[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Electrical Outlet Question (Page 1 of 3)
Posted: 3/10/2015 4:34:45 PM EDT
| Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? |
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? 
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? I have a kegerator and a 7cf chest freezer plugged into the same outlet with no issues. You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. Wait, is this a REALLY OLD freezer? Do the lights dim when the compressor kicks on? |
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? On 110 volts your 20 amp breaker is designed to be loaded at 16 amps. Understand that when both compressors kick you might very well be exceeding that. What sort of voltage reading are you getting at the receptacle with nothing plugged into it? Do you have a meter to check it? |
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I have a kegerator and a 7cf chest freezer plugged into the same outlet with no issues. You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. Wait, is this a REALLY OLD freezer? Do the lights dim when the compressor kicks on? Quoted:
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? I have a kegerator and a 7cf chest freezer plugged into the same outlet with no issues. You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. Wait, is this a REALLY OLD freezer? Do the lights dim when the compressor kicks on? Don't rely on a higher-capacity outlet if your wiring isn't sufficient for the load. |
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I have a kegerator and a 7cf chest freezer plugged into the same outlet with no issues. You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. Wait, is this a REALLY OLD freezer? Do the lights dim when the compressor kicks on? Quoted:
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? I have a kegerator and a 7cf chest freezer plugged into the same outlet with no issues. You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. Wait, is this a REALLY OLD freezer? Do the lights dim when the compressor kicks on? Not old, fridge is probably 7 years old and the freezer is 4. |
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Not old, fridge is probably 7 years old and the freezer is 4. Quoted:
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? I have a kegerator and a 7cf chest freezer plugged into the same outlet with no issues. You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. Wait, is this a REALLY OLD freezer? Do the lights dim when the compressor kicks on? Not old, fridge is probably 7 years old and the freezer is 4. Simply replacing the current outlet with a decent new one may do the trick. Make sure the wiring is attached to the screws on the side, and not the shitty holes in the back. |
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I have all my appliances hard wired to my main feed from the electric company, that isn't the proper way? Quoted:
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Appliances should be on dedicated circuits. I have all my appliances hard wired to my main feed from the electric company, that isn't the proper way? Well you don't have to worry about the breakers tripping. 
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I have all my appliances hard wired to my main feed from the electric company, that isn't the proper way? Quoted:
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Appliances should be on dedicated circuits. I have all my appliances hard wired to my main feed from the electric company, that isn't the proper way? Only if you by-passed the meter.
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the receptacle ampacity does not define how much current the branch circuit (including the breaker and wiring) will provide. ar-jedi Quoted:
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You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. the receptacle ampacity does not define how much current the branch circuit (including the breaker and wiring) will provide. ar-jedi I don't see him ripping out the romex and running heavier. |
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Quoted: They do have to be plugged into the same outlet because of location. Where can spec grade outlets be found? Quoted: Quoted: If you must plug both into the same duplex outlet, get a Spec grade one. The cheap resi grade outlets at Home Depot and Lowes suck ass. They do have to be plugged into the same outlet because of location. Where can spec grade outlets be found? |
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type and the wire-to-receptacle contact is just enough to run your phone charger but has too much resistance for the freezer/fridge. get a proper side-screw receptacle from and electrical supply house and replace the existing receptacle. the hot (black wire) goes under the copper colored screw, neutral (white wire) goes under the silver color screw, and the ground (green wire) goes under the green screw. always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi |
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my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type and the wire-to-receptacle contact is just enough to run your phone charger but has too much resistance for the freezer/fridge. get a proper side-screw receptacle from and electrical supply house and replace the existing receptacle. the hot (black wire) goes under the copper colored screw, neutral (white wire) goes under the silver color screw, and the ground (green wire) goes under the green screw. always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi Quoted:
Quoted:
Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type and the wire-to-receptacle contact is just enough to run your phone charger but has too much resistance for the freezer/fridge. get a proper side-screw receptacle from and electrical supply house and replace the existing receptacle. the hot (black wire) goes under the copper colored screw, neutral (white wire) goes under the silver color screw, and the ground (green wire) goes under the green screw. always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi Okay great. I have some electrical experience, I hard wired a pump for my septic, but am ignorant to this matter. Thanks for the advice. |
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Electrical supply house for sure. Maybe at Home depot. Quoted:
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If you must plug both into the same duplex outlet, get a Spec grade one. The cheap resi grade outlets at Home Depot and Lowes suck ass. They do have to be plugged into the same outlet because of location. Where can spec grade outlets be found? Home Depot, yes. Oddly, Lowes does not carry them. |
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Get back with the amp value for both units. Otherwise you may be failing to resolve a larger problem. Can you check the breaker value (amps) that protects that outlet? Quoted:
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The amp rating should be on the back of both units. That is what you need to know. Get back with the amp value for both units. Otherwise you may be failing to resolve a larger problem. Can you check the breaker value (amps) that protects that outlet? I can, but not until later. |
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How many amps is the breaker on that run?
is the run JUST for that outlet? What else is on that leg? How many volts are showing on that outlet versus at the breaker? You could have a lot of issues and not know it. The way it is supposed to work is that the breaker is the weakest link in that chain. It should fail first, before the wire or the outlet fails. They make outlets for different amounts of amps. If you don't match the outlet rating to the wire rating to the breaker rating, AND, something happens, AND an insurance inspector or state fire inspector inspects... (shrugs) |
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Quoted:
Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? There's your problem congress works very little. |
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How many amps is the breaker on that run? is the run JUST for that outlet? What else is on that leg? How many volts are showing on that outlet versus at the breaker? You could have a lot of issues and not know it. The way it is supposed to work is that the breaker is the weakest link in that chain. It should fail first, before the wire or the outlet fails. They make outlets for different amounts of amps. If you don't match the outlet rating to the wire rating to the breaker rating, AND, something happens, AND an insurance inspector or state fire inspector inspects... (shrugs) For what it's worth house was custom built 7 years ago and they used top notch building material. Could have skimped in that department, but I doubt it. House has two breakers and there are few things plugged in. You did get me thinking and I don't know if there's a connection, but it's the utility room so in there is HVAC, water treatment, sump pump. Granted they're on opposite walls, and may not be on the same breaker. Circuit boxes are labeled, I look. |
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my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi This. Except that there are excellent "back-wire" outlets where the wire is fed in from the back just like the cheapos, but there's an internal clamp that tightens around the stripped wire. I like these, especially with existing 12 ga. wire. It's a lot easier to strip, insert, and tighten than it is to wrap the wire around the screw, especially when working in the close confines of a box when the last guy left the wire too short. |
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Appliances that use a lot of power or turn on and off constantly can cause a big surge if you have too many items on the same circuit breaker. Heavy appliances ideally should have their own individual 20 amp plug. This will make sure that the line have the extra electrical "umph" when they start up and you won't keep blowing that circuit breaker.
ETA when I say 20amp socket, this is connected to 12 gauge wire and a 20 amp breaker. I don't think a 20amp socket on a 15 amp wires/breaker will help with your problem. I've been slowly isolating my heavy appliances, each one now has its own receptacle. I still have to finish disconnecting some of the extra lines that split off my refrigerator socket. Too many heavy duty items on the same line is not good. The previous owner had the fridge, old floor furnace, bathroom and a couple lights all on the same circuit. 
The dumb-dumbs that installed my new attic furnace were supposed to run a separate and dedicated 20amp line but they got lazy and just tapped into one of the 15 amp ceiling circuits.  Luckily, there was an extra 20 amp box up there not being used anymore so that is now my dedicated furnace line.
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I have all my appliances hard wired to my main feed from the electric company, that isn't the proper way? Quoted:
Quoted:
Appliances should be on dedicated circuits. I have all my appliances hard wired to my main feed from the electric company, that isn't the proper way? |
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Quoted:
For what it's worth house was custom built 7 years ago and they used top notch building material. Could have skimped in that department, but I doubt it. House has two breakers and there are few things plugged in. You did get me thinking and I don't know if there's a connection, but it's the utility room so in there is HVAC, water treatment, sump pump. Granted they're on opposite walls, and may not be on the same breaker. Circuit boxes are labeled, I look. Quoted:
Quoted:
How many amps is the breaker on that run? is the run JUST for that outlet? What else is on that leg? How many volts are showing on that outlet versus at the breaker? You could have a lot of issues and not know it. The way it is supposed to work is that the breaker is the weakest link in that chain. It should fail first, before the wire or the outlet fails. They make outlets for different amounts of amps. If you don't match the outlet rating to the wire rating to the breaker rating, AND, something happens, AND an insurance inspector or state fire inspector inspects... (shrugs) For what it's worth house was custom built 7 years ago and they used top notch building material. Could have skimped in that department, but I doubt it. House has two breakers and there are few things plugged in. You did get me thinking and I don't know if there's a connection, but it's the utility room so in there is HVAC, water treatment, sump pump. Granted they're on opposite walls, and may not be on the same breaker. Circuit boxes are labeled, I look. Do you only have two breakers? Btw I love your car. |
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On 110 volts your 20 amp breaker is designed to be loaded at 16 amps. Understand that when both compressors kick you might very well be exceeding that. What sort of voltage reading are you getting at the receptacle with nothing plugged into it? Do you have a meter to check it? Quoted:
Quoted:
Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? On 110 volts your 20 amp breaker is designed to be loaded at 16 amps. Understand that when both compressors kick you might very well be exceeding that. What sort of voltage reading are you getting at the receptacle with nothing plugged into it? Do you have a meter to check it? 16 Amps continuous, but 20 Amps surge is OK. |
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Quoted: my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type and the wire-to-receptacle contact is just enough to run your phone charger but has too much resistance for the freezer/fridge. get a proper side-screw receptacle from and electrical supply house and replace the existing receptacle. the hot (black wire) goes under the copper colored screw, neutral (white wire) goes under the silver color screw, and the ground (green wire) goes under the green screw. always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi Quoted: Quoted: Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type and the wire-to-receptacle contact is just enough to run your phone charger but has too much resistance for the freezer/fridge. get a proper side-screw receptacle from and electrical supply house and replace the existing receptacle. the hot (black wire) goes under the copper colored screw, neutral (white wire) goes under the silver color screw, and the ground (green wire) goes under the green screw. always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi It could be that the back stab isn't fully inserted into the receptacle. Before you go out buying anything, spend ~5 minutes, and take the outlet apart. When reconnecting, make certain that the wires are shoved all the way in. |
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Quoted:
the receptacle ampacity does not define how much current the branch circuit (including the breaker and wiring) will provide. ar-jedi Quoted:
Quoted:
You can get heavier, 20A rated outlets. I bought some at Home Depot for my brewing stand. the receptacle ampacity does not define how much current the branch circuit (including the breaker and wiring) will provide. ar-jedi 15A and 20A outlets are identical inside (faceplates are different). ar-jedi is correct, a 20A circuit needs 12Ga wire. 15A outlets are ok on either a 15A (14Ga) or 20A (12Ga) circuit. 20A outlets can only be on a 20A circuit. |
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Well you don't have to worry about the breakers tripping.
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Appliances should be on dedicated circuits. I have all my appliances hard wired to my main feed from the electric company, that isn't the proper way? Well you don't have to worry about the breakers tripping.
I know right? When my wife uses the blow dryer the lights dim a little and you see some smoke out the outlet but flipping breakers is for suckers! |
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It could be that the back stab isn't fully inserted into the receptacle. Before you go out buying anything, spend ~5 minutes, and take the outlet apart. When reconnecting, make certain that the wires are shoved all the way in. Quoted:
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type and the wire-to-receptacle contact is just enough to run your phone charger but has too much resistance for the freezer/fridge. get a proper side-screw receptacle from and electrical supply house and replace the existing receptacle. the hot (black wire) goes under the copper colored screw, neutral (white wire) goes under the silver color screw, and the ground (green wire) goes under the green screw. always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi It could be that the back stab isn't fully inserted into the receptacle. Before you go out buying anything, spend ~5 minutes, and take the outlet apart. When reconnecting, make certain that the wires are shoved all the way in. Will do. Just looked, the fridge is 11.4 amps and the freezer is 4.0 Here's what the outlet and wiring look like for what it's worth.  " />
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For what it's worth house was custom built 7 years ago and they used top notch building material. Could have skimped in that department, but I doubt it. House has two breakers and there are few things plugged in. You did get me thinking and I don't know if there's a connection, but it's the utility room so in there is HVAC, water treatment, sump pump. Granted they're on opposite walls, and may not be on the same breaker. Circuit boxes are labeled, I look. Quoted:
Quoted:
How many amps is the breaker on that run? is the run JUST for that outlet? What else is on that leg? How many volts are showing on that outlet versus at the breaker? You could have a lot of issues and not know it. The way it is supposed to work is that the breaker is the weakest link in that chain. It should fail first, before the wire or the outlet fails. They make outlets for different amounts of amps. If you don't match the outlet rating to the wire rating to the breaker rating, AND, something happens, AND an insurance inspector or state fire inspector inspects... (shrugs) For what it's worth house was custom built 7 years ago and they used top notch building material. Could have skimped in that department, but I doubt it. House has two breakers and there are few things plugged in. You did get me thinking and I don't know if there's a connection, but it's the utility room so in there is HVAC, water treatment, sump pump. Granted they're on opposite walls, and may not be on the same breaker. Circuit boxes are labeled, I look. skimping on the wiring is kinda common. I knew a guy that would charge for certain wiring, then put some smaller gauge in. In his defense, lighter gauge is a LOT easier to deal with; the good stuff is like plastic coated thick coat hangers. Easy way to tell is get a basic house light, kick the breaker that appears to cover where you got your stuff plugged in, and test the other outlets on both sides of the walls there. Like previously mentioned, someone could have tapped into that line somewhere else, as well. If all your stuff is that new, it's probably not going to be a corrosion issue. I also thought that maybe vermin may have gnawed on your run, causing an issue. You should google the appliances that are on that run for starting amperage, too. Sometimes all they list is the running current, which is usually significantly less. But, definitely check what amperage the breaker is. Most likely the outlet is a 15 amp maximum. Oh, do they directly plug in, or are you using any kind of extension cord or strip outlet? Not being insulting, just ruling out variables... |
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Will do. Just looked, the fridge is 11.4 amps and the freezer is 4.0 Here's what the outlet and wiring look like for what it's worth. http://<a href=http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n175/DonnieGTI/Rivers%20Edge/20150310_184119_zpslr9mgpu1.jpg</a>" /> Quoted:
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Have a beer fridge (standard size) and chest freezer plugged in. Noticed today that neither we're running correctly. Fridge light congress on, but not cooling. I tried resetting it, checked to see if the breaker was tripped, nothing. I grabbed a phone charger and that worked fine. Plugged the freezer into another outlet and its fine. Came to the conclusion I need a new outlet. Is there an outlet "strong" enough to handle both? my hunch is that your receptacle is a cheap "back stab" type and the wire-to-receptacle contact is just enough to run your phone charger but has too much resistance for the freezer/fridge. get a proper side-screw receptacle from and electrical supply house and replace the existing receptacle. the hot (black wire) goes under the copper colored screw, neutral (white wire) goes under the silver color screw, and the ground (green wire) goes under the green screw. always remember "black = death", that's the hot with 120Vac on it. turn the circuit breaker off and double check with a meter before servicing a receptacle. ar-jedi It could be that the back stab isn't fully inserted into the receptacle. Before you go out buying anything, spend ~5 minutes, and take the outlet apart. When reconnecting, make certain that the wires are shoved all the way in. Will do. Just looked, the fridge is 11.4 amps and the freezer is 4.0 Here's what the outlet and wiring look like for what it's worth. http://<a href=http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n175/DonnieGTI/Rivers%20Edge/20150310_184119_zpslr9mgpu1.jpg</a>" /> exposed run it looks like, just drop in a new wire from the attic. I am sure you know someone that can supervise you so you don't electrocute yourself. |
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Quoted: That picture tells me this outlet is in the middle of a run. No telling how many on that line. The pros will prolly know on sight, but what does the writing say on the wire? I'm not a professional but I rewired my entire house. That looks like 14-gauge Romex (14-2 with ground) to me. In any case the receptacle is 15 amps, and as high_order1 points out it's in the middle of a run. Inadequate wiring for the situation.  |
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Quoted: Electrical supply house for sure. Maybe at Home depot. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: If you must plug both into the same duplex outlet, get a Spec grade one. The cheap resi grade outlets at Home Depot and Lowes suck ass. They do have to be plugged into the same outlet because of location. Where can spec grade outlets be found? |