20 amp recessed clock hanger outlet

mattlear

Senior member
Jun 2, 2000
349
0
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I'm installing a new plasma TV using a wallmount. I'd like to put a recessed power outlet behind the TV so it is hidden from view.

I was planning on using a clock hanger outlet, which is a recessed out in a box.
Recessed outlet sample

The problem is, the circuit this outlet would be installed on is a 20amp circuit.

Both passandseymour as well as leviton make this in a 15amp version, but I'm having a hard time locating a 20amp version. I can't seem to find a 20amp recessed outlet via google.

I don't think it's a good idea to put a 15amp outlet on a 20amp circuit, right? I was always under the assumption that in this case, the outlet could overdraw and burn up before the breaker actually trips, since the outlet would be lower rated than the circuit breaker.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks,

-Matt
 

doan

Golden Member
Dec 17, 2000
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76
Its pretty normal to put 15 amp outlets on 20 amp circuits. Most GFCI's used in bathrooms are 15 amp, but bathrooms are always wired with 12 gauge for 20 amps. Same with kitchens and dining rooms. Almost always wired 20 amp but use standard 15 amp outlets.
 

mattlear

Senior member
Jun 2, 2000
349
0
76
I didn't know this - I always thought it was better to put a 20amp outlet on a 15 amp breaker because if there was a problem, the breaker would trip. I guess that doesn't make sense from the fact that you could now plug in a legit 20amp device and it would most certainly always trip the breaker.

I wanted to keep everything 20 amp on the circuit, but since the recessed outlet is the end of the run, I guess it really couldn't do any harm to put it on the circuit?

-Matt
 

GLE

Junior Member
Aug 19, 2011
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A device such as a TV that can draw more than 15A will have a 20A configuration that will not allow you to plug it in to a 15A receptacle

It is common practice to install 15A receptacles on 20A circuits

Chances are if your house was wired with 20A wire you already have 15A plugs installed on those circuits
 

Paperdoc

Platinum Member
Aug 17, 2006
2,435
344
126
A 20-amp outlet itself will not draw more power than a 15-amp outlet. Power draw is set by the active device plugged in, not by the outlet.

Ideally, on any circuit three items need to be matched. The breaker in the panel fixes the maximum current allowed in the circuit. The wiring from breaker to wall outlet(s) must be the correct size to carry safely the max current the breaker allows. The outlet fixture mounted in the wall box must have slots designed for a circuit of that capacity. This latter point ensures that you cannot plug a light-draw device with light-current wiring into a heavy-current source and risk having a malfunction that pulls heavy current that damages the connected light-duty device, but still does not overload and trip the breaker. It also ensures you don't try to plug a heavy current user device into a light-current circuit. (Of course, in this last case there is no big safety issue - the breaker will just trip!)

SO, ideally if you have a 15-amp or less load to plug in, the wall outlet should have its blade slots designed to match that 15-amp plug, and the wiring and breaker on the circuit should also be 15 amps. Now, realistically, most circuits are wired with several outlets on one circuit and breaker, so the TOTAL of all loads plugged in (not just of one of the load devices) is what is important. If you truly have a 20-amp device, it should have a different plug blade design, and that requires the correct outlet, wiring and breaker for the circuit.

Where I live, 15- and 20-amp circuits are set up with different outlets (blade designs). But in many part of the USA the electrical code allows the installation of a type of outlet fixture that has two-way slots - the slots will accommodate Either the 15-amp or the 20-amp standard blade configuration. For circuits installed this way, the wiring and the panel breaker have to be rated for 20 amps. This makes it practical to use only one or two heavy current users on this one circuit, or to use many smaller-current devices in many outlets. On such a circuit, it certainly should be acceptable to install a 15-amp outlet in one of the wall boxes and plug into it a device (such as your TV) with the standard 15-amp plug on its cord. Unless your TV actually has the 20-amp plug on its cord, there is NO reason to install a 20-amp outlet or a two-way outlet, when you KNOW the only thing being plugged in there will have a 15-amp plug.

I get your concern that the 20-amp breaker may not be sufficient protection for a 15-amp outlet device. First let's remember that the actual current is whatever the load plugged in pulls - in this case, your new TV, which I'm sure will not exceed 15 amps. But that's for NORMAL operation, whereas problems are more likely to arise from abnormal conditions like a short inside the TV. A real short will pull current well over 20 amps and trip the breaker. The rare intermediate case of an abnormally heavy pull (say, 23 amps) that fails to trip the breaker quickly would put strain on the 15-amp outlet device. But one reason the electrical codes allow this sort of circuit installation is that the devices (like the 15-amp outlet) actually have a pretty good safety margin so that, although they are technically somewhat over their design specs, they still are not a safety hazard.

For pictures, check this website:

http://www.stayonline.com/reference-nema-straight-blade.aspx

Scroll down a little to the chart for "2-Pole, 3-Wire Grounding". In the first row for 125 Volt, "Standard" 15- and 20-amp Receptacles are the first and third drawings. See how the one in between with the T-Slot will allow use of both types of plugs? I'm guessing, though, that the plug on the end of your new TV's cord looks like the 15-amp variety.

Incidentally, the diagrams show that the U-shaped hole (plug prong) is always Ground, and also identifies the slot always connected to the White wire, which is power supply Neutral. The unmarked third prong (the smaller one on the left for the 15-amp design) is the Hot line.
 
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VirtualLarry

No Lifer
Aug 25, 2001
56,570
10,202
126
In the US, there is no difference that I know of between an outlet on a 15A circuit, versus an outlet on a 20A circuit. The plugs are the same.
 

Meghan54

Lifer
Oct 18, 2009
11,684
5,225
136
a 120V 20amp has a slotted recepticle in the US, 15amp does not.


Most 20A receptacles in the U.S. are duplex receptacles, so if you don't look closely at them, you may miss the difference between them and a "stock" 15A receptacle.

20A duplex receptacle:

Kbi6-zSPyNfBLExJ04RKOhJSEzOIcM_djyY2uAAjLzbiExmrRvyp1kyWJQ_EX9VGjptLyRxoqsU4Kl6Sf3EMnzye6klFEuLrnykXHTJY8w7eRWVHUxGvffd50YPiBc_UlSJco2sIGK42cWc8OBKERqxTFQk0zu1OZjjPI6YiBA



Notice how it does have the horizontal slot, but also has the standard vertical slot combined. So, most people won't even know what they're looking at when they see one.