbs2244]

nadogail has it right.
"mud rings" come in different thickness's

 

[millsjq]

I used these:

http://www.receptxtenders.com/products.htm

The come in different depths and work well for me

 

[bags]

don't go to HD or Lowes. Go to an professional electrical supply store that sells to electricians. The product your looking for is referred to as a tile ring. They are designed to be used when tiling over "old work". Some expansion rings have rounded corners, these do not they will be steel and have sharp corners to **** your tile (in your case drywall to). Some suppliers will have them in 1 or 2 gang. Anything larger you will probably have to order. I think they might be made by Mulberry, but I'm not sure. If you ask for a tile ring at HD they won't know what your talking about. I would use steel over plastic. Just to clarify they were designed for tile. They became "mud rings" because more people use them to fix mistakes than to tile over old work. The correct name and application is "tile ring". They should be available up to 1/2".

 

[Sambone]

I once read in this old house that a quick and easy fix for this common problem was to make your own spacers out of thin (1/4") copper tubing...

 

[IDASHO]

Thats what I use for spacing receptacles from the box. Copper tubing cut to the proper length, and longer screws if needed.

 

[nate379]

Electrician did that in my house and I've had to fix most of them. I just bought a box of small washers (like $3 for 100) and just stacked 4-5 washers between the box and the outlet. Of course the worse one was about 1/4" so not sure on your situation.

Couple boxes were stripped or mess up and I ended up ripping it out of the wall and putting a new box in. So much for "pro" work huh?

Now question... How did you not notice as you put the sheetrock up?? I'll admit I have forgotten to allow for the sheathing before when doing the electrical rough in, but that's as far as that error went.

 

[e-tek]

Ripsnort,
These are the plastic spacers that you need, the same ones that others have been eluding to. I got mine from Home Depot. On outlets that require 3 or more spacers, I had to use longer screws to secure the outlet to the box. AND they're made in the USA.
Good luck.

Similar spacers are on all outlets when new and allow some adjustment on their own - that was what I was refering to. You can use these to set the outlets flush with the wall, then, when you **** the plates up to the wall, the outlets will be solid. If you need lots of space, then these spacers would give you the added room.

 

[ripsnortMN]

Electrician did that in my house and I've had to fix most of them. I just bought a box of small washers (like $3 for 100) and just stacked 4-5 washers between the box and the outlet. Of course the worse one was about 1/4" so not sure on your situation.

Couple boxes were stripped or mess up and I ended up ripping it out of the wall and putting a new box in. So much for "pro" work huh?

Now question... How did you not notice as you put the sheetrock up?? I'll admit I have forgotten to allow for the sheathing before when doing the electrical rough in, but that's as far as that error went.

Some of the outlets were already in the garage. Not installed by me. The rest of the outlets I installed. There is a little "bump" on the outlet box that is supposed to go against the stud. Sort of like a depth setting type of thing. I went by that "bump" on the outlet box. Now with 1/2" drywall im installing, the boxes are to shallow. Did I install the boxes wrong? Maybe. But the drywall is up and I need to go from there I guess. Im mudding now so I won't need to deal with the boxes until i'm done mudding.

 

[dipper]

What i've noticed on the blue plastic boxes i used is that those little bumps are only set for about 3/8" of an inch. I use a tape measure to set the box 1/2" proud of the studs so that the 1/2" drywall will be flush with box. Those bumps are nice for lining the box up, but they a little shallow for 1/2" drywall. Maybe they are set up for 3/8" drywall which nobody ever uses.

 

[ripsnortMN]

What i've noticed on the blue plastic boxes i used is that those little bumps are only set for about 3/8" of an inch. I use a tape measure to set the box 1/2" proud of the studs so that the 1/2" drywall will be flush with box. Those bumps are nice for lining the box up, but they a little shallow for 1/2" drywall. Maybe they are set up for 3/8" drywall which nobody ever uses.

That would be where I went wrong then. It just ***** that I didnt notice it until I hung the drywall.

 

[nate379]

What I have done in the past is use a scrap of OSB or drywall (whatever I'm putting on the wall and use that as a guage to set the boxes.

Even with a tape measure I somehow manage to mess it up sometimes

 

[mikeyp]

Grainger will sell to anyone. I have ordered quite a few items in the past from them

Depends on your area. Grainger here in N.C. will become business only later this year according to the rep, however you can go to Lowes and they will order direct from grainger. markup is about the same a factory direct b/c they cut Lowes a break on pricing.

 

[FastEddieG]

Some of the outlets were already in the garage. Not installed by me. The rest of the outlets I installed. There is a little "bump" on the outlet box that is supposed to go against the stud. Sort of like a depth setting type of thing. I went by that "bump" on the outlet box. Now with 1/2" drywall im installing, the boxes are to shallow. Did I install the boxes wrong? Maybe. But the drywall is up and I need to go from there I guess. Im mudding now so I won't need to deal with the boxes until i'm done mudding.

Not to bring this back from the dead, but I am gathering you left the boxes "bare", and didn't install a 1/2" mud ring on top of it? (like these) Is that the case?

-Ed