How To Install An Exterior GFCI Outlet 

Scott, I noticed you used a TR GFCI in this installation. I own a horse boarding farm and I figured out a long time ago that TR receptacles not only protect kids, but they eliminate spiders/bugs getting inside the slots, so that's all I use around my barns.

We do this type of install almost weekly. 2 things you are doing wrong. Drill your pilot hole from the inside for more accurate placement in the basement and number 2 we always use a service entrance connector for a water tight connection on the rear of the exterior box. We do not use Romax connectors at that point they’re not waterproof.

Nice Video a couple of thoughts. Measure off of the top of the window then shifted the box to accommodate centering for the brick and clearance above the sill plate. You could have also mounted the box horizontal which would have picked up that inch you are short . Also I use conduit through the wall which would have reduced the exterior whole size . Lastly always covered the rear of the box with some silicone chalking around the conduit penetration prior to assembly as added protection. JMT Keep up the good work .

This is exactly what I'm getting ready to do tomorrow. My house has the exact same layout from what you showed. The only difference is I'm going with the non-snag weather proof rubber grommet on the back and I'll caulk the for some extra water proofing. What really helped me here is that masonry bit you showed for the hole itself. You turned to towards Wagos in the past as well! Thank you for the great content!

Since you had to notch the floor joist. I highly recommend you go back and drill out the corners. Make the corners rounded instead of at a 90° angle. When rounded, it minimizes the chances of the wood splinting away in the future.

I think you need to use WR (weather resistant) outlet outside.

Most hand-stripping tools have a numbered index that lets you neatly cut electric machine thread screws. That allows you to make a much smaller wall hole for your clamp.......try it.

This is incredible timing, I was just searching for this thing through your channel a few days ago

Void in a concrete block wall means downward through the middle of a standard block wall, not through holes drilled in the sides. I suspect you would need to sleeve the NM where it enters and exits. Also, you should have stapled the cable closer to the box (within 12”). And I like to confirm the gfci function with both the test button on the receptacle and the tester.

I always specified metal in-use covers on my projects, contractors would install the plastic ones, which they then got to change. One contractor was so bold to tell me they don't make metal ones, I then told him to go to HD and get one.

You could have mounted that box an inch higher and not have had to notch out the floor joist. (Unless you’re trying to match the height of an existing outlet) but I would have centered the outlet vertically on that block. Also, you forgot to show the circuit breaker connections

Doesn’t a 15A duplex GFCI receptacle already satisfy multiple outlet requirement for being on a 20A circuit?

What makes a waterproof seal between the box and the cement? There’s a big hole in your block going into your basement but I don’t see any seal.

I'm really a novice, but I worked with an electrician for several months. Even as a carpenter, I remember that holes should be drilled within about 18" from the joist support point. Drilling further away from that support not only tends to weaken the joist, but I believe that it is against code.

You are the goat 🐐 of home repairs

Hey Scott, I'm a big fan of your videos. Home Depot has 1/2 and 3/4 service entrance connectors. I think keeping the hole smaller would be better in my situation so Ill probably pick the 1/2. My plan is to drill the 1/2 hole through my wall+stucco from the inside out from an inside outlet hole to draw the power from that. And then attach the box on the outside. Any tips on drilling through the wall+stucco?

Style point: keep the GFCI inside. Use a WR/TR outlet outside. Good job overall.

I would use a conduit pipe through the brick coated with polyurethane on the outside before sliding it in to seal it, and then a waterproof service connector for Romex to the box. If you could not drill from inside out and made that drill mistake with the small hole when drilling from outside in, I would have filled the first hole with some sort of cement sealer and moved up right then and drilled a new hole in the right spot. I think I'd rather have a filled bad drill hole than notch out that floor joist like that. Not sure with spacing how you could drill from inside with that big drill though but I bet some smart guy knows here.

You mentioned needing the 2nd receptacle from the junction box due to the NEC requirement for at least two 15amp receptacles on a 20amp circuit. It's been my understanding that the GFCI having 2 receptacle outlets meets that requirement. (CAVEAT: I am not a licensed electrician but am very experienced with electrical work and much of the code.) Like the other poster mentioned, I recommend confirming the GFCI function with the test buttons on BOTH the receptacle and the tester. (I think most modern testers have the button.) Keep up the great work. You have some great videos!

I would have installed a short piece of conduit through the masonry. Would have taken less time than all the talk about it. But, when installing screws through the inside of the box, would sealing washers have been required (or a good idea) to prevent moisture from entering the box? I have never seen these boxes that could be mounted from inside screws, only tabs on the outside.

I would referenced the top of the window to measure to the midway of the joist. Then drill the hole from outside with that measurement.

Just did this recently. I used the same metal box as you did and had issues fitting the bulky GFCI in the box even though I used Wago connectors. I used gray PVC 1/2" threaded male adapter through the center hole of the box and ended up having to cut the threads sticking out into the box with a rotary tool. Those boxes are horrible and my opinion not deep enough for a standard sized GFCI Also at your service panel all the wires that come into the top of the box should be stapled within 12" maybe add a 2 x 6 under those wires.

Scott, thanks for the video. I like the video, but have a suggestion. I would like to see you caulk the back of the box before securing it to the wall, and I think you should have caulked the inside of the box where the wire is coming in to the box. Also, you should check the instructions on the box, one of the ones I previously installed required caulking of the plugs. Also, check with Joel but I am pretty sure a duplex receptacle is considered multiple outlets, therefore it is ok to have a 20A circuit breaker supply one outlet box with a 15A duplex receptacle installed, since there are 2 outlets to plug into. The notch of the bottom of the joist seemed like a clever trick that should pass inspection.

In a cubby I have been installing a new 20a outdoor power outlet for a car 🚗 port for an electric fan

Since the brick is hollow, just make a hole in the joist and into the brick cavity the proper distance above the edge of the joist. It'll be a little trickier to fish the wire through the brick cavity, but then you won't have to notch the joist. Since the joist was notched, it should be sistered with another (unnotched) 2x stock, glued and nailed to the joist above the notch. I'm not sure how far to each side of the notch is required to bear the load across the notch -- I'm not THAT much of an expert. And, rather than a notch, the cut should be tapered to distribute stress across the joist rather than focusing it in the corners of the notch.

masondry?

is there a reason you didn't use the 4x4 box in the basement to mount the GFCI and then use the load terminals for standard WR rated duplex receptacles? I did something along these lines when I put outdoor outlets on my house as the unfinished basement also needed some more outlets.

Why didn't you mount it one brick row up? That would have saved you the notch and nail plate on the very bottom of the joist, also the NM would have been more concealed vs. looking like it just got squeezed up in there. I have to agree with TomCee53. It seems like the entry/exit of masonry **should** need sleeving- and if NEC doesn't call for it- just add it because they will a few years later.

Love the channel! I’m new to electrical work, but my understanding is that NM cable is not permitted outdoors. Once you penetrated the masonry to run the NM cable outside, didn’t you go against code? Keep up the great work?

That box will get water in it. If silicone is not applied to the top screw. Also my electrician instructor told me he had his guys drill a 1/8” hole at the bottom of the box for if any water will get in.

I've never seen a micro inverter like that used to put power into house not sure how that one works. but i have panels on roof and they required a lot of special hookups and a specific inverter that reads power from house and syncs with it on voltage and frequency as well as shutting off in a power outage, so it does not back feed to power lines in an outage while they are working on lines.

Loomed in block is just fine in east coast Canada. Generally we run wire below joists with staples. Just the most common method here.

a duplex receptacle is considered more than one

We were told at an IAEI continuing education class that is NEVER legal yo run type MM cable to any outdoor location .All outdoor locations are considered either wet or damp locations. Type NM cable ls not approved for damp locations.Told us we must use tupe UF cable .

I have two points that lean toward your not using conduit through the drilled hole. 1. 2017 NEC 334.10 (A)(2). NM shall be permitted to be installed or fished in air voids in mason army block or tile walls. A drilled hole is not an air void in the block. It was not made with the hole you drilled. NMC uses do not apply since you did not use it. 2. 334.12 Uses not permitted. 334.12(B) 14:43 NM shall not be used under following conditions or locations. (4) In Wet or damp locations. The exterior wall outside is a wet location. If you have a large overhang, it would be a damp location. According to Article 100 Definitions Location, Wet in unprotected locations exposed to weather is a wet location. NM can not be installed in a wet location. In the handbook, the inside of a raceway in a wet location is considered a wet location. So, no conduit is not legal through drilled holes in masonry, and putting a conduit through the hole to the box in a wet location can not have NM installed either. Must be NMC or UF.

I believe this would be a fail in Canada, for in "section 12 wiring methods", for Non-metallic-sheathed cable, 12-512 states: "Not to be Embedded: The cable shall not be buried in plaster, cement, or similar finish." I would probably just do a PVC sleeve out the back of the box.

Re: 15A outlets on a 20A breaker -- a strict reading of the code (I don't remember the section, sorry) indicates that you can install a single 15A duplex receptacle on a 20A circuit, because the two receptacles on the face count as... multiple receptacles. Of course, your local inspector may interpret that differently.

In-use covers for exterior receptacles are actually required by code now, I think.

NEC states “more than 1 15 amp receptacle.” A duplex, including GFCIs is 2 receptacles. Also, sealing the actual penetration (hole) is more code compliant.

I would still use Conduit, even though code does not not require it. Code is only for MINIMUM Protection; you do not want that NM cable to have any possibility to be nicked by that masonry.

On any entrance from a conditioned space (inside) to and unconditioned space (outside) you would need to put on some duct seal per code also use a weatherproof cord grip other than that good job

Very helpful. Thank you.

I would also try and thread the wire through the pipe at the panel rather then have a single wire going to the panel. This would have made a neighter job. Especially when this is inspected when selling the house.

Question: this is a home built pre 1950 (darkness of the joists & wooden posts), it uses 2x6’s for the floor joists, is this your residence and if it is, why would you buy with this small of a joist? Thanks!

Can you use Wago nuts outdoors in a waterproof box? I am about to do a similar project with a GFCI before a lamp post.

I like the nail plate idea, yet the "sharp edges" concerns me. Even a thin piece of wood would prevent any possible (though doubtful) cutting of the wire. Some rubber wrapped around the wire would take care of it.

Since you grounded the metal box, the jumper to the receptacke is not required. And I ,now i will get a lot of djsagreement.

You didn't caulk the tapcons. Don't all box intrusions have to be sealed?

Is the cable clamp 100% necessary? Yesterday i got everything i need to install a few exterior outlets but i didn't get any cable clamps.

What outlet mount did you use? I’m having a difficult time finding one such as the one you’re using without it being from some sketchy Chinese website.

Should’ve went up another course

It recently came to my attention that not all gfi outlets work with current flowing in either or both directions. In some cases, the test button won't work while backfeeding power, and sometimes it might even damage the receptacle. Just something to consider before trying to backfeed through a gfi receptacle...

WR designation on the unit?

If you had set your box in the center of the brick, you wouldn't have had the joist and brick issue on the inside. I would have done this just for visual effect unless there are code issues involved.

There is code and above code. With that said, I would've rather spent a couple extra dollars to put a Liquidtight fitting on the back of the exterior box, with some sealant around it. As it stands, water can still go down the exterior wall and get between the wall and the box sitting on top of the non-exterior rated cable, clamp, and that water can freeze and thaw an end up, causing damage to the brick around it. Just because it's not "necessitated "in code does not mean you can't take the extra step to prevent any water getting into the foundation. I acknowledge that you put some sealant around the box for that purpose. However, overtime if that were to shrink up or tear having the liquid tight fitting is an extra level of protection, and the fitting by itself, does not count as "running NM cable quote through conduit .

I had to listen twice where you talk about adding additional 15 amp outlets on a 20 amp circuit because you failed to mention that you still need 12 ga. wire. A little confusing but not incorrect.

how can i wire a ceiling fan to a gazebo off an outdoor outlet

Probably a dumb question, but would you have to ground the metal junction box cover? I know you are supposed to bond metal junction boxes, just don't know if it would apply to a cover if the junction box is plastic.

Would this be any different for a hot-hot-ground 30amp 230v run?

Thanks!

i would have drilled my hole a bit higher to go through the wood rather then the concrete. Just to make a more secure job, I would use conduit connected to the outside box. Rather be safe then sorry.

The NEC is not the king of your castle. The ONLY time you could get dinged is IF you go to sell your house, and it is called out AND the buyers insist you fix it, or you can sell your house as is. As far as I am concerned the NEC is just a suggestion, and its more to protect YOU, so that IF you call an electrician, you know they're going to do what code stipulates. Otherwise, you are the king of your castle and the speaker of your house. Ground should always be down. Otherwise it's sky. I like your cover and that it is metal. Better than the crap I got that's plastic. The electrician that put it in didn't have metal so that's something else I have to change when I can. My electrician also put the outlet in sideways horizontal, instead of vertical, and the cover is hinged on top and opens from the bottom. He claimed it was for better waterproofing. If I did it myself, I would have done it vertical and used the metal tabbed cover that came with the kit I purchased which was gray enamel and individual doors that covered each outlet. It doesn't hurt that they get wet and it was going to be on a GFCI anyway, but he just did it all right there. Great video and yes, Joel at EPA is good too. I like his videos as well.

You have to build a chase above your panel. You can’t have exposed Romex like that

I was surprised that you drilled so low on the brick, the outcome looks predictable.

So wait, you can run 15A outlets on a 20A breaker?!? 😮

Did you drill holes in the outdoor box to mount it? I don't ever recall seeing holes in an outdoor rated box, usually they have lugs.

Not true in many places as without conduit you do not have a ground!

Good god that panel is a travesty. This guy. I say this every time. He needs to stop with the whole “I know a master electrician, Jefferson Electric.,” thing and realize he’s showing people how to do crap work. There’s a whole lot of wrong that could happen with this install depending on the inspector. Just spend the the $5 on a sleeve. Code minimums are for hacks and really crap service calls, not new installs.

Someone please tell him there's no D in Masonry.

That would have made my OCD q$$ extremely angry. Furious.

There is no “d” in the word “masonry”.

Let me get this water proof box and not run conduit. Ok buddy, at least an initial section 1-2 ft to secure the outside box and your basement from moisture

shlt work done

A job for a licensed electrician only - this is not a DYI project

ce usor e sa ai casa din carton .... vino fa si mie la apartment din 1990 , ai sa te minunezi si ai sa pleci

What a hack!!! I would never run romex exposed down to the panel. Run conduit !!! 😂

Masonry 👍🧱

There's a few recommendations I'd like to make. 1) always use the ears in wet locations like that. The screws through the back are for damp location only. 2) always seal your penetration through the wall both inside and out. This prevents water seepage, helps maintain the climate controlled space, and prevents bug entry. 3) although there's an exception for short runs through wet locations, best practice is to use a wet location rated cable like UF here. Best practice is to sleeve it through the wall as well. 4) if there's more than 3 NM and/or UF cables running through the same hole you have to derate the cable. 5) although not all holes require it, for the longevity of the floor you should always sister up a reinforcement board at all knotches and holes through a floor joist. 6) in that location the gfci outlet need to be of the TRW (TRWR) type. It should have WR marked on its face.

Literally posted an hour before I'm getting ready to do something similar and was just looking for ways to mount electrical on the exterior correctly. Thank you!

Since I live in a location that often has ground tremors and although it is not required, I consider it a best practice to use a short piece of PVC conduit to prevent scaffing when pulling or due to vibration. When mounting a box to an exterior wall, I also consider it a best practice to put a 180 degree loop of silicone over the top of the hole behind the box. This further insures water will not penetrate behind the box and corrode terminals or damage structure. Experience has taught me to put a loop in the NM before stapling so that, down the road, if I need to reroute for other wiring, I have the slack to do so.

I would use liquid-tight flex conduit from the exterior box and run it to a handy box (or your 4x4) mounted on the interior floor joist. Connect the NM cable to the interior box - strip out some wire from your NM cable and run to your exterior box - wire as usual. You could use regular flex conduit since you're sealing your exterior box. My thoughts.

The forces put on a joist are greatest at its outer edges. The top of the joist is in compression and the bottom is in tension. As you move from the top of the joist to the center of the joist the amount it is in compression moves to zero. As you move from the bottom of the joist to the center of the joist the tension forces move from its highest value to zero. So essentially, the center of the joist is where the forces are zero, thus making it the idea location to drill holes as it does not compromise the integrity of the joist. Making cuts at the top or bottom of the joist maximally compromises its integrity. Even making holes off from the center can reduce the strength of the joist depending on where the hole is. It's possible to turn a joist from a 2x10 to a 2x8 by doing what you did there with that notch. Depending on the loads placed on that joist, you may have greatly compromised the strength of that joist and any walls or flooring that depend on it. Same rule applies to studs, rafters or trusses. This is why plumbers and electricians should always drill through the center of the wood they need to drill through. And the smaller the hole, the better. In this case I would have put the outlet one more block higher in order to get it through the middle of the joist.

From outside I would have drilled a large hole first in the first part of the brick and then with the pilot bit, at an angle go thru the back part of the brick at an angle going up to reach the center of the joist or about. I would also fill the hole from inside with expanding foam to keep insects and cold air from coming in. Lastly I would have put a bead of caulking around the big hole in the brick before screwing the box on the wall, kind of belt and suspenders with the outside caulk around the box.

Is there a "d" in your "masondry?" Or have my ears failed me?

No silicone behind the box? The romex connection isn’t water proof just curious if the box will fill up over time

Im confused,the bare ground of the feeder coming into the box should be run through the ground screw first whether its a branch or dedicated circuit. This is a serious pet peeve of most inspectors and an indication of experience. Why run it to a Wago then back to the ground screw with a Shepard hook? I dont see the reason behined it,or am I missing something?

Masondry.

Hi Scott just wanted to add per your point about the multiple 15A on a 20A circuit: Even a single 15A duplex is fine, because it's two outlets. The only time you have to do the 20A on 20A thing is if it's a SINGLE outlet on the yoke.

Duplex outlets count as having 2 receptacles for the purposes of using 15A outlets on 20A circuits

With all that void in the concrete block, one could have drilled upward from the outside through the big hole to make a 'Romex' hole in the floor joist, well above the bottom. Is there a reason the 'Romex' cable had to be level going through the wall?

It’s masonry not masonDry

It is recommended to seal using silicone or other products so water can not get in behind the box and enter the house or box but around the top will work but should be check every year.

I think I would have started with a pilot hole through the floor joist first

Not all ahj 's allow drilling through the box. Seal around box or sealant on back. I use a PVC connector and sleeve in concrete...

Masond-REEEEEEEE

Walker David Davis Larry Hall Jose

The Excellent Labourer sent me

it is supposed to be weather resistant

My understanding of code is that a second GCI on that circuit is certainly allowed but is not required. A duplex receptacle is two receptacles, so a single 15 amp duplex is actually acceptable on a 20 amp circuit. I just tend to install 20 amp receptacles on 20 amp circuits because other than the few dollars of extra cost, I can't think of a good reason not to, and more versatility down the line with the sorts of devices I can power could prove useful one day.

12:05 You said that you can install a 15amp receptacle onto a 20amp breaker. Technically, you already met that. By installing a duplex receptacle. So no need to install an other on the back of the house. I know you will though. But I just wanted to make sure you’ve already met that code by installing a duplex receptacle.