How to Change an Electrical Outlet

1. VERY IMPORTANT! Make sure the power is OFF to the outlet or outlets you are looking to work with. You turn off the power to the outlets by plugging something in to the outlets you will be working with and then going to the circuit breaker box and switching off the circuits until you find the one that handles the power for the outlets you are working with. (Note: once you determine which breaker works which outlets; mark it on the breaker box door for future reference.)

 

 

2. These are the tools you will need for this work. An electrical tester, a pair of rubber handled pliers, a flat head screw driver, a phillips screw driver. Note that the pliers and screwdrivers have insulated ends on them. This is important so that if you are working with "hot" wires, you will NOT get shocked as long as your hands do not touch the metal part of the tool. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Remove the outlet cover by removing the screws in the cover plate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4. Remove the outlet itself by unscrewing the two screws at the top and bottom of the outlet.

 

 

 

5. Each outlet (new or old) will have two screws on each side of them and a green screw at the bottom. The new outlet you will be reinstalling will have a green screw at the bottom and two silver screws on one side and two gold screws on the other. The wires in the box will be bare wire, white coated wire, and black coated wire. Bare wire is the ground. White wire is the neutral leg/wire. And the black wire is the hot leg/wire of the circuit. Once you have removed the outlet from the wall in step 4, it is time to disconnect the existing outlet from the wires. Unscrew (loosen) the Hot leg screw first and pull that wire off from around the screw. Next, do the same for the neutral leg. Unscrew the white coated wire and pull that wire from around the screw. Then do the same for the bare wire/ground. 

6. Take the new outlet and replace the wires in the order that they were removed. Bare/ground first, then white/neutral, then black/hot. Make sure to tighten the screws down over the wires after they are hooked around the screws. Then finish it off with electrical tape around the connection to protect the wires from shorting out on the box (if the box is metal). Re-install the outlet by screwing it into the box and then put the cover plate back on the outlet. (the video for this step will arrive under a different email.)

9. Switch the circuit breaker back on and check to make sure the outlet is working. 

Please note that this work really should be done by a professional. Should there be any difficulties or incidents at all caused as a result of following these directions, I cannot be responsible. I will say that as long as you follow these directions, you should be fine. It is critical to make sure the power is OFF before attempting this work! If you do not have a tester....plug something into the outlet and confirm that the power is OFF. Once it is determined the power is OFF, you can proceed with these steps. Take photos and let me know how it goes. I am interested in hearing about your successes.

-Charlie Frattini
TV Host/Master Builder of A&E's Sell This House Extreme
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Flooded Basement Problems

• Question

Ok so here it goes ... My basement floods .. My fiancé and I bought our house 6 years ago and we are first time home buyers !! Not sure what to do ??? Our basement is not finished and we would like to finish it to have more living space half of the basement is blocked off ?? How can we try to fix this problem ?? PLEASE HELP US!! We love our home and I believe in karma. So ... I do not want to sell to another person who would be unaware of the flooding like we were ! It is a terrible feeling every time we get rain I have a pit in my stomach :( .. Any advice would be greatly appreciated !! Thanks !! Your neighborhood bartender :) Jess from J.T. Cafe !!

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• Charlie's Solution:

Jessica,

Water in the basement is always a nightmare. The reasons can vary dramatically depending on the condition, not only of the house, but also the property surrounding the home.

A couple of questions. Could you tell me where the "water" is coming from?  The floor or the walls?  Does it pour through or just get wet/damp? You say floods; are we talking inches of water? It only gets water after rain?  What are the walls made of?  Concrete block, stone rubble, or concrete?  There is a concrete slab in the basement right?

• Outside. Do you live on a hill? What is immediately around the house? Dirt? Concrete slabs? Deck? Plants?  Do your leaders (roof gutter drains) empty out directly into the ground (underground), onto the surface of the ground around the house?  Are your gutters working or does the rain water run off the roof onto the ground below?

These are all important questions.

My initial thoughts to repair it completely (99%) would be a combination of under slab drainage along the inside edge of the basement leading to a sump pit and pump.  Additionally, I would dig up the outside of the home and re-waterproof the walls. Lastly, I would paint the inside walls of the basement with a water/moisture blocking paint. These recommendations might be altered or some may be added depending on your conditions.

Send me answers to the questions I asked and I will try to steer you in the correct direction.

Good luck and in the meantime pray for a drought.


-Charlie Frattini
TV Host/Master Builder of A&E's Sell This House Extreme
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Re-painting a Door

• Question:

Hi charlie

                  My husband wants to paint my front door, its oak, and has a few layers of shellac
on it, what should he do to prep the door, to be able to paint it?  - Christine from South Philly

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•  Charlie's Solution:

Hi Christine from South Philly!  

Thanks for responding and your question is one many homeowners have come across. Oak doors are beautiful and extremely durable and resistant to the elements. And considering the foul winter weather which Philly gets, your door should be holding up well. 

I like that you think the door has a few layers of shellac on it. If it is really shellac, you're not in too bad a shape. Shellac is pretty easy to remove. First you need to remove the door from the frame and hinges. Then remove any hardware on the door so they do not get damaged. The you need to get denatured alcohol which, when applied to the shellac on the door, should remove it pretty easily. Once the shellac is removed, you should go over the door one more time with mineral spirits to clean it up and then run some fine grit sandpaper over the door just for finishing. At this time, since you are painting the door, you could get some wood filler and fill any damages, gouges, or holes in the door and then sand that down as well. Your door is now ready for painting.I would use a primer which is tinted the final color desired for the door. Then I would go with the finish coat on the door. 

Now if you do not have a shellac finish on your door (which is what I suspect), but the finish is polyurethane or a varnish, I would remove all the hardware and sand the door first. You don't have to sand the finish off, but rather just rand into the poly to score the finish in order to help the primer bond to the door. Fill any holes with wood filler and sand down the wood filler. Then get an oil based primer (see my recommendation below) and a latex top paint is fine over this. Paint the door whatever color you like and re-install the door and the hardware.

For either application I always like to use the Zinsser BIN 2 Primer.

Christine...be sure to take "before" and "after" photos so I can see the finished product and post how nice your "new" old door is looking. Good luck and contact me if you have any questions.

Best Wishes,

Charlie Frattini

-Charlie Frattini
TV Host/Master Builder of A&E's Sell This House Extreme

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                 UPDATE: Here are pictures of the Before & After - good job, Christine!

BEFORE

AFTER

                                                                            

Shed in Swampville

• Question:

Hi Charlie,
I have a question for you.  The ground my shed was built on turns into pseudo swampland when it rains.  It sits on six concrete cylinders, no foundation.  As a result, it is not only sinking, it's rotating.  It has slipped off two of the cylinders.  We put a car jack and a bucket of sand underneath it to hold it up.   My hubby violently thinks we should tear it down, but, I think there's hope.  What do you think?  Another jack? -Lori Zabrocki

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• Charlie's Solution:

Hi Lori, Thanks for your question. I have a few questions of my own that I need to know in order to help. 

1. Is the soil the shed is sitting on lower than the surrounding soil?

2. What is the diameter of the six cylinders the shed is sitting on? And how deep are they? And a stupid question....where are the cylinders situated under the shed? In the corners?

3. How big is the shed and what do you store in it?

4. What is the shed made of? Wood framing and siding, aluminum? I need to know this so I know how heavy the loads are on the supports.

5. Could you take a photo of the shed and the area surrounding it and send it to me?

6. Having wet soil is an easy problem to fix when it comes to shed support. However, wet poor soil is another issue. Do you have any idea what type of soil you have under the shed? Clay, dirt, sand, silt? Have no idea?

The twisting of the shed could be due to an uneven weight distribution inside the shed which is causing an uneven displacement of the loads to the cylinder "supports".

With all of this information I should be able to help you, however, it will take some sweat equity. Give me the answers and I will try to give you the answer. I have initial thoughts on what is the best solution but until I know all the info I cannot be sure. I look forward to hearing back from you.

Charlie Frattini

-Charlie Frattini
TV Host/Master Builder of A&E's Sell This House Extreme
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Power Outlet Not Working | How to for Check GFCI

• Question - We had a power outlet powering our telephone and document shredder, and then one day it just stopped working.  We now have an extension cord running from somewhere else in the room to power the telephone.  And we stopped shredding documents. - JAV

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• Charlie's Solution:  

Hi JAV,

 

Thanks for taking the time to respond to my request for "home repair" questions and yours is a good question. First tell me a little about your knowledge of "working around the house" and also about the situation in your home. 

 

Could you answer these questions?

1. Are you handy with small tools in case the fix is not easy? Screwdrivers, pliers, electrical tape, etc....

2. Is this an outlet with two oval plugs receptors or is it a square outlet? The ovals fit into these type of outlet covers. 

 

3. Make sure the outlet is not a GFCI outlet. This is pretty simple to do. Are there buttons in the middle of the outlet?

Here is an example of a CFGI outlet: 

 

 

4. If not a GFCI, are any other outlets on that wall also out? 

JAV, I would suggest you first check the circuit breaker in the house if you haven't already done so. You may have blown a circuit. If this is the case, then the fix is easy. Switch the circuit back on. You can tell if the circuit breaker is in the "off" position if it is either all the way to the right or if the breaker switch is mid way...not right or left. Most breakers are in the off position to the right and on position to the left. If you find the a breaker in the middle...switch it off first then switch it back on.

If this doesn't work, you may have a bad outlet. Changing an outlet is dangerous so if none of these work or you already tried these steps, let me know and we will go on to changing an outlet.  I will probably do a video for this one. 

Good Luck. I look forward to hearing from you.

-Charlie Frattini

-Charlie Frattini
TV Host/Master Builder of A&E's Sell This House Extreme
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