ECN Forum Forums Photo Discussion Forums Photos for General Discussion Stair Receptacle

Gene, I've never popped the cover off one of those things since it was never my place to do so. I've only seen them in passing (hallways, etc.) in other people's properties. Don't want to go poking around in what's not mine, you know.

I understand what you mean about the concrete wall. What I've found amusing is sometimes how a poured concrete wall retains the ridges and graining of the plywood molds after the wood panels are taken off and the wall is painted. You look at it and you think someone painted over the wood instead of concrete.

I have one of those duplex outlets in the house. It takes 2 hots, a neutral, and a ground. The 120V portion is internally connected to one of the hots on the 240V outlet.

Is that set of stairs portable? That is, not attached to the building? Maybe this is in a school room (audiotorium) with a stage, and the kids in the wood shop made this to give easy access to get on the stage from the audience area? Then it would be the equivalent to furnature, like a bookcase that sits in front of an outlet, and thus not a violation?

guys, the receptacle is in a stairway of a antique (read;Vermont's version of a junk dealer) shop / apartment house.

the walls are plaster, it's inside, the stairs are not very well built, but intended permanent

Correctly wired, the box will contain two (out of phase) hots and one neutral. The receptacle is constructed so that one side of the receptacle has two connected wire-mounting screws (as in a duplex), while the other side has two separated screws- one for the other hot, and one for the neutral. It is powered from a two-pole breaker; I understand current code to require either a handle tie, or an internal connection between the two trip mechanisms.

A common, inncorrect, unsafe method is to simply ground the neutral screw- usually with a piece of wire from the neutral screw to the ground screw. This method has all the neutral current flow through the mounting screws.

So. What you guys are saying is the electrician should have marked 240 V (or 208 V) on the bottom half of the receptacle, and the 120 V on the to half is missleading ( as it indicates that both are 120 V). You better put a red tag on this!!

On secound thought, maybe the eletrician thougtht the stairway would make the bottom half to bo impractible to use, and therefore marking the bottom would not be neccessary.

crash:

The rest of the house actually contains only 250v receptacles, so apparently it was necessary to label this one exception.