putting an outlet in a ceramic tile floor

[Toller]

My wife is nagging me for an outlet in the entryway. The only possible place for it is in the ceramic tile floor. I have a lot of questions...

1) How do I do the cut out? I have a bit for my rotary tool that claimed to be made for cutting ceramic tile. Anyone used one of these? Is is reliable? I don't want to start something i can't finish, or shatter the tile. It is 1/4" so i could use my router instead of the rotary tool. Would that be a good choice? Would I crank the speed down to match a rotary tool? How do I make the initial hole; a carbide drill? Any other suggestions?

2) Any electrical code relevant to a floor outlet? I suppose GFCI would be a good choice, anything else?

thanks.

[tom]

How would you run the supply, from the basement? Drill bits specifically for tile and glass are available at your local hardware store. Get your box in hand before you drill or rout. I'd run the GFCI upstream from the outlet in the floor, as it's easier (for me) to find protective covers for regular outlets. Tom

[m Ransley]

You know what will happen when she mops the floor or kids play, 120v.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Yes, even a plain HHS drill will work.

Yes, a floor outlet cannot be just in the floor facing up. There are housings made for that type of application that sit on top of the floor.

[Don Young]

I would think the probability of a first attempt at cutting an outlet opening in ceramic tile by an amateur without tile damage to be pretty small. It is also a lot of work. A Dremel type tool does not have enough power to do the job within any reasonable time. Carbide or diamond drill and abrasive saw would probably be the best tools. Lots of care, a steady hand and lots of dust are involved. I would recommend a professional tile person be hired.

[Steve Kraus]

No but there are recessed fittings that have them facing upwards.

Yes, a much better solution for this situation although the whole thing may not be such a great idea depending how close to the door we're talking. If it's where people come in with dripping shoes, coats, and umbrellas, and maybe snow/slush it's a very bad idea. GFI a must of course. I wonder why the outlet can't be conventionally mounted in one of the walls. Presumably he has access to a basement or crawlspace underneath if he's proposing a floor outlet.

[Toller]

She wants it in the corner which has the open stairway to the basement on both sides, so there is no wall to put it into. It could be put into the side of the stairs, but the box is thicker than the stair material so it would look awful, and getting the cable to it would be a challenge. There is a table over where it would go, so it is reasonably well protected on the floor. There is acess to the floor from below. She suggested putting it down below, actually in the top of the basement wall and running a cord through the stairs, but the floor joists make anything but a surface box impossible, and that would be hideous. Putting it below the floor joists woud probably be possible, but then it would be a good 6' from where she wants it.

All in all, it is not a good place for an outlet.

[louie]

There are lower profile boxes available that might fit within your narrow wall, though I'm not sure about code for one of those.

[jdk]

are you sure you can not go thru the baseboard?

[RicodJour]

Even open stairways have railings. Can you run the wiring inside a routed channel in one of the spindles?

I personally think that a floor outlet would look pretty hideous under an open table next to an open stairway.

Is this whole thing for a table lamp? How about having a hanging fixture instead?

R

[Charles Spitzer]

i would use a 4" diamond dry blade in a side grinder. have someone hold a shop vac with hepa filter bag nearby to suck up the dust. the floor outlets i've seen are recessed down a bit lower than the floor level. there are special boxes and covers for them, but i don't think a borg will carry them.

there are some, i think dealing with covers for unused sockets.

[mm]

I can't really visualize this yet, so I apologize if I'm insulting you, but what about near where you want to mount it now, but on the side of the floor. If there are stairs, there must be a visible floor side. Between the top and the bottom, the floor of the first floor and the ceiling of the basement.

Or what about on its side inside the floor, accessed from the floor side, with just a hole in the tile to run the wire through. That way you won't have to cut a rectangle, just drill one hole. And any water that goes through will land on the bottom of the inside of the floor, in front of the receptacle, if you put the recpt. back from the hole a bit. You could even run the wire through the hole and connect the plug to the wire after it comes out the other side., to enable a smaller hole. [other ideas] If this seems unsafe, you could line the hole with a plastic tube glued in place, or a rubber grommet, with the top side cut off, glued in place.

Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let me know if you have posted also.

[Toller]

After much hunting with a stud detector and a drill, I found an area big enough for an electrical box about a foot below the floor on the side of the stairs going down. It was blind on the other side, but an electrical cable shoved down came out okay.

We have already snagged the lamp cord once, pulled the lamp down and broken the bulb; and there are a few exploratory holes to fill, but I suppose it is better than trying to cut it into the tile.

Speaking of exploratory holes, I have seen a stud finder advertised that works by pushing a very fine wire in. That would have been great for this project. Do they work, or just get bent up?

[anoldfart2]

I was thinking the same thing. Thats a real bad place for a floor outlet, and if this is in a state that gets snow, all the salt from boots will corrode the outlet real quickly. Besides that, floor outlets are tacky looking. Why cant you put it on the wall, or at least in the baseboard?

[anoldfart2]

I can not visualize this either, but look into WIREMOLD. It can be mounted right on the wall surface and the channel can go down thru a tiny hole in the floor under it (about a 5/8" hole), which would be much easier to drill thru the tile, or cut into the baseboard. At the underside you can run romex as normal. Go to your local building center and ask to look at Wiremold.

[Don Young]