The Family Handyman – August 2019

BEST PRO TIPS

68 JULY/AUGUST 2019 FAMILYHANDYMAN.COM

MISTAKE:

Recessing boxes

behind the wall surface

Electrical boxes must be flush to the wall surface if the

wall surface is a combustible material. Boxes recessed

behind combustible materials like wood present a fire

hazard because the wood is left exposed to potential

heat and sparks.

Recessed

box

Exposed

wood

paneling

Outlet

Plastic box

extension

THE RIGHT WAY:

ADD A BOX EXTENSION

The fix is simply to install a metal or plastic box exten-

sion. If you use a metal box extension on a plastic box,

connect the metal extension to the ground wire in the

box using a grounding clip and a short piece of wire.

MISTAKE :

Wiring a GFCI backward

GFCI (ground-fault circuit interrupter) outlets protect

you from a lethal shock by shutting off the power

when they sense slight differences in current. They

have two pairs of terminals. You’ll lose the shock pro-

tection if you mix up the line and load connections.

THE RIGHT WAY:

CONNECT POWER TO THE “LINE” TERMINALS

One pair of terminals is labeled “line,” for incoming

power for the GFCI outlet itself. The other set is

labeled “load” and provides protection for down-

stream outlets. Each pair of terminals receives a hot

and a neutral wire.

To hot

“load“

terminal

Hot “line” terminal

To neutral

“load”

terminal

Neutral

“line”

terminal

“Load” terminals

under tape