[Shop-talk] Re-wiring an outdoor outlet

[Brian Kemp]

Scott - You have received good advice.

- Cut the conduit back to a straight section then run new.  It might be 
helpful to have a compact pipe cutter if you intend to not pull new 
wire.  Sample cutter: 
https://www.homedepot.com/p/RIDGID-101-Tube-Cutter-1-4-in-to-1-1-8-in-40617/100075014 

- If not running new wire, take about a foot of conduit out and shift 
the location so you have fresh wire.  It looks like the insulation is 
damaged where the conduit broke.
- Agree with the in-use cover others suggested.
- Agree about having the GFCI protecting the wire too.  Put it at an 
upstream outlet or as the breaker.
- Agree with the suggestion to use a 4x4 post.
- Suspect the installation was not permitted.  Might be good to have an 
electrician look at your sub-panel.  As an example, if the neutral wires 
share a bus bar with the ground wires and panel box, that is likely 
wrong.  Per my local codes, the only place ground and neutral wires can 
share a bus bar is the main panel.
- Make sure the wires are sized for the circuit breaker.  12GA for 20A 
and 14GA for 15A.

Brian

On 7/10/2020 11:44 AM, Scott Hall wrote:
> I have this:
>
> https://i.imgur.com/QWy2Ikn.jpg
> https://i.imgur.com/s39fdds.jpg
>
> Happening at the new house. Those rocks surround the pool deck for 
> ornamentation, I guess.
>
> Shockingly (or not, heh), those outlets work. I'd like to re-do the 
> whole thing to be anchored into the ground and not make me nervous 
> every time I look at it.
>
> The pool is about eight feet away. Maybe two feet of that 
> rock...'garden' then six feet of concrete decking. Those outlets 
> themselves don't appear to be GFCI, though I'd think it was a good 
> idea. They have their own sub-panel, on the side of the house maybe 
> forty feet away.
>
> I'm completely okay with throwing the breaker and installing a new 
> actual outlet, I'm soliciting advice on how to re-do that conduit (can 
> you 'splice' conduit so I dig and then do it like I'd do PVC?) and 
> anchor the whole thing firmly to the ground. And for specific 
> solutions you guys can think of too--I was thinking I could pour a 
> concrete 'rock' in the garage with a hole for a gang box and then put 
> that where this thing is now, etc.
>
> Thanks guys.
>
> Scott
>
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