You mentioned the idea of lengthening the wire by splicing in a box, covering box with blank plate, then installing new outlet to left of existing location. You said this is probably the best solution for moving an outlet when you need more length. In your case, since you have an unfinished basement, a reasonable solution would be to make up the splice in an accessible box in the basement. The big benefit is that you aren’t left with a blank cover in your finished wall.
And that blank cover still needs to be accessible so making the junction in the basement would make way more sense. As long as it doesn't get plastered over. Either I missed some thing but wasn't the whole point of moving the outlet that it was going to be covered by some thing? Leaving the old spot not accessible.
I agree with that statement but now you are gonna have to think about the time and money it will take to put drywall back in that spot and texture it. Simple and cheap if the homeowner can do it in that situation.
At the end, in deciding where to run the HDMI cable, it can’t hurt to separate the high and low voltage as much as possible to reduce interference. It’s not usually a problem, but why take a chance.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge. Question: what old work box would you recommend using for plaster and lath walls. Would you recommend metal boxes with F clips over the Slater box that you are using in the video? I am looking for something that will hold in place well once installed.
As others have mentioned in the comments, Southwire makes a screw-in box that is great for secure stud-mounting without disrupting too much of a finished surface: amzn.to/3LO2WgV. Otherwise, the Slaters have been ole-reliable for us.
thanks! question: "Tim from the future" at 16:07 mentioned that if you had to leave the old junction box in place, that box/cover plate would need to be visible/accessible from the "finished surface". But, since you're putting a built in there, doesn't that change the "finished surface" thereby requiring the box/cover plate (and the new receptacle for that matter) to be visible/accessible from within the base cabinets that you'll be placing there? I'm just curious as to what code says. I may be over-thinking this, but it seems to me the cabinets would be covering this new outlet. Maybe you intend to cut a hole in the back of the cabinet instead of mounting the box to the back of the cabinet and putting the plates there?
I think he is meaning that he won't be covering the outlet(s) with the backing of the cabinet itself, but rather, leave an opening in the backing for access from within the cabinet.
@@johnhpalmer6098i think based on him needing to move the outlet over a few inches there is going to be side of a cabinet or something at that location making the blank cover not work the same way the original outlet?
@@williamwright3735 Well, that too. I think he mentions that due to a support right underneath the plug on the floor and likely a vertical piece right there to support the top, but the questioner's question read more like why the need if it's covered and access.
ok, so now you have some bare coper wire from your earth in the box that can hit your live and neutral terminals when you push everything in... use some heatshrink bro.
Question: Do they make a wire nut like the one you used on the ground for the hot and neutral wires? It seems like a great idea and would eliminate the need for the pigtails or is there a code reason why they don’t make these type for the hot and neutral wires?
Never use PEX or plastic tubing for water supply, including ice makers, water filters, RO etc. It's all poisonous. BPA free plastic is also still poisonous. You need the good ole fashioned copper lines for grounding and for supplying you with trace amounts of copper which the body needs anyway. Any excess would be lost in urine. Copper and lead free solder with solder only on OUTSIDE of pipe, so that only copper inside is superior. I hate plastic junction boxes too. I also hate 14 gauge wire. 12 gauge is safer Nothing less than 12 should be used. That can cause over heating, shorts, and fires. The chance of over heating is reduced with thicker gauge. Especially in instances where space heaters, toasters, crock-pots, blenders, and other heating appliances are used.
Believe it or not, I'm horizontal on outlets and vertical on light switches kind of guy. The exception is decora light switches where I'll go horizontal screws. The important thing is being consistent enough that nothing stands out.
Those noncontact testers are great for telling if there's power there but they're not good at telling for sure that there isn't power there that's where some thing with the load like the three light tester voltmeter with some training or a good old fashion Radio really comes in handy. The noncontact tester is great for verifying that there isn't some sort of miss wiring where it might look dead to something plugged in, but it can have false positives and false negatives. And for my British folks that's not proving dead.
I usually cut the new box location before drilling. Then, use a long drill bit to drill down through the bottom plate of the wall. Of course, being mindful of any obstruction that have been identified in the earlier steps.
I'm almost positive you may know this already, but Southwire makes a hybrid box that's designed to bridge the gap between new work, and old work boxes. They utilize angled screws inside the body of the box so you can install them directly to studs, like new work boxes, but they have the ease of use, and flexibility of old work boxes. I recently installed a 3-gang hybrid in my hallway to pull a 1-gang, and 2-gang into one switch cover plate, and it worked like a charm. I love the security of the box being fixed to a stud, rather than relying on those compression flanges old work boxes use. Those things tend to break, and can be more of a pain than they're worth. That being said, I think you did a marvelous job explaining everything, and detailing the possible nightmares a homeowner can expect if they decide to take on a task like this. Bravo, sir!
Yes! We like those too: amzn.to/3LO2WgV. This receptacle will require very few insertions (nobody's reaching to the back of the drawers to plug their phone in 😅) so I didn't feel the extra time and material was worth it on this one, but those screw-in boxes definitely do provide higher value if you're looking for some more security.
@@ElectricProAcademy I totally get it. Time is money, and the only thing you can never get back. I really apologize for not replying sooner, but I didn't see yours. I finally got all 4 new light switches to replace the older ones. Not that there was anything mechanically wrong with them, but the faceplate is white, and I want them all to match. I have 3 3-way, and 1 single pole to do. Such a simple job for you, you could do it in your sleep, but for me it's kind of a big deal, lol. I can see it now. After it's all done I'll be strutting around like, "I watched 2 RUclips videos, and changed 4 light switches...I'm a friggin' pro!!!" LMAO!
For finding studs and other things in the wall, the very best tool I've seen is the Wallabot. It uses radar to detect what's behind the drywall. Expensive, but it's like seeing an x-ray of the wall.
Electricians irritate me with faceplate screws. Ignore orientation, just do it right by making it snug! If it's not tight enough, the screw will fall out over time. If it's too tight, you will sightly warp the faceplate, which looks like s***!
No, if it is not horizontal or vertical it looks terrible. I am personally an all screws must be vertical person. An extra quarter turn to orient the screws is not going to hurt anything. If you need to tighten a screw every 15 years to make sure it is tight, that is not a hardship.
You mentioned the idea of lengthening the wire by splicing in a box, covering box with blank plate, then installing new outlet to left of existing location. You said this is probably the best solution for moving an outlet when you need more length. In your case, since you have an unfinished basement, a reasonable solution would be to make up the splice in an accessible box in the basement. The big benefit is that you aren’t left with a blank cover in your finished wall.
agreed. if basement is staying unfinished he could box it down there then run a new wire/feed anywhere he wants!!
And that blank cover still needs to be accessible so making the junction in the basement would make way more sense. As long as it doesn't get plastered over.
Either I missed some thing but wasn't the whole point of moving the outlet that it was going to be covered by some thing? Leaving the old spot not accessible.
I agree with that statement but now you are gonna have to think about the time and money it will take to put drywall back in that spot and texture it. Simple and cheap if the homeowner can do it in that situation.
You're great, guy. Loved your categorization of obstacles and challenges related to working in finished settings
you missed the worst thing to accidentally drill into in a wall which is the natural gas or propane lines
I covered that under metal or plastic (along with copper water supply pipe, obviously some are non-ferrous)
At the end, in deciding where to run the HDMI cable, it can’t hurt to separate the high and low voltage as much as possible to reduce interference. It’s not usually a problem, but why take a chance.
You made this more difficult then it should be
Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Question: what old work box would you recommend using for plaster and lath walls. Would you recommend metal boxes with F clips over the Slater box that you are using in the video? I am looking for something that will hold in place well once installed.
As others have mentioned in the comments, Southwire makes a screw-in box that is great for secure stud-mounting without disrupting too much of a finished surface: amzn.to/3LO2WgV. Otherwise, the Slaters have been ole-reliable for us.
thanks! question: "Tim from the future" at 16:07 mentioned that if you had to leave the old junction box in place, that box/cover plate would need to be visible/accessible from the "finished surface". But, since you're putting a built in there, doesn't that change the "finished surface" thereby requiring the box/cover plate (and the new receptacle for that matter) to be visible/accessible from within the base cabinets that you'll be placing there? I'm just curious as to what code says. I may be over-thinking this, but it seems to me the cabinets would be covering this new outlet. Maybe you intend to cut a hole in the back of the cabinet instead of mounting the box to the back of the cabinet and putting the plates there?
I think he is meaning that he won't be covering the outlet(s) with the backing of the cabinet itself, but rather, leave an opening in the backing for access from within the cabinet.
@@johnhpalmer6098i think based on him needing to move the outlet over a few inches there is going to be side of a cabinet or something at that location making the blank cover not work the same way the original outlet?
@@williamwright3735 Well, that too. I think he mentions that due to a support right underneath the plug on the floor and likely a vertical piece right there to support the top, but the questioner's question read more like why the need if it's covered and access.
Good call. Another reason that the viewer -recommendation of making up the junction in the basement would have been a better option in this case
Great video! No offense Joel but it's nice to see another person, and have another person works
7:05 who the hell plumbed that monstrosity.
ok, so now you have some bare coper wire from your earth in the box that can hit your live and neutral terminals when you push everything in... use some heatshrink bro.
Question: Do they make a wire nut like the one you used on the ground for the hot and neutral wires? It seems like a great idea and would eliminate the need for the pigtails or is there a code reason why they don’t make these type for the hot and neutral wires?
You don't want, (and are not allowed to have,) bare ungrounded ["hot"] or grounded ["neutral"] conductors
Wago FTW!
Vertical screws collect less dust
Good job & good vid ... Thx
I would have used Ideal In-Sure Wire Connection devices instead of Wing Tip Wire Connectors.
Love them too, just didn't have any on hand.
Never use PEX or plastic tubing for water supply, including ice makers, water filters, RO etc. It's all poisonous. BPA free plastic is also still poisonous. You need the good ole fashioned copper lines for grounding and for supplying you with trace amounts of copper which the body needs anyway. Any excess would be lost in urine. Copper and lead free solder with solder only on OUTSIDE of pipe, so that only copper inside is superior.
I hate plastic junction boxes too. I also hate 14 gauge wire. 12 gauge is safer Nothing less than 12 should be used. That can cause over heating, shorts, and fires. The chance of over heating is reduced with thicker gauge. Especially in instances where space heaters, toasters, crock-pots, blenders, and other heating appliances are used.
Absolute exaggerated as if its a huge project. It’s a basic smallest possible job. Total waste of time of people watching it.
TV is way too high! Should be at eye level when seated, not when standing
Great location for a theatre room setup, needs to be higher than sitting eye height.😂
@@oldman-smurphee Even in a theater room setup the bottom of the screen is usually not more than 36" above the floor.
Yep, that'll be a welcome sub-task of this project!
One box in the basement for all the connections and one cable to the receptacle would have saved some box fill in both.
Believe it or not, I'm horizontal on outlets and vertical on light switches kind of guy. The exception is decora light switches where I'll go horizontal screws. The important thing is being consistent enough that nothing stands out.
You're going to turn your kid into a massive DIY entertainment system?? Diabolical.
I will say, the TV is WAY too high. I recommended redesigning so that you don’t hurt your neck.
Those noncontact testers are great for telling if there's power there but they're not good at telling for sure that there isn't power there that's where some thing with the load like the three light tester voltmeter with some training or a good old fashion Radio really comes in handy. The noncontact tester is great for verifying that there isn't some sort of miss wiring where it might look dead to something plugged in, but it can have false positives and false negatives.
And for my British folks that's not proving dead.
I usually cut the new box location before drilling. Then, use a long drill bit to drill down through the bottom plate of the wall. Of course, being mindful of any obstruction that have been identified in the earlier steps.
I'm almost positive you may know this already, but Southwire makes a hybrid box that's designed to bridge the gap between new work, and old work boxes. They utilize angled screws inside the body of the box so you can install them directly to studs, like new work boxes, but they have the ease of use, and flexibility of old work boxes. I recently installed a 3-gang hybrid in my hallway to pull a 1-gang, and 2-gang into one switch cover plate, and it worked like a charm.
I love the security of the box being fixed to a stud, rather than relying on those compression flanges old work boxes use. Those things tend to break, and can be more of a pain than they're worth. That being said, I think you did a marvelous job explaining everything, and detailing the possible nightmares a homeowner can expect if they decide to take on a task like this. Bravo, sir!
Yes! We like those too: amzn.to/3LO2WgV. This receptacle will require very few insertions (nobody's reaching to the back of the drawers to plug their phone in 😅) so I didn't feel the extra time and material was worth it on this one, but those screw-in boxes definitely do provide higher value if you're looking for some more security.
@@ElectricProAcademy I totally get it. Time is money, and the only thing you can never get back. I really apologize for not replying sooner, but I didn't see yours.
I finally got all 4 new light switches to replace the older ones. Not that there was anything mechanically wrong with them, but the faceplate is white, and I want them all to match. I have 3 3-way, and 1 single pole to do. Such a simple job for you, you could do it in your sleep, but for me it's kind of a big deal, lol.
I can see it now. After it's all done I'll be strutting around like, "I watched 2 RUclips videos, and changed 4 light switches...I'm a friggin' pro!!!" LMAO!
Not all drywall corners are metal. Plenty are plastic or other non-metallic materials. Your magnet won't help you with these.
Tim, you have the cutest apprentice. Great video.
For finding studs and other things in the wall, the very best tool I've seen is the Wallabot. It uses radar to detect what's behind the drywall. Expensive, but it's like seeing an x-ray of the wall.
Where do you buy the magnets? 🖖
Put a link in the description for ya!
Electricians irritate me with faceplate screws. Ignore orientation, just do it right by making it snug! If it's not tight enough, the screw will fall out over time. If it's too tight, you will sightly warp the faceplate, which looks like s***!
No, if it is not horizontal or vertical it looks terrible. I am personally an all screws must be vertical person. An extra quarter turn to orient the screws is not going to hurt anything. If you need to tighten a screw every 15 years to make sure it is tight, that is not a hardship.
@brianpiper3188 The reason to turn the screws in the Vertical is so DUST does not 'Shelf" on a horizontal flat slot.