Home Improvement Stack Exchange
Home Improvement Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [usa]

For questions specific to or mostly about the United States of America.

86 questions
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Would it be Code legal to have an all-240V house in the United States?

My goal is to have a house where all loads are powered by 240V, that is fully livable in all the normal ways. And this question concerns the hard, in-house, built-in wiring; we will armwave the availability of plug-in appliances. Under NEC 2014/17,…
Harper - Reinstate Monica
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Why would a particular heat pump model be illegal in my state?

I am trying to replace an electricity-hungry whole-house electric furnace with something that will be more cost-effective. I live in a high-altitude part of New Mexico, where I don't need to use much A/C, but need a more efficient heater for the…
Village
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Central Vacuuming: Is it worth it, and how does it compare to normal vacuuming?

I am in the process of buying a brand new home in the US through a builder. The home will be approximately 3,000 sq ft and I was given the option of buying a central vacuuming system for the house. It looks really nice and convenient. The price…
MisterStrickland
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First time changing switches and outlets (receptacles). Anything special I should know?

I am replacing a bunch of switches and receptacles in my house. While I understand the basics, this is pretty much my first electrical project, and I figure there must be some hidden "gotchas" or surprises that people run in to when doing this. …
Harper - Reinstate Monica
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19
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1 answer

Mystery wall plate by front door

Our neighbors have this mystery wall plate by their front door. We have the identical house (both built in 1929) and we don't have one. The fire department was there today to investigate a smoke alarm and they were apparently very puzzled by it. It…
jeguyer
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18
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5 answers

Is there a benefit to having a switch control an outlet?

In my house there is a switch in every room that controls an outlet. I’ve asked my electrician to remove that so that the outlet is always on. He says it’s safer to have a “control switch” but I can’t think of a good reason why. What am I missing?
Shamoon
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18
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4 answers

Buying a home with 2 prong outlets but the bathroom has 3 prong outets

I'm looking at a home for my family and trying to assess the amount of work needed (no home-inspection is present). I saw that most of the electrical ports have 2 prong outlets and am worried that I might have to add grounding to the entire home…
gran_profaci
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16
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5 answers

Do studs in wooden buildings eventually get replaced as they lose their structural capacity?

I'm living in a 30 years old building made of wood - an ordinary apartment complex in Seattle. As I was drilling a hole into a stud, a thought occurred to me - over the years, these studs have probably seen hundreds if not thousands of things…
JonathanReez
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16
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Should I run 240v for any supported appliances?

I am having my main circuit breaker panel replaced (by a licensed electrician) and he told me I can run new circuits for him to hook up to the new panel. Is there any benefit to running 240v circuits for computers, network equipment, other devices…
yakatz
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13
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Why are adjacent breakers for unrelated circuits ganged?

I'm looking at electric panels in some newer residences and seeing something confusing: Circuit breakers that are adjacent to each other, but that cover unrelated circuits, are ganged, as shown below. By "unrelated circuits" I mean circuits that…
feetwet
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Can I use a single 20A circuit for two bathrooms?

Can I put two bathrooms on one 20amp breaker for the respective outlets or do I need a separate 20amp circuit for each bathroom? I am running out of panel space in my subpanel otherwise I would just run a home run from the subpanel to the bathroom…
Ron Hutchins
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11
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3 answers

Getting a power pole moved

Anyone ever had this done? What does this kind of thing typically cost if I have to pay for it? The utility cooperative here won't tell me anything without first paying hundreds of dollars for a "tech to review it". That was their immediate answer…
maplemale
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10
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How do I properly prepare stranded wire for a screw down connection?

When connecting a stranded wire to a solid wire in a wire nut (for example connecting a ceiling fan's internal wiring to the house wiring), I know that I should tightly twist the stranded wires and that they should lead the solid wire(s) by a little…
FreeMan
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Does electrical code allow NEMA 14-60R receptacles in residential settings?

I know that NEMA 14-60 plugs and receptacles exist, but they seem really rare. I've come across a few random online forums where people say that this is because they're not allowed by code, since any load of more than 50 amps must be hardwired in…
Joseph Sible-Reinstate Monica
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Does the NEC allow a sub panel to be powered by a generator and an automatic transfer switch?

I plan to install a sub panel next to my main panel. Mainly because as I do electrical upgrades, I'm accumulating more circuit breakers. Since I need one anyway, I'd like to be able to power it with a backup generator during power outages. I'd also…
Mike Gray
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