Have Two-Prong Outlets? Ungrounded Outlet Hazards and How to Increase Their Safety
If your home was built before 1974, which was the year the National Electric Code (NEC) was updated to require the installation of only grounded outlets in all newly built homes, you may have ungrounded, two-prong outlets in your house.
Two-prong outlets are a nuisance when many electrical devices today have three-prong plugs you cannot power with these outlets. Ungrounded outlets also pose a safety hazard to your family and can potentially damage important home electronics.
Learn about the hazards of two-prong outlets and how a licensed electrician can make them safer for your home and family.
How Are Two-Prong Outlets Hazardous?
A three-prong outlet has three wires: a hot wire, a neutral wire, and a grounding wire. The hot wire directs electricity into the device plugged into the outlet, then the neutral wire sends the electricity back to your home's electrical panel. If a power surge occurs and more electricity is sent to this outlet than it was intended to conduct, then this excess electricity flows through the ground wire and safely to the ground.
In contrast, a two-prong outlet has a hot wire and a neutral wire but lacks a ground wire. If excess power goes to a two-prong outlet during a power surge, this electricity typically goes to the appliance plugged into the outlet instead of being directed safely back to the ground, as it would if a ground wire were present.
When more electricity is sent to an electronic device than it was meant to conduct, this excess power can damage the device, cause electric shock of the person using it, or create an electrical fire.
Unfortunately, you have no way to prevent all power surges in your home. Many occur when an electric company performs routine power grid switching and large appliances in a home are turned on and off. These surges can also occur when a home is struck by lightning.
How Can You Increase the Safety of Two-Prong Outlets?
Thankfully, all two-prong outlets can be updated to improve their safety. Your electrician will likely recommend one of these outlet updates that both protect your electronics and family from the hazards of power surges:
- Add a ground wire to all two-prong outlets. Two-prong outlets can be turned into grounded, three-prong outlets by running a ground wire from each electrical outlet to your home's electrical panel, then replacing the two-prong outlet box with a three-prong box.
- Replace two-prong outlet boxes with ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) boxes. While swapping a two-prong outlet with a GFCI outlet will not ground the outlet, a GFCI box will cut the flow of electricity to an outlet completely in the event of a power surge, which also protects your family and devices from power surge hazards.
While you should add a ground wire to two-prong outlets when possible, GFCI boxes are a good alternative when the additional electrical wiring required to perform this task is difficult or impossible to perform due to a home's layout or electrical system.
Devices on the market called three-prong adapters, also called cheater plugs, are available that many homeowners plug into their two-prong outlets before plugging in electrical devices that have three-prong plugs. These devices are hazardous and should be avoided. When you cover a two-prong outlet with a three-prong adapter, this does not ground the outlet or protect the appliance plugged into it, as a GFCI outlet does.
If a power surge occurs when an electronic device is powered with a cheater plug, the risk of electronic damage, electrocution, or a fire remains.
If you own an older home still equipped with one or more of the original two-prong outlets installed before building codes were updated, then take steps to improve the safety of these outlets before they damage your pricey electronics or harm your family. Contact the licensed electricians at Beckstoffer - Welsh Inc. to schedule an upgrade of your ungrounded two-prong outlets today.
