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Toll free in CT: 877-723-9052
Electrical Receptacle Outlets
CPSC Document #524
Electrical receptacle outlets in walls and floors may
present shock and electrical fire hazards to consumers. The U.S.
Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that 3,900 injuries
associated with electrical receptacle outlets are treated in hospital
emergency rooms each year. Approximately a third of these injuries occur
when young children insert metal objects, such as hair pins and keys,
into the outlet, resulting in electric shock or burn injuries to the
hand or finger. CPSC also estimates that electric receptacles are
involved in 5,300 fires annually which claim 40 lives and injured 110
consumers.
Older homes may have receptacles which are damaged or which, otherwise,
may have deteriorated over the years. In one case of a damaged
receptacle, a woman suffered severe burns to her hand as she was
plugging in a floor lamp. Part of the plastic faceplate of the outlet
had broken away, allowing the prongs of the plug to bridge from the
electrical contacts to the grounded strap, resulting in intense
electrical arcing.
Outlets also deteriorate from repeated use, from plugging-in and
unplugging appliances as is often done in kitchens and bathrooms. As a
result, when plugs fit loosely into receptacles, especially the
two-prong ungrounded type, they may slip partially or completely out of
the receptable
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with only slight movement of the attached cord.
Receptacles in this condition may overheat and pose a serious fire
hazard; if covered by a curtain or drape, the fire hazard is even
greater.
Consumers should have a qualified person replace deteriorated and
damaged receptacles and, at the same time, upgrade their home electrical
system to present safety standards. The simplest and most effective
method to protect against electrocution is through the installation of
ground- fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs) (as shown in FIGURE 3). If
you wish to receive a copy of the Commission's fact sheet on GFCls, send
a postcard to "Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupters, Washington, D.C.
20207," and a copy will be sent promptly.
Another method of protection in the home is to install 3-wire
receptacles which will accept either 2- or 3-prong plugs (as shown in
FIGURE 2). This method, however, requires a grounding conductor which
may or may not be available in the outlet box. The least acceptable
method is installing another 2-wire receptacle that requires the use of
an adapter for accepting 3-wire plugs (as shown in FIGURE 1). Even
thought the tab on the adapter may be properly connected to the
cover-plate screw, the grounding path may not be adequate to protect
against ground faults.
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Outlets with poor internal contacts or loose wire
terminals may become overheated and emit sparks. Even a receptacle with
nothing plugged into it may run hot if it is passing current through to
other outlets on the same circuit. To prevent damage to receptacles,
appliances should be switched-off before unplugging from a receptacle.
- Have a qualified electrician replace damaged receptacles or
those which feel hot, emit smoke or sparks, those with loose fiffing
plugs or those where plugged-in lamps flicker or fail to light.
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- Do not unplug appliances by pulling on the cord at an angle. The
brittle plastic face of the recepacle may crack nd break away,
leaving live parts of the receptacle exposed.
To protect young children, parents should consider some precautions:
- Insert plastic safety caps into unused outlets within reach of
young children.
- Be sure that plugs are inserted completely into receptacles so
that no part of the prongs are exposed.
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