I had one that came with a fax machine. It was 10 inches high and had a polarized plug. It wouldn't do very well in an upside-down receptacle.
Some catalogs sell a thing that' supposed to help. It's a 1-foot
1-outlet extension cord that costs too much. Use a regular extension cord and you can use 2 or 3 wall-warts.
If the prong holes face the wall, you can't plug anything in at all. On all my receptacles, the ground hole faces the same direction as the power prong holes.
MY surgeon doesn't drop things.
Most workers in building construction come from the southern hemisphere where things are reversed.
Or they should have wires through the screws so they can't unscrew. Finally a way to use those wire twisting pliers I keep posting about. I'm going to start on it tonight.
I'm a big fan of crimp connectors, but I'm lucky to have a tool that does them correctly. The ones I see in stores nowadays are no better than putting the connector on the floor and stomping on it.
All of my replacement faceplates come with a small cardboard washer behind the screw, so that even if it did come loose from the outlet it would remain attached to the faceplate. Regards --
IMHO:
I think it's a personal preference for home's. In commercial places, there is some belief if the screw becomes loose, pops out, and the 'metal' face plate falls, on a partially inserted plug, you can get a spark that causes a fire. This sounds like a lot of "what if's", but you need to do what you are instructed.
Personally I like grounds down, since the index finger has a habit of migrating to one of the prongs, so best if it's the grounding prong.
hth,
tom @
Loosing the screw on the floor isn't the issue, the issue is having the metal cover plate land balanced on the exposed conductors of the plug in the outlet. It's not a pretty thing, especially when you can't turn off the circuit right away to fix it due to the equipment plugged in. With a plastic or nylon cover plate it would of course be a non issue.
Pete C.
FWIW: The manufacturer's catalogs, like Pass & Seymour/LeGrand, have illustrations uniformly showing duplex outlets with grounds at the top.
Joe
Yes, I see that now. there are several loose in this group. I personally have NEVER seen an outlet cover plate unscrew itself in a home, in a shop, in an aircraft plant, in a school, in a garage, where there was loud music, OR in a hospital.
Take a look. Many new homes are being done that way.
Don Fearn wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:
I wonder if this subject will set a new record for most replies in a thread previously held by this same subject.
I haven't either, but I have seen door locks (on wooden doors) unscrew themselves. Also water faucets (loosening from the sink, not causing a water leak).
Too bad they didnt design the outlet to look like | 0 | instead of | | 0
Has anyone surveyed the common electrical appliances to see how they feel? Are there certain appliances that prefer doggy style over the missionary position?
If you land a metal cover plate balanced across the plugs, the circut is likely to be turning itself off, anyway. If you got something that mission-critical plugged in, why isn't it on a UPS?
Ever looked at a Neutrik PowerCon connector?
Twist and lock, no exposed conductors, ground contacts touch first, rated for 20A. Unfortunately its not rated as an in-wall mains connector.
Chris
It's a place where low lifes and illegal immigrants hang out while stuffing themselves with greasy cheeseburgers and french fries waiting for cancer or diabetes so they can go get meical to pay for their ailments. Nice place really, lovely in the summertime.
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