- 1). Turn off the outlet's circuit breaker. Usually the circuit breaker uses a label identifying the outlet's room.
- 2). Inspect the outlet's electrical box to find the ground source. If the electrical box contains an uninsulated wire or a wire with green insulation, use this wire as the ground wire. If the box does not contain a ground wire, place one ohm meter probe on the electrical box and the other probe on the wire with white insulation. If the ohm meter reads continuity, then use the box as a ground source. If the ohm meter does not read continuity, then run a 14-gauge wire from the circuit breaker's ground source to the electrical box, creating a dedicated ground wire.
- 3). Connect the ground source wire, if equipped, and a 6-inch long 14-gauge wire to the electrical box's green screw, located on the box's back wall, then tighten the screw with a flat-head screwdriver. The ground wire makes the electrical box the outlet's ground source and the 6-inch long wire becomes the outlet's ground wire. Some electricians skip this step if they connect a dedicated ground wire directly to the wall outlet.
- 4). Loosen the outlet's green screw, located on the outlet's mounting bracket, with the flat-head screwdriver.
- 5). Bend the ground wire around the outlet's green screw, then tighten the screw. Use either the dedicated ground wire or the 6-inch long wire connected to the electrical box's green screw.
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