Reverse Polarity / Hot Neutral Wires Reversed / Ground Wiring - Oh My!

Learn with the pros! Today, we are joined by an electrician, Chris, who will walk us through the steps to correct hot-neutral wires reversed in a GFCI outlet and to properly connect ground wires. Chris provides crucial tips throughout based on code and a wealth of experience. I hope you find this as helpful as it was to me.
Mentioned in this video:
* Buchanon WingTwist or Twist-On Green Wire Connectors
(Ideal brand is available at Lowe's as of 2/19/23)
* Wiha Insulated SoftFinish® Cushion Grip Terminal Block Driver
* Klein Tools RT210 Outlet Tester
amzn.to/3OACxUy
Best wishes and be safe!
Wendy
Disclaimer: This video is intended for entertainment purposes only.
Note: Some links are affiliate links that help the channel at no cost to you.

[@Sparky-ww5re]

The problem with hot and neutral reverse is what while most if not all devices plugged into such an outlet will work fine and you might not know you have this problem until you test with a plug tester, it can pose a dangerous shock hazard. A good example is a table lamp with a regular screw in bulb. While changing a bulb it's much easier to touch the metal shell. You want the threads to be neutral because the neutral is ultimately connected to ground, that way you won't (or shouldn't) receive a shock. A reverse polarity means the exposed threads will be hot even while the lamp is off, yet the lamp will work normally as if nothings wrong. Very old homes built before WWII were oftentimes wired with knob and tube, and sometimes the light switches were deliberately placed on the neutral instead of the hot side as required in modern practice.

[@mainelydiymom]

Great information. Thanks for sharing!

[@davidmarquardt9034]

@@mainelydiymom The color code is white (or rarely light grey) is the neutral, and it goes to the silver terminal. The hot wire in romex is black and goes on the brass terminal. If the wiring is in conduit, the hot could be black, red, yellow, orange, blue, brown, or purple, but never white or green. Green is reserved exclusively for ground (along with bare copper). Sometimes you will find a outlet with a black and red wire. This is a switched outlet, the red wire is connected to a switch and the strip between the brass terminals is snapped off with a pliers. The black side is always hot, but the red side you can plug in a lamp you can turn on/off from the door. This is in a case like a living room that has no ceiling light.

[@okaro6595]

I see no reason why anyone would deliberately put the switch on the neutral. More likely they just did not make difference between them and put it on whichever. But I fail to see why anyone would stick their fingers on the base when changing bulbs. I ways hold the bulb on the glass.

[@Sparky-ww5re]

@@davidmarquardt9034 all that is correct, with one exception. Sometimes, typically in rural areas such as farms with the need for three phase motors, or some commercial/industrial applications with significant 3 phase motor loads, single phase 240V equipment and relatively little 120V loads, there will be a 120/240V 3 phase 4 wire delta service. With this system, you would measure 240V phase to phase, 120V between two of the three phases to neutral, and 208V between the other phase to neutral, this higher voltage to neutral is the high leg aka stinger leg, and is REQUIRED to be colored orange or by other effective means as per 110.15. This is important to know, because otherwise if I'm installing breakers in the panel and don't realize there is a high leg, I might install a single pole breaker here to power a 120V circuit and smoke everything because it'll be getting 208V instead. Other clues of a high leg system are seeing a panel with every third slot empty or occupied by a two/three pole breaker. Or seeing a pole with two or three transformers and one is much larger than the others.

[@mainerdmoose9242]

Love your 'short' pun; must be my Norway-S.P. heritage. Where your friend is solid on electrical safety/codes, etc. saying 'gold', 'yellow-gold' goes to black doesn't have a common word link/rhyme/letter to aid recall.... The metal is really BRASS/BRASS-plated so it makes better sense to equate BLACK-to-BRASS (or flip it) to use as a memory aid! Also he keeps saying 'bolt'. It's not! It is a SCREW! (it's round & has a slot for a screwdriver.) Regards. (btw a LINESMAN (has an 'S') pliers is aka electrician's pliers by some folks.)

[@mainelydiymom]

Thanks for the feedback. Always appreciated