It is always a good idea to install GFCI outlets in bathrooms for the highest level of safety. These ground fault circuit interrupter outlets provide an added level of protection from short circuits in areas that may get damp. These are essential for reducing the risk of electrical shock. Many newer homes have these in place already, but older houses require an upgrade.

Along with your GFCI outlet terminal, purchase a circuit tester plug or analyzer. These are available at hardware or home improvement stores. You will use this device to check for any potential problems with the existing wiring. If you find that an outlet has been incorrectly wired, you need to fix it before installing a new GFCI outlet. Most GFCI outlets have test and reset buttons for periodic maintenance. These are not the same thing as the circuit analyzer and don’t serve the same purpose.

Replacing a Receptacle

1. Test the existing outlet with the analyzer to make sure it’s wired correctly
2. Turn off the power to the receptacle at the circuit breaker box
3. Remove the outlet cover
4. Unscrew the receptacle plug from the electrical junction box
5. Pull it out of the junction box to gain easy access to the wiring
6. Mark all wires so that you know which ones are which. There should be 3 types of wires: positive, negative, and ground. Additionally, there might be 2 or more sets of these in the box. It will depend on whether there are additional outlets on the same circuit. Keep track of which are line wires and which are load wires too.
7. Disconnect the marked wires from the old receptacle’s terminal screws
8. Connect those wires onto the new GFCI outlet terminals. The line wires coming directly from the circuit breaker box should be connected to the appropriate line terminals. All other wires need to be connected to the matching ones that are marked ‘load’.
9. Mount or screw on the new receptacle to the junction box
10. Install a new electrical outlet gasket that fits over the receptacle
11. Reinstall the cover
12. Turn the power back on
13. Retest the outlet with the analyzer
14. Test all outlets on the same circuit to make sure they all work properly too

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5. Simple Bathroom Upgrade – Showerheads

Tags: Bathrooms

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 11th, 2010 at 8:56 pm and is filed under Bathrooms. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.