Sealing wall Recepticles

[speedoo51]

In my heated garage all the wall recepticles/boxes leak outside air which at this time of year is COLD! I have tried using the wall plate gaskets but at most they are cumbersome and don't fit right causing the plates to deform/crack..And it seems that air comes in through the plug blade holes in the receptacles...! Is there a caulking I can use? Something that won't stick stuff together so later work won't be a problem? Sound dumb?

 

[appeltjacks]

Maybe you could use those child safety plug covers. They're cheap and easily removed.

Sent from my LG-D850 using Tapatalk

 

[larry4406]

In new construction, our insulators apply an expanding foam to the back side of the boxes where the wire penetration is. After drywall we sometimes caulk seal the drywall to the box. Check your ceiling penetrations as well.

Maybe you could turn of the power, remove the cover and foam thru the box and apply caulk seal between the box and the drywall?

Later work might be fun with the foam, but not impossible. That's what drywall repairs are for .

 

[toplessHO]

use the foam gaskets supplied with wet weather covers
one could be used as a template to make others or may be able to buy them thru a distributor

 

[Stuart in MN]

In my heated garage all the wall recepticles/boxes leak outside air which at this time of year is COLD! I have tried using the wall plate gaskets but at most they are cumbersome and don't fit right causing the plates to deform/crack..And it seems that air comes in through the plug blade holes in the receptacles...! Is there a caulking I can use? Something that won't stick stuff together so later work won't be a problem? Sound dumb?

Assuming you're talking about plugging the holes in the back of the receptacle box, there's a product called Ductseal that you should be able to find it at the big box stores. It's kind of like modeling clay and doesn't harden.

 

[farphle]

Seal up every penetration in the wall that you can get to. I had a similar issue until I foamed the holes where the wire entered the top plates. I also caulked the boxes to the drywall. Made a big difference.

 

[shoot summ]

Just did this last weekend in my home office. House built in the '50's, can be drafty...

I was getting some air past the gaskets also so I caulked around the edge of the box, put the gasket on, then caulked around the outlet before the plate went on. Once the plate was on I caulked any gaps between the plate and the wall. Wipe it down with a wet towel to remove excess caulk, dry it, then turn the power back on. No more outlet drafts...

 

[barnjunkie]

Seal up every penetration in the wall that you can get to. I had a similar issue until I foamed the holes where the wire entered the top plates. I also caulked the boxes to the drywall. Made a big difference.

When we had our house constructed a few years ago, I did the same thing. I also caulked around the floor plate (concrete slab).

My previous home that was built in the late 70s had so many drafts, the wind would blow outside and I swear I could feel the air movement on the inside. I took the extra time while I had access to the wall cavity interior to make sure it was draft free.
Really glad I did, not dumb at all.

 

[shoot summ]

When we had our house constructed a few years ago, I did the same thing. I also caulked around the floor plate (concrete slab).

My previous home that was built in the late 70s had so many drafts, the wind would blow outside and I swear I could feel the air movement on the inside. I took the extra time while I had access to the wall cavity interior to make sure it was draft free.
Really glad I did, not dumb at all.

Room by room I have sealed the massive gaps between the sill plate and the stem wall. Not sure how they poured the stem wall but it isn't close to flat. I pull the base board, and then Great Stuff the hell out of it. Makes a huge difference in how the house feels. Before I did it you could feel the cold air coming in under the baseboards.

 

[speedoo51]

I went to H'pot for some expanding foam sealer and found some stuff with low expansion and claimed workable for a bit and water clean up before cure, by Dap.. Went home and took off all the wall plates..Cut 8" squares out of plastic totes, the ones you get for items at stores..Taped centrally over each receptacle, where there was switches I cut small slot so switch lever could protrude..Then I took covers and put bead of sealant around the inside perimeter and around receptacle/switch holes, put in place over plastic and screwed home..Trimmed plastic and wiped excess sealant foam..Foam expands/seals and plastic keeps foam from sticking..Success no draft!!