Outlet placement

jerseyguy1996

I read somewhere that walls should have an outlet at least every 12 feet and any wall that is wider than 3 feet should have an outlet. The bedrooms in my house are very small and although the walls are longer than 3 feet there is no point in the room that is farther than 12 feet from the one outlet. Is that sufficient or will I be required to have 4 outlets per room on account that all rooms have 4 walls that are longer than 3 feet?

Scuba_Dave

I space my outlets every 4-6' instead of every 12'
And I do put an outlet on every wall
Much more convienent

joed

Code requires that no space along a wall be more than 6 feet from a receptacle. That means that you need a receptacle within 6 of the the start of a wall(door, fireplace) and then every 12 feet along the wall. The middle of 12 feet will be 6 feet from a receptacle. Also any wall 3 feet long ( eg between two doors) must have a receptacle. You can add more if you wish. The measurement is along the wall not across the floor if there is a corner.

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brric

Any wall space greater than 24" requires a receptacle.

jerseyguy1996

I guess I am confused by the language in the code. So I start from the door (or whatever) and measure 6 feet and make a mark. Then I move 12 feet down and make another mark. When I get to a corner I turn the corner and continue measuring 12 feet from the previous outlet? So lets say hypothetically I have a room that measures 15 feet by 12 feet with no doors or windows or anything other than wall. I start at the corner of a 15 foot wall. I measure 6 feet and mark a spot for an outlet. I then measure 12 feet which would put me 3 feet into my second wall (6 + 12 -15) and mark the 2nd outlet. I then measure 12 more feet which would put me 3 feet into my 3rd wall (3 + 12 -12) and mark the location of my 3rd outlet. I then measure 12 more feet which would put me right at the corner of my 3rd and 4th wall (3 + 12 - 15) and mark the spot for a 4th outlet. I would then need one more outlet 12 more feet away at the corner of my 1st and 4th walls to meet the requirement of having no spot more than 6 feet from any wall. Am I adding this correctly?

jerseyguy1996

and I guess to take my previous example and change it a bit and say that the room is 12 feet by 3 feet then the first outlet would go 6 feet into the first 12 foot wall. The next outlet would go 3 feet into the opposing 12 foot wall (12 foot span minus (6 feet left on the first wall plus 3 feet on the second wall)). In this scenario the 3 foot wall would not need an outlet because any point on the wall would be within 6 feet of the 2nd outlet. Is this correct?

Scuba_Dave

No....you need an outlet on the 3' wall

nap

huh?

yes. You are putting too much thought into this though.

Why you keep starting with start> 6 feet place first recept> go 12 feet place recep... I have no idea.

If you have no doors or windows, you aren't going to need any receps at all because you can't get in the dang room!!!!

but anyway, using the no doors condition; just pick a spot and place a recep. Measure 12 feet, place another recep, measure 12 feet, place another recep and on and on until you get within 12 feet of the first recep

nap

what's the code? I cannot find any such requirement.

from what i see there is no such a requirement. The only thing I can see referencing the 2' is 210.52(A)(2)(1)


it is used to define what is considered to be a "wall space". from my understanding, the point is, as an example, if you have a 1 foot wall between 2 closet doors, there is no requirement for a recep be within any specific distance because it is not consiered to be a "wall space" per the definition. If it was 2' or greater, it would have to have a recep within 6 feet of any point of that 2 foot wall..

jerseyguy1996

The reason it is a big deal is because I have a 15 foot wall and the builder placed the outlet roughly right in the center of the wall. That means that on that wall, there is a 1 1/2 foot section at each end that is farther than 6 feet from the receptacle that is placed in the middle of the wall. So I just want to make sure that the 1 1/2 foot section at each end can, by code, be serviced by a receptacle on an adjoining wall if it is within 6 feet (in other words within 4 1/2 feet of the shared corner between the two walls). This isn't new construction and I would like to make use of the holes that are already cut in the wall from the old wiring. I probably should have mentioned that this is an old house and I am upgrading all of the wiring. The previous electrical would not come close to code in any respects.

nap

measure from that recep in the middle of the wall. You must have a recep within 12 feet of that recep in both directions.

and make sure it is within 12'. Some inspectors will not accept 12' 1".

jerseyguy1996

I think this answers my question. Thanks!

Saturday Cowboy

Yes wall spacing continues around corners

Saturday Cowboy

The requirement for a plug on any wall 24in wide is because wall space does not continue across doors. so using you example of a small wall between two closet doors.


measuring along wall placing outlets - come to door stop measurement/placement- start again on other side of door (must place plug within 6')- come to door stop measurement/placement- start again on other side of door


therefore you must place a plug on any wall two feet wide or wider.


250.52(A) (1)

Any space 2ft or more width (including space measured around corners) and unbroken along the floor line by doorways, fireplaces, and similar openings

Scuba_Dave

I've always had an outlet on every wall
But I've never had any room with a wall only 3' long
I'm curious how some Inspectors would rule