Half-switched outlets: which one on top?
rasher
| Posted in Energy, Heating & Insulation on
Simple question:
I’m rewiring my living room with 14/3 wire so that I can have all of the wall outlets “half-switched”. That means one outlet will be switched and one will be permanently hot.
My question is: according to convention, which outlet gets switched, and which one is permanent? ie: is the switched outlet on top or on the bottom?
Thanks!
Replies
According to my old man, who was once an electrician a hundred years ago: the bottom socket should be permanently live, so you can plug in a lamp or whatever and still have easy access to plug and unplug appliances from the top.
Makes sense to me.
Kinda of like #2, but if the switched item is permanently installed I'd put it on the bottom and the accessible half on on top.
If the switch is a dimmer I don't think by code it can control a receptacle.
Can't dim outlets, per code, huh? That's good to know. I figure we'll have table lamps and we'll just control light levels with three way and/or low wattage bulbs.
Another question: Is there any convention for labeling the outlets to let future users know that they are switched?
Is there any convention for labeling the outlets to let future users know that they are switched?
Nothing in the code book that I am aware of regarding labels on individual outlets in residential wiring.
Labels might look a little wierd IMO. We use them everywhere in commercial work, for lock out tagout purposes.
A better place for a label is the inside of the cover plate.
I use a Sharpie to write the breaker number there on mine. The trick then becomes keeping the plates with the correct outel when you paint!
I'm am electrician, so I also have a set of "as built" prints that I made durring construction and any remodeling I do. I'll pass them on to any future owners.
Dave
They can't be dimmed because dimmers peak out at 600 watts, which can be easily consumed by two normal floor halogens. Anyone later on plugs just one more lamp in there and the smoke starts flowing.Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
If your hair looks funny, it's because God likes to scratch his nuts. You nut, you.
Not all Dimmers max out at 600 Watts.
Probably the cheapy ones you buy at HD, but you can certainly order higher watt dimmers.
Most of the ones we install are speced at 750 watts, I've recently ordered 1500 watt dimmers, I'm sure they're are higher wattage out there if you want to spend the money and have the need.
1500 watts !?! You p&*&sy. Call me when you can dim 50 2000 watt ellipsoidals on a single circuit
;)
The whole point here is that the reason you don't see dimmed outlets is that commonly available dimmers are well under the capacity of the breaker that protects the circuit. Even with just a 15 amp circuit, you would need an 1800 watt dimmer at a minimum.Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
If your hair looks funny, it's because God likes to scratch his nuts. You nut, you.
nah, you said dimmers max out at 600 watts...
the statement just wasn't true
The whole point here is that the reason you don't see dimmed outlets is that commonly available dimmers are well under the capacity of the breaker that protects the circuit. Even with just a 15 amp circuit, you would need an 1800 watt dimmer at a minimum.
Not at all. The reason you don't want to dim a receptacle outlet is because of what might be plugged into it: appliances, some with motors, electronic equipment, whatever.
Dimmers would be a hazard.
Ed
Oh come now. You can get some need DIY special effects when you run your VCR off a dimmer :)Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
If your hair looks funny, it's because God likes to scratch his nuts. You nut, you.
I got some advice from my seret source and it is:
404.14(E) Dimmer Switches. General-use dimmer switches shall be used only to control permanently installed incandescent luminaires (lighting fixtures) unless listed for the control of other loads and installed accordingly.
I hope this helps.
~Peter
So in practice; ceiling yes, table or floor no.
"So in practice; ceiling yes, table or floor no."For wall mounted dimmers, yes.But you can get inline dimmers that you install on the cords.And if there is place to put the module in the lamp you can use a touch control module (on, off, single stage dim)..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Rasher,
I switch the bottom, for the reason already stated. About once a year somebody ask me to check an outlet that wont work, usually I'll ask them if they have any switches that don't seem to control anything. A label might not be a bad idea.
northeastvt
I always switch the top because it makes sense intuitively. The top half is closer to the switch, switched stuff tends to be higher on the wall, etc. A common convention for labeling switched outlets is to install the device upside down. I will often write "SW" on the switched half with a Sharpie, right on the visible face of the device itself.
Bill
Switch the the top, lamps usually have a simple plug on the chord. The bottom hot let's you plug in a phone charger or other things requiring a Xformer on the plug (or battery charger) w/out switching worries.
Bingo! That's the reasoning I'm looking for. Probably wouldn't have thought about that until the first time I tried to plug in a wall wart...
Boy I love this place, 17 years of doing it so the cord wasn't hanging over the outlet on the bottom, and never considered transformers. Very good point (and I have probably sworn, or unplugged a lamp in the past :). And of course "wallworts" are on just about everything now day's.
northeastvt
I'm gonna go against the grain a bit here. My thought is that the switched outlet should be on the bottom.If you go in there to plug in a vacuum cleaner, you're naturally gonna tend to plug it into the top of the outlet. You wouldn't want to be lifting up a lamp cord to plug something in underneath it. If you wante to plug in a charger, it could always go in the top half upside down.
Better living through denial.
Mount the receptacle horizontally.That then you don't need to worry about if it is the bottom or top one..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Bill,
Should I switch the left or right side? :)
Northeast
the one closest to the switch !.
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., wer ist jetzt der Idiot ?
spoken like a true Chicagoan........
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., wer ist jetzt der Idiot ?
It's not because I actually sat down and gave it a lot of thought. Dad's place is wired with the switched recep on the bottom. When we visit it's a real PITA to plug in all the wall worts that we have to travel with for camers, MP3 players, etc.
Plugging them in upside down is an issue with polarized plugs.
I only have a few switched outlets, those that are have a 2 duplex box and plate, the switched outlet is whie, ivory, or brown, the hot one is a red outlet.
Probably clashes with the decor??
I vote for permanently hot on the bottom.
Tagging? another vote for Sharpie on the face. Sharpies come in various line widths - I mark with one which looks like a fine Rapidograph - Sharpie Ultra Fine Point - "SW" will fit easily between the slots.
Jim
Never underestimate the value of a sharp pencil or good light.
Sharpie now makes a fine point felt marker that produces a line that is silver-grey, rather than black. If you need to mark brown or black fixtures, it shows up nicely. It might also be useful for marking ivory or white outlet plates. The marking wouldn't contrast all that much, but that could be an advantage: it wouldn't be all that obvious at a distance, but could be read up close in order to tell which outlet is switched. Our wives might like that.
BTW, the best Sharpie for writing on metals is their Industrial version. It looks just like the regular ones--grey body, black cap--but the printing on the side is in red. It goes on smooth and seems to be more durable than the standard Sharpie. The point seems to hold up longer too.
Didn't know about the grey ones - will have to look.
Agree on the Sharpie Industrial model. Funny thing is I never see them around here.
We have a family reunion every year up in Hampton Beach, NH. There is a "junk store" nearby called Seacoast Bargains on Rte. 1- mostly stuff like over run tee shirts with logos printed on them, but they always seem to have the Industrial Sharpies loose in a bin for about .10 each. I buy $5 worth and it keeps me supplied for the year!
Jim
Never underestimate the value of a sharp pencil or good light.
Jim,
You're lucky you can get the industrial Sharpies that cheap. The only place around here (northern Virginia) that seems to have them is Office Depot and they ain't cheap.
John
If you are rewiring, I vote for going with double duplex outlets (i.e. 4"x4" device box instead of the 4"x2 1/8"). Then you can have one switched and one live. Can't have too many outlets these days with all of the techie toys we seem to want...