How are These Outlets "Code"?

[redpoint5]

This is the second outlet in my Vancouver house to burn apart as the first warning that it was failing.

How were these "stab" style outlets ever considered to meet electrical code? Would a real electrician even use such garbage?

Who cares if you can save 1 minute per outlet if it burns the house down?

[Piotrsko]

Where I have been, they were code compliant for at least the last 40+ years. Furthermore the ones I saw were stamped UL approved, but made in china. Most building departments accept the UL approva as meeting their code. Have not lived in a jurisdiction that outlawed the design, but I replace them in every place I own with the screw on ones.

Test them with a 12 plus amp drawing device for a short minute or so and see if they get hotter. Having one that fails causes me to buy a couple boxes of replacements and make messes in every room swapping them out.. not sure how this works with 20amp breaker and 16 gauge house wiring........

[rmay635703]

The best outlets are hd combo outlets that have both backstab and terminal style connections.


I really don’t recommend backstab outlets for anything other than light loads like led lights though.

Why backstabs are legal I’m not sure, they are convenient but won’t handle heavy loads.

[redpoint5]

These lever-lock outlets must be new-ish because I don't recall seeing them before.

Perhaps the lever-lock provides better contact than the old backstab type? The old style should be made illegal though (never thought I'd say we need more regulation).

[Piotrsko]

Unless they make a split cone shaped wire socket, you get a small point of contact where the sharp edge bites into the wire (and reduces it's diameter, increases resistance)
Still aint going to use backstabbers, and I have a couple of bulk boxes of the traditional screw sets in white and ivory from when I replaced them all in my current house

Look for ring indent on wire. Thats where the wire will fail.

Edit: went to orange store, looked at new style, didn't see UL mark on boxes I saw. Wonder if they are legal, not that that ever stopped orange store from selling stuff.

Other joke, last year was bumper snow storm year, so there's a hundred snow blowers chained up outside, not selling