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    lost??'s Avatar
    lost?? Posts: 234, Reputation: 7
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    #1

    Sep 17, 2013, 08:09 AM
    Grounding question
    Hello, I'm finishing my basement and am at the point where I am running the electric. I've run my wire and installed my boxes, and am now installing the outlets. I have a series of 5 outlets on a new circuit, using 12 gauge wire. My question is on grounding the outlets. At the first outlet, do I connect the ground wire coming in to the grounding screw on that outlet and then the ground for the wire going out to this wire (and repeat for the remaining outlets)? Or do I connect the in and out ground wires together and then run a pigtail to the grounding screw on the outlet? Any insight/answers are appreciated, thanks.
    hfcarson's Avatar
    hfcarson Posts: 1,003, Reputation: 49
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    #2

    Sep 17, 2013, 09:04 AM
    Splice the ground conductors together and then with a pig-tail connect to the green screw on each receptacle...
    Think about it, this way if you change a receptacle you will not interrupt the ground connections to the others...
    hfcarson's Avatar
    hfcarson Posts: 1,003, Reputation: 49
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    #3

    Sep 17, 2013, 09:05 AM
    Another thing... thank you for a clearly stated question with punctuation!
    lost??'s Avatar
    lost?? Posts: 234, Reputation: 7
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    #4

    Sep 17, 2013, 10:33 AM
    Thanks for your responses.
    ma0641's Avatar
    ma0641 Posts: 15,675, Reputation: 1012
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    #5

    Sep 17, 2013, 11:42 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by hfcarson View Post
    another thing....thank you for a clearly stated question with punctuation!
    x2
    ma0641's Avatar
    ma0641 Posts: 15,675, Reputation: 1012
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    #6

    Sep 17, 2013, 01:53 PM
    Wiring it the way you originally thought about is series wiring. Just think, if a wire breaks, particularly on the first outlet, you lose ground protection across the entire circuit. I am now using the green wire nuts that have a hole in them. Makes running grounds easier. You can, of course, use a bare copper connector and swage it to the two leads and the pigtail.
    donf's Avatar
    donf Posts: 5,679, Reputation: 582
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    #7

    Sep 18, 2013, 05:36 AM
    Just curious, the outlet boxes you are using, are they metal or plastic?
    lost??'s Avatar
    lost?? Posts: 234, Reputation: 7
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    #8

    Sep 18, 2013, 06:48 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by donf View Post
    Just curious, the outlet boxes you are using, are they metal or plastic?
    I'm using metal, I like working with them better than the plastic.
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