Get Protected - Get GFCI | DoItYourself.com

By Dave Donovan

If you're buying an older house, or making upgrades to your current home, you may run into a situation where you have to replace a standard outlet with a GFCI outlet. GFCI stands for Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter. GFCI outlets are most prominent in areas where water may reach the outlet. Kitchens, bathrooms, laundry rooms, and outdoor locations are the most common areas, but they see wide usage in wet bar locations, unfinished basements, garages, and crawl spaces, as well as many other spots. A prime location for a GFCI outlet is anywhere where water or dampness is an issue.

According to the National Electric Code (NEC), all outlets in kitchens, bathrooms, and outdoor locations must be GFCI protected. For dwelling spaces, all outlets in crawl spaces, garages, unfinished basements, and boathouses must be protected as well. All outlets within 6 feet of a wet-bar sink need protection also. It's important to note, that the outlet under your kitchen sink that your garbage disposal is plugged into is not GFCI protected. GFCI protection prohibits the motor from running.

It's also important to note that when wired correctly, a GFCI outlet will protect all the other outlets in the circuit that follow it. Hey, that's all fine and dandy, but how does the thing work? I'm glad you asked!

A GFCI outlet has three holes on the front: a round middle hole for the ground prong, a small slit for the neutral, and a large slit for the hot side. The GFCI is constantly monitoring the flow of electricity between the two sides. As long as everything is working and stable, there are no problems. But as soon as there is a deviation in the current flow, BANG! the GFCI trips out and cuts the flow of electricity. It's nearly instantaneous. Its sole purpose is to protect people against electrocution. If the hairdryer comes into contact with water, the electric flow changes as it's immediately grounded, and the GFCI trips out before anyone can get fatally injured.

So, let's replace that standard outlet with a safer GFCI outlet. It's a simple procedure, and here's what you'll need for this easy job:

Screwdriver
Electrical Tape
Wire Strippers
Voltage Tester
Wire Nut

1. First and foremost, turn the power OFF to the circuit. Then remove the cover plate from the existing outlet.

2. Unscrew the existing outlet and pull it out of the wall box. If the outlet is feeding other outlets, there will be more than one set of wires attached. You will have to disconnect the wires from the outlet, turn the breaker back on, and use the voltage tester to determine which wires are the feeds (they'll be the live ones) and which are the travellers. Once you figure that out, turn the breaker back OFF and separate the wires so the feeds and the travellers don't get mixed up.

3. GFCI outlets generally have two screws near the top and two other screws near the bottom. The ground screw is usually on the top. The bottom screws are sometimes covered with a small piece of yellow tape. The bottom screws are for the travellers, or the wires that feed the next outlet in the circuit. The top screws are for the line feeds.

4. With the wire strippers, snip the exposed wire on all the wall wires and re-strip about 3/4" of the insulation off. With the hole on the side of the wire strippers, bend the exposed wire into a "U" shape. Loosen the screws on the GFCI outlet and attach the black feed wire to the top darker screw and the white feed wire to the top lighter screw. Do the same thing for the traveller wires and the bottom screws. Wire nut the two ground wires, along with an extra 6" piece of green wire, together. This is called a "pigtail." Connect the green "pigtail" to the ground screw on the top of the GFCI outlet.

5. Wrap electrical tape around the screws for safety and gently fold the wires back inside the wall box. Screw the GFCI outlet into the wall box and then screw the cover on. Turn the power back on.

6. To make sure your GFCI is working properly, press the "Test" button on the front. You will hear an audible "click" and the reset button will pop out. Test the outlet for voltage, as well as the next outlet in the circuit. They should be dead. Press the "reset" button and re-test the voltage. The outlets should be back in working condition.

Replacing an outlet with a GFCI is an easy job that many contractors charge a lot of money for, simply because people are intimidated by the job. Now you can add another specialty to your list, as well as more money to your vacation fund!

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