I know the feelings of the group when it comes to backstab outlets that use the little spring clip. What is the feeling about the more expensive back wire outlets that use the screw to apply pressure to the wire to "pinch" it between metal pieces. Should you still pigtail these?
R
They are fantastic. Pigtailing doesn't hurt, but it DOES add another potential point of failure. In my opinion the connection made in the side-clamp outlet is less likely to cause an issue than a wire-nutted pigtail, particularly one done by a non-proffessional.
As John Grabowski said, if you pigtail the outlets, you never need to be concerned about the rest of the circuit in the event of an open connection.
When I wired new houses, I always backstabbed the outlets, and never had any problems. There were occasions where I could feel that the wire wasn't in properly, so I would try again. Clamp type outlets are much better than a backstab connection, but screw terminals work just fine and are probably cheaper.
this is pure conjecture on my part, but I suspect that problems with backstabs tend to show up years later, not immediately.
undoubtedly. however clamp type have their place as they're more robust than backstabs but require less installation time than screw terminals (no looping)
nate
Hi, Key word with something like this is doing it properly. My cabin wiring is done with backstab connection in over 10 years nothing happened. dii them myself. I stripped wirhe proper not nicking the copper pushed in full length, etc. No problem.
That's the only type outlet I will use when wiring with stranded wire which I've installed on commercial, industrial and government jobs. Many of the more expensive receptacles have the screw clamp connections. Leviton sells a commercial grade receptacle that has factory pigtails that are #12 and look like stranded wire to me.
An example is their 5040-W:
Those are *the* outlets to get. They work *very* well. Pigtails are still recommended, even required in some places, for at least neutral and ground.
As John Grabowski said, if you pigtail the outlets, you never need to
*From my experience with troubleshooting dead circuits and receptacles and linking the problem to backstabbed wires, it appears that the failure is a result of the long term load on these connections. The greater the load, the more apparent the failure such as a completely burned receptacle. By pigtailing, the entire load of the circuit is not passing through the backstabbed springs or screw terminals of the receptacle thereby ensuring a longer service life.Someone mentioned the possibility of wirenutted splices failing. If the wires are twisted tightly together before being wirenutted and the proper size wirenut is used, there should not be any problems. Where I do find problems with wirenutted connections is when the wires are just pushed together and a wirenut that is not approved for this type of fast connection is used.
I haven't used backstabbing since my father banned the entire crew from using them back in the late 60's as a result of call backs from loose connections. He figured it was worth the extra time to use a screw terminal instead of paying a man to go back to a completed job and find a loose connection.
I think that is totally accurate. Its the "see it works" problem. You can use crappy parts and poor technique with many projects and stand back and declare "see it works" when you turn it on. Only to have the problems appear later.
And because no looping is required they are an order of magnetude less likely to be screwed up by a non-preoffessional installer. Pretty hard to screw up sticking 3/8 inch of bare copper into a slot and tightening a screw.
It's what happens after about 15 years that is generally the biggest problem.
ROANIN wrote the following:
Back stabbed outlets are OK if the plugs are not constantly pushed in and out,.as when changing electrical equipment. The one plug that broke my back stabbed outlet wire was a battery recharger.Pushed in one day and pulled out the next Whenever the plug is changed, the outlet, which is connected to the box with a thin metal connector, flexes a little. The continual flexing allows the spring clips to dig further and further into the copper wires until they break off.
So......it is ok to have them as long as you don't use them. :)
Metspitzer wrote the following:
Nope, it's just the constant changing of the plugs that do them in. The back stabbed outlet that failed on me had been in use for over 10 years and was the outlet that the recharger was used in, besides other temporary uses.. The other back stabbed outlets have lamps plugged into them and the plugs stay in 24/7/365, so there is no flexing.
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