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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

On 1/18/2009 8:23 PM Mikepier spake thus:

I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?


Can't you just remove the outlet from the box and flip it 180°?


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In order to embark on a new course, the only one that will
solve the problem: negotiations and peace with the Palestinians,
the Lebanese, the Syrians. And: with Hamas and Hizbullah.

Because it's only with enemies that one makes peace.

- Uri Avnery, Israeli writer and peace activist with Gush Shalom.
(http://counterpunch.org/avnery08032006.html)
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

what's to fix? plug it in and forget it.

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Just wait. You'll be cryin' for mercy after a while with Bro Bama





"Mikepier" wrote in message
...
I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?



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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

Raise the dryer so it's above the outlet.

Or figure out a way to hang a picture over it.
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question


"Mikepier" wrote in message
...
I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?



*I am assuming that you have one of those molded receptacles with it's own
mount and cover. You could change it to a deep 4" or 4 11/16" square box
and install a dryer receptacle in a position that won't bother you.



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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question


"Mikepier" wrote in message
...
I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?



Surface range and dryer outlets are all made that way. The only remedy is to
replace the outlet with a deep 1900 box, flush dryer receptacle, and austin
cover. Then you can flip the outlet any direction you like


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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

RBM wrote:
"Mikepier" wrote in message
...
I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?



Surface range and dryer outlets are all made that way. The only remedy is to
replace the outlet with a deep 1900 box, flush dryer receptacle, and austin
cover. Then you can flip the outlet any direction you like


OK... maybe this is covered in basic electrician's courses, but this
always bugs me... *why* is a 1900 box called a 1900 box? I know what
one is, of course, but never had an explanation of why... "four inch
box" seems much more simple but nobody ever calls it that...

nate


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replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

*I am assuming that you have one of those molded receptacles with it's own
mount and cover. *You could change it to a deep 4" or 4 11/16" square box
and install a dryer receptacle in a position that won't bother you.


That sounds like the best idea. Yes it is one of those molded surface
mount receptacles. Why they manufactured it with the outlet opposite
the orientation of the 90 deg plug, I have no idea.
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question


"Nate Nagel" wrote in message
...
RBM wrote:
"Mikepier" wrote in message
...
I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?



Surface range and dryer outlets are all made that way. The only remedy is
to replace the outlet with a deep 1900 box, flush dryer receptacle, and
austin cover. Then you can flip the outlet any direction you like


OK... maybe this is covered in basic electrician's courses, but this
always bugs me... *why* is a 1900 box called a 1900 box? I know what one
is, of course, but never had an explanation of why... "four inch box"
seems much more simple but nobody ever calls it that...




*LOL. I believe it goes back to one manufacturer's old catalog numbering
system. Maybe it was Raco. I think that all boxes and covers in the 4" size
had a catalog number of 19xx. In California they called them a 4s (4"
square) box and a 4 11/16" box was a 5s box.

When we go to an electrical supply company for materials the employees
always transpose the materials that we want into numbers. That is how they
identify everything. In order to communicate better and quicker it is
sometimes easier to just give the counter guy numbers instead of names or
descriptions. Whenever I want something unusual I try to find a part number
myself and just give it to the counter guy so he can look it up immediately
for availability and pricing.

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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

In article , Mikepier wrote:
*I am assuming that you have one of those molded receptacles with it's ow=

n
mount and cover. =A0You could change it to a deep 4" or 4 11/16" square b=

ox
and install a dryer receptacle in a position that won't bother you.


That sounds like the best idea. Yes it is one of those molded surface
mount receptacles. Why they manufactured it with the outlet opposite
the orientation of the 90 deg plug, I have no idea.


It has nothing to do with the way it was manufactured; rather, it was
*installed* upside down.


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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question


"Nate Nagel" wrote in message
...
RBM wrote:
"Mikepier" wrote in message
...
I have one of those surface mounted 3 prong dryer plugs in the laundry
room. The plug that came with the dryer has to be turned 180 degrees
so it can plug into the outlet. Anotherwords instead of the cord
hanging straight down, it goes up then makes a sharp turn downward.
The outlet cannot be turned upside down because it is run with conduit
form the bottom. Any ideas how I can go about fixing this?



Surface range and dryer outlets are all made that way. The only remedy is
to replace the outlet with a deep 1900 box, flush dryer receptacle, and
austin cover. Then you can flip the outlet any direction you like


OK... maybe this is covered in basic electrician's courses, but this
always bugs me... *why* is a 1900 box called a 1900 box? I know what one
is, of course, but never had an explanation of why... "four inch box"
seems much more simple but nobody ever calls it that...

nate


--
replace "roosters" with "cox" to reply.
http://members.cox.net/njnagel


AS John points out, these names generally originate with the original
manufacturer, kinda like calling a tissue a "Kleenex", or a refrigerator a
"frigidare". I believe Raco's part number is 190 but I have no idea where
the second zero comes from


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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question


"Doug Miller" wrote in message
...
In article
,
Mikepier wrote:
*I am assuming that you have one of those molded receptacles with it's
ow=

n
mount and cover. =A0You could change it to a deep 4" or 4 11/16" square
b=

ox
and install a dryer receptacle in a position that won't bother you.


That sounds like the best idea. Yes it is one of those molded surface
mount receptacles. Why they manufactured it with the outlet opposite
the orientation of the 90 deg plug, I have no idea.


It has nothing to do with the way it was manufactured; rather, it was
*installed* upside down.


Surface range and dryer outlets are designed to be fed only from above or
behind. If they're fed from below, as many are, they wind up opposite the
configuration of the cord sets


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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question


It has nothing to do with the way it was manufactured; rather, it was
*installed* upside down.


There is only one conduit, or clamp opening at the bottom of these
molded outlets. Mounting it upside down would require the feed coming
in from the top, which means putting 90's on the conduit. My cable
comes from the bottom.
Of course for applications where the feed comes from the top, then its
not a problem.

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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

In article , Mikepier wrote:

It has nothing to do with the way it was manufactured; rather, it was
*installed* upside down.


There is only one conduit, or clamp opening at the bottom of these
molded outlets.


There are *no* openings at the bottom. The single opening is at the top. Yours
is mounted with the top down.

Mounting it upside down would require the feed coming
in from the top, which means putting 90's on the conduit.


Yours already is mounted upside down. Mounting it _right side up_ would
require the feed coming in from the top.

My cable comes from the bottom.


Hence the outlet is installed upside down.

Of course for applications where the feed comes from the top, then its
not a problem.


That's what they're designed for.
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

Hence the outlet is installed upside down.


So your saying every one of these images is showing the outlet upside
down?


http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...-8&sa=N&tab=wi


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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

In article , Mikepier wrote:
Hence the outlet is installed upside down.



So your saying every one of these images is showing the outlet upside
down?


http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...20outlet s&um
=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi


Think about it... those pictures show the outlets in the only orientation in
which they will stand up to be photographed without falling over. They don't
show them *installed*. And if the outlet is installed such that the 90-degree
offset plug forces the cord to go the wrong direction, then the outlet was
installed upside down.
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question

Doug Miller wrote:
In article , Mikepier wrote:
Hence the outlet is installed upside down.


So your saying every one of these images is showing the outlet upside
down?


http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...20outlet s&um
=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi


Think about it... those pictures show the outlets in the only orientation in
which they will stand up to be photographed without falling over. They don't
show them *installed*. And if the outlet is installed such that the 90-degree
offset plug forces the cord to go the wrong direction, then the outlet was
installed upside down.


The design dates from when outlets were mounted at floor level, often as
retrofits to older houses that had electricity (or electric stoves)
added. IIRC, until mid-20th century, electric stoves were not that
common, and most houses only had 60 amp service. Coming up through
kitchen floor was the most painless way to route the cable. Appliance
pigtails didn't have 90-degree ends in the old days- they had an
assembled plug on the end, straight in, and the cord coiled under the
appliance, or in a little niche in the back made for that. Almost all
the old brown bakelite range outlets I have ever seen were right at
floor level.

--
aem sends...
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Default Electric dryer plug and outlet question


In article
,
Mikepier wrote:
Hence the outlet is installed upside down.


So your saying every one of these images is showing the outlet
upside down?

http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...-8&sa=N&tab=wi


Think about it... those pictures show the outlets in the only
orientation in which they will stand up to be photographed without
falling over. They don't show them installed. And if the outlet is
installed such that the 90-degree offset plug forces the cord to go
the wrong direction, then the outlet was installed upside down.


The orientation depends on the height off the floor and to a lesser
degree where the cord comes out of the appliance.

Standard outlet height (about 12" off the floor) assumes the cord will
come *down* to meet it.

The apparent _new_ height of these outlets is about four feet off the
floor. That means the cord will be coming *up* to meet it.

--
Steve Bell
New Life Home Improvement
Arlington, TX USA
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"aemeijers" wrote in message
...
Doug Miller wrote:
In article
,
Mikepier wrote:
Hence the outlet is installed upside down.

So your saying every one of these images is showing the outlet upside
down?


http://images.google.com/images?hl=e...20outlet s&um
=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi


Think about it... those pictures show the outlets in the only orientation
in which they will stand up to be photographed without falling over. They
don't show them *installed*. And if the outlet is installed such that the
90-degree offset plug forces the cord to go the wrong direction, then the
outlet was installed upside down.


The design dates from when outlets were mounted at floor level, often as
retrofits to older houses that had electricity (or electric stoves) added.
IIRC, until mid-20th century, electric stoves were not that common, and
most houses only had 60 amp service. Coming up through kitchen floor was
the most painless way to route the cable. Appliance pigtails didn't have
90-degree ends in the old days- they had an assembled plug on the end,
straight in, and the cord coiled under the appliance, or in a little niche
in the back made for that. Almost all the old brown bakelite range outlets
I have ever seen were right at floor level.

--
aem sends...

I have installed a lot of those surface mount outlets at floor level with
the cable coming through the floor. Pigtails were available which then
directed the conductors upward to the range or dryer. That arrangement may
not be common today.

Don Young


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