How To Install Multiple Electrical Outlets – Answer: Wiring diagrams of modified sockets are below. There are several methods of wiring sockets with a switch and a half. In general, the socket wiring will be the same as if it were a light installation. Note: Some of the text links below go to the relevant products on Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Or it could be a split socket where half the socket is turned on and the other half is always active. There are two split socket wiring diagrams below that show split socket wiring.
How To Install Multiple Electrical Outlets
If your intention is always to convert a shielded socket to control an existing ceiling fan or change a light, you should click here to read my blog post with pictures on how to do this.
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A new outlet wiring diagram shows the electrical voltage from the breaker panel into the new electrical outlet box, where a two-wire cable goes to the switch and another two-wire cable feeds power to another outlet that is always is active.
The wiring diagram above shows how switching sockets are often wired. Although Section 404.2(C) of the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70) requires that a wall switch that controls a light fixture also have a neutral conductor available, switches that control outlets are exempt from this requirement.
The neutral conductor is required for lighting where the standard wall switch is routed to a smart home device or other type of control such as a timer.
I think it’s a good idea to include the neutral for a wall switch that controls the outlet anyway, because a regular wall switch can be turned into a smart home device that usually requires a neutral conductor to operate.
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It was a common practice among uninformed people to use the equipment earth conductor as a neutral conductor when no neutral was available. This is an unsafe practice and can be a shock hazard.
When the white wire is used as brown or LINE, the white wire must be re-identified with a different color. However, in my experience working on older houses, the white wire has almost never changed color when used as a LINE. So it is not unusual to find that the white wire in a switch box is a LINE and not a neutral conductor. A non-contact voltage probe is good for checking which wires are hot
Any outlet that may be accessible to children, including kitchen counter outlets, must have anti-anxiety outlets. They prevent getting into the socket slots as children have been known to do. Section 406.12 sets out this code requirement.
Wiring diagram for a switching electrical outlet and a non-switching electrical outlet with power entering the electrical outlet box from the breaker panel. The single pole switch has a neutral conductor for future electronic controls such as a timer or wifi switch.
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The diagram below shows the power coming from the breaker panel. The same wiring diagram can be used if the power comes from another outlet and is connected to one of the outlets shown at the end.
In the wiring diagram above, note the single pole and neutral switch box. From there, a 3-conductor cable is inserted into the outlet of a protected electrical outlet. A two-conductor cable is installed from the other outlet to always feed an outlet. A two conductor cable is powered from the switch box to another duplex socket outlet which is also always active.
The following two switch socket wiring diagrams show how split or half switch sockets can be connected. The first one shows the method with the neutral conductor in the switch box. The bottom drawing shows how this is usually done.
Split jacks are standard duplex jacks with cut tabs to separate the top and bottom. In the drawings below only the tab on the LINE side of the socket is cut off as the top and bottom use the same neutral.
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Half-switch outlet wiring diagram showing electrical power fed into an electrical outlet box and then going to another switch and outlet.
The wiring outlets are divided so that the top half of the receptacle is active all the time and the bottom half of the receptacle is controlled by the wall switch. Shown above is the neutral conductor in the switch box as well as the location of the breaker tab in the outlet.
There is a tab cut out in the socket above the hot wire side to make it a split receptacle. A continuous hot wire can now be attached to one screw and a variable hot wire can fit under the other screw.
There is no need to cut the tab on the neutral side if the top and bottom of the socket are on the same circuit. If there are two separate circuits, two neutrons may be required and the neutral tab will need to be cut. If a multi-wire circuit is used it will not be necessary to cut the neutral tab.
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A multi-wire circuit is a three-wire cable with two LINE or hot wires and one neutral plus the equipment grounding conductor. It connects to a bipolar breaker.
Depending on the brand of electrical outlet, you can cut the tab between the top and bottom of the outlet using needle nose pliers to bend the tab out and back or small diagonal pliers to cut it.
Three different duplex electrical outlets on the sides showing the tabs broken to create a split outlet.
In the wiring diagram below, the white wire going to the switch is used as the hot conductor, not the neutral. When the white wire is used as brown or LINE it must be re-identified with a different color than white, gray or green.
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The bottom half of each split socket outlet is controlled by a foot switch. A three-conductor cable is used to bring the hot wire, the switch foot and the neutral conductor to the socket on the right.
The necessary grounding conductor is not shown to keep the wiring diagrams simple. However, all outlets and switches must be bolted to the grounding conductor of the equipment. Click here to see my post on how to store or modify a socket.
Only one ground wire can pass under the locking screw. If you have multiple ground wires, pigtail them together. The braid is attached under the locking screw.
Green wire connectors are available with a hole in them which allows one long wire to be used as a pigtail with the other wires twisted around it.
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Wiring diagram of a split outlet with a switch to control half of the two duplex electrical outlets using a wall switch without a neutral conductor. Also shown is the surviving half of the container and the tab that must be cut to split the vessel.
An example of a split socket wiring diagram can be seen above at the top of this post. Not pictured is the next outlet along the wall that is not controlled by the wall switch. It was powered by a two-conductor cable instead of a three-conductor cable. Every socket after the one in the picture was always hot.
The two neutral conductors were connected through the socket rather than connected and connected. The original installer did it this way to save time.
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Switched Outlet Wiring Diagrams
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Tessan Double Electrical Outlet Splitter With 3 Usb Wall Charger, Mini Multiple Expander For Travel,type B
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