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Electrical Wiring

adding multiple electrical outlets to box

15 years ago

I found a 3 gang box in a closet in my garage, which had a blanking plate cover on it. Opened it up and found three incoming lines all pigtailed together. So I would like to make use of this box and put in 3 electrical outlets. Through some testing and trial and error, have determined the following:

- One line is "hot", while other two have no power coming from them. So seems the one hot wire was providing power to the other two lines via the pigtail

- One of the non-power lines is connected directly to another outlet in my garage

- The remaining non-hot line is connected to a GFI outlet in my bathroom above my garage (this is then connected to another gfi outlet in the next bathroom)

So what I thought I could do and please correct me if I am way off here is:

- pigtail the 3 black wires (essentially providing the power now to the exisiting two non-hot lines), while adding a 4th black wire to the pigtail to connect directly into the first outlet

- do the same as above for the white neutral lines

- add white/black wires to connect the two other outlets in a line

- for the ground wires, not sure - but one thought was to run the three existing ground wires that are there from the 3 incoming lines directly to each individual new outlet

Will this work and does anyone see any issues with this?

Thank you soooo much!!

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Comments (2)

itsunclebill
15 years ago
The best way to gain additional receptacles is to run a new circuit. And, while you're at it take the existing garage receptacle off the circuit that feeds the bathrooms.

I really suspect that since a 3 gang box is severe overkill for splicing 3 cables that a DIYer tapped a bathroom circuit for an additional garage receptacle.

The bathroom circuits are supposed to feed only the bathrooms. Since this is a reasonably new code requirement the age of the house would make a difference as to whether the house was originally wired this way.
billhart
15 years ago
uncle is right, a new circuit would be better.

It sounds like you need to review a book on basic wiring if you aren't sure what to do with the ground wires. All ground wires should be attached to each other, the box, and each of the receptacles, using whatever pigtails are needed.
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