Outlets for Garage

[mechanicworkman]

Ok, Finally got the 100amp pannel installed its been a few days now but getting ready to get start installing outlets for garage wall.

How do I connect the outlets in line as i plan to have one breaker supply power and hook them all in line.

Do I use like a pigtail method from the back of each outlet hooking to the main supplying power line?

The first box you can see in the picture to the left if the first outlet i will have from the box and the rest will be hooked in line

Just to verify black wire going to brass colord screw and the white going to the silver and the copper going to nuetral?

Also is a pic of the outlets I plan on using.

and the last pic is a wire setup i found online is this all good for what i plan?

 

[mechanicworkman]

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[Stuart in MN]

Yes, your diagram looks fine.

 

[sands35]

Black = brass = hot
White = silver = neutral

Pigtails vs. direct really depends on your local inspector. Pigtails are the typical way of doing this though.

You might also want to see if you are required to use tamper resistant outlets or not. You will likely also have to protect the outlets with a GFCI.

You show 20 amp outlets, make sure you use 12 gauge wire, not 14 (which would be 15 amps).

 

[aka Larry]

Pigtails vs. direct really depends on your local inspector. Pigtails are the typical way of doing this though.

Really? I did all mine using the direct method. Leaves more room in the box and the connection is easy peasy vs. using wire nuts IMO.

 

[sands35]

Yes, there are several ways. Yes, the nuts take up some space. (just buy bigger boxes - the cost difference is trivial.)

The issue with direct is that you pull current through the little fitting on the outlet for down stream outlets. Pigtails allow down stream outlets to pull right through the wire.

With a 2 gang box (2 straps or 4 outlets), the extra 2 pigtails is simpler IMHO than adding in a jumper between the outlets.

Some inspectors will have a preference, some will not.

I can see not using the pigtails if you are getting paid for the job - it is probably faster, but not if you are DIYing it.

 

[Highbeam]

I'm a devoted pigtailer. I don't want all the current of downstream outlets being passed through another outlet. If I have a bad outlet I don't want downstream outlets affected. I always use the deepest boxes on teh shelf and have no problem finding a neat way to stuff the wirenuts in the back of the box with only the pigtails exposed for wiring. I can also easily replace the pigtails in the event that I damage the originals or if they are too short.

 

[mechanicworkman]

When wiring up actual outlets using the pigtail method so I use the top two nuts or the bottom two on the outlet or does it matter?


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[Highbeam]

When wiring up actual outlets using the pigtail method so I use the top two nuts or the bottom two on the outlet or does it matter?


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Does not matter so long as you leave the little bar intact. The outlets usually come with one pair of those screws tightened and the others loose enough to wire under. The ones I did last night had the bottom screws loose, bottom being the pair nearest the green ground screw. Some crazy folks put in their outlets upside down!

 

[justsam]

Just to verify black wire going to brass colord screw and the white going to the silver and the copper going to nuetral?
QUOTE]

NO!

Black to brass, white to silver, AND BARE COPPER TO GREEN GROUND LUG!

Ground and neutral are not the same, white wire is neutral, bare copper or green is ground.

Do not use any of the spring type "back stab" sockets. Use the ones that use the screw to clamp the wire if you want back wired.

One more vote for pig tailing, even though it will take a little more time and wire nuts.

 

[mechanicworkman]

I did not buy any back stab style outlets after reading a bunch of other posts advising against it.

After dinner I will head out to garage and attempt my first pigtail and take a pic and post in case I need to make some adjustments


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[pitterpat]

After dinner I will head out to garage and attempt my first pigtail and take a pic and post in case I need to make some adjustments


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Eating late like me.

 

[mechanicworkman]

Ok how is this any problems I need to fix before I continue? Do I need to do this any differnt?






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[mechanicworkman]

What is the max amount of wires I can twist together?


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[macattak]

It depends on the size of your wire nuts. The box should tell you how many wires of each size it will take.

 

[mechanicworkman]

Ok I guess I should be good with 4 12-2 wires




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[mechanicworkman]

Well I got 6 outlets done its a good start.


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[fourjeepin]

Black = brass = hot.

You might also want to see if you are required to use tamper resistant outlets or not.

I hate these things. About a quarter of the outlets in my place will not take a plug and this is after 2 months of use. If I was still single, I would rip them out. But I'm just talking here because I'm still under a building permit AND have a baby coming any day now. Guess I will deal with it for a while. If I need to live on the edge, I can go in the shop. No tamper resistant plugs or GFCI there.

 

[mechanicworkman]

To the best of my knowledge no rule to use those here. I'm still deciding if I want to put a GFCI on my first outlet on the line which I don't have to do either but a person mentioned it before in a different conversation for the life of me I can't remember why by at the time the reasoning sounded good


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[sands35]

For GCFIs you basically have two choices. A GFCI breaker for ~30-40 or a GFCI outlet for ~$12-15. Breakers are nice, if the panel is easy to get to. Plugs are nice, because you can typically put the 1st one close to where you are working.

That said, I don't think I've ever tripped a GFCI unintentionally in 20 years.

I'm putting in outlets, 1st plug in the circuit.

 

[kenfath]

I hate these things. About a quarter of the outlets in my place will not take a plug and this is after 2 months of use. If I was still single, I would rip them out. But I'm just talking here because I'm still under a building permit AND have a baby coming any day now. Guess I will deal with it for a while. If I need to live on the edge, I can go in the shop. No tamper resistant plugs or GFCI there.

You may actually have a batch of defective receptacles. There was another recent post where someone was having problems with their tamper resistant receptacles. They complained to the manufacturer who had them inspected and the complaint verified. Manufacturer replaced them. I have about twenty of them in the home and garage, and all work like they should -- plugs insert very easily.

 

[larry_g]

Ok how is this any problems I need to fix before I continue? Do I need to do this any differnt?






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In the top picture I see no staple within 1' of the box. I believe that it is required. In the second picture there is sheathing inside of the box. You will find it easier to stuff things back in if the sheath ends just inside the box.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[2ManyProjects]

You may actually have a batch of defective receptacles. There was another recent post where someone was having problems with their tamper resistant receptacles. They complained to the manufacturer who had them inspected and the complaint verified. Manufacturer replaced them. I have about twenty of them in the home and garage, and all work like they should -- plugs insert very easily.

Could you give me a pointer to this, or to any recall info which may be available?

I'm in the process of replacing most of the duplex outlets in my shore home, which got flooded out by Sandy. Largely because our third grandchild was born about six months ago (the other two are nine & six, respectively), I decided to go with tamper-resistant types for anything located where the kids could conceivably get to them. The standard 15A types which are used on most of the general-purpose lighting circuits seem fine; inserting and removing plugs requires only slightly more force than a "normal" non-TR outlet. But I also picked up a couple of 20A versions for use on a dedicated circuit which feeds the main home-entertainment system. It is next to impossible to get the "shutters" on those to open up and let a plug get in. It's bad enough that I'd already pretty much decided to pull the new TR outlets and put in standard non-TRs in their place, on the theory that those outlets will be mostly blocked by furniture anyway. But perhaps I also have some of the "defective" batch?