[ddawg16]

Why Pigtails? I'll show you why.

Went to remove an old recept to replace it with a recessed one. (I'll explain why in another thread....you're going to love what I'm doing)

Anyway....remove screws....and pull out the outlet...and one of the hot wires breaks off. In addition, the outlet was used as the junction connection...in other words, the next ckt depended on the outlet as the connection point.

Bottom line....if the wire broke that easy, one has to wonder how long it would have been before it broke on it's own....or, how marginal the connection was in the first place.

Compounding the problem....not a lot of length left on the existing wires. I basically had to reach inside the box to strip the wires.

Anyway, got the pigtail installed and recessed outlet installed.

 

[gregzoll]

Sometimes you have to use the Ideal Connectors and some small tweezers to help you manipulate the connector and wires.

I still have small fingers, so I am still able to get two inside a box to hold the wire, while pushing the connector with the Pigtail attached.

 

[Speedy Petey]

That wire would have broken just as easily in a wire nut. It had to have been nicked to begin with. You cannot blame the termination for this one.

 

[Jim Port]

Had the code been followed the wires would have stuck out at least 3" past the face of the box.

 

[ddawg16]

Had the code been followed the wires would have stuck out at least 3" past the face of the box.

House was built in the 80's.

And I must confess. It was me who installed that recept. It was over 15 years ago back when we first bought the house. Before I knew about pigtails. The wires were already short.

As for it breaking with a wire nut? Maybe. But I think part of the problem is the added flexing that takes place when wired direct vs pigtails. With pigtails, the wire nuts are pushed to the back of the box and only the pigtail is being twisted and bent.

I personally think the wire broke from too much flexing.

 

[Jim Port]

Improper stripping will leave a weak spot on the conductor.

 

[gregzoll]

Over twisting them is the biggest part where the wires can break.

That is why the Ideal Pushon come in handy. Plus they take up less room than wire nuts.

The Clock outlet is perfect for a Microwave or Coffee pot.

 

[ddawg16]

Improper stripping will leave a weak spot on the conductor.

Normally I would agree....but if there is one thing I know how to do, it's strip a wire.

Looking at the wiring, it looks like I didn't do that striping....I just moved the wires from the old outlet to the new one......maybe. It just doesn't look like my work. I have a certain way of doing things.

 

[ddawg16]

BTW....I know that wall looks ugly....which is ok.....it will not be seen. It is the outlet here....the empty blue box was for the old coax and Ethernet. Not needed there now.

 

[Big_John]

Wires don't break if not damaged.

Grab a piece of #14 copper and start bending it until it fails; you'll be a while.

This broke because of how it was stripped; I've seen that happen on brand new installs. Feed through VS pigtail has no bearing on that.