ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Three gang decora plate

My supply house back in Orange Co. would special order anything my heart desired as I stayed pretty loyal to them for many years, even opening up at night a couple times on emergency calls... But I also found most supply houses have no problem taking special orders as long as you pay up front and don't try to return it.

Hal,
I've gone to every supply house I do business with regularly (5 in all)and they can all order it for me but, every one of them says atleast 4 weeks.
It makes me cring to think of waiting a month to get what should be a regularly stocked, $1.98 item.
I've located 1000 kva, 13,200v transformers and had them shipped to the job over the course of a weekend to get a factory back on line but, I can't find a decora 3 gang goof plate in brown anywhere locally in a town that makes almost anything.
I just makes me a little ticked off that's all.

You really think a brown 3 gang decora idiot plate should be a regularly stocked item?

One thing I miss about having an electrical mfr. here in So Cal is the ability to just take a 45 minute drive and get oddball things tlike that.. Sierra Electric used to be in Gardena, CA till they got eaten up by P&S ... I once got a 22 gang Stainless switch plate next day from them. Quite handy

If you happen to live in the NYC Metro area, you might try the same thing with Leviton in Little Neck, NY or P&S in Syracuse, NY..

Around here, a 3 gang brown decora goof plate should be a regularly stocked item.
Everybody and their brother has a basement with wood paneled walls and almost everyone has finished off the basement with rows of recessed lights that they want to switch seperately. It's a big fad around here.
If I can get a 2 gang brown goof plate as a stocked item, and a 3 gang white plate as a stocked item, why not a 3 gang brown?

Obviously because you are the only one who want's one. I'm sure if they sold one a week they would keep them in stock.

-Hal

Hal you sound like my wife (AKA favorite builder). She won't let me put anything in our house that someone stocks.
If anyone else has one she doesn't want it.

Got my special ordered plate yesterday.
Cost me $1.18.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about the price, but when I asked the guys if he had a case of them shipped in, he said "No, just that one.".
Now I'm sure that the cost of labor involved to type in the order, have someone at the warehouse go pull it off the shelf, box it up, load it on a truck, drive it here, unload it, seperated it from the rest of the orders, carry it to the will-call desk and hand it to me was more than $1.18.
Where's the logic in not ordering atleast a couple spares just to have around for future? It's not like they take up too much room.
I really don't care whether or not they have to order another when I need one. I just wanted to give Hal more reason to give me a hard time about this thread.

What I would have suggested is some creative finish carpentry around the switch opening that would have allowed you to use a regular size 3 gang plate and trim around the oversize opening with a wood frame. Make sure to fill in the drywall voids with spacle first so there is no gap at the box edges.

Macmikeman,
Thanks for the input but, it's not the size of the hole for the box that I'm trying to cover, the hole is perfect for the box.
The prob. is that the wall is antique, stained 1/2 inch wood paneling and the old switch plate was oversized and made of wood.
I'm trying to avoid having to match the color of the stain.
The wall was never stained behind the existing plate and since the old plate was so large, there is sure to be a large area of untreated wood around the new plate.
I'm just trying to leave the customer with the best looking job at the least amount of cost.
I'd rather he didn't have to hire a painter to match the wall exactly (if possible) just for an area of a few square inches.
Thanks again for the input though.