Under cabinet outlets?

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aftershock

aftershock

Senior Member
Location
Memphis, TN
I am doing a kitchen remodle and the home owner wants the counter top rec's to be mounted under the wall cabinets (as you would under cabinet lights). She claims to have seen this in another kitchen.
Has anyone heard of this? Would it even be legal?
 
Aftershock, if you can stay in compliance with 210.52(C)(5) you'll be fine.

(5) Receptacle Outlet Location Receptacle outlets shall be located above, but not more than 500 mm (20 in.) above, the countertop. Receptacle outlets rendered not readily accessible by appliances fastened in place, appliance garages, sinks, or rangetops as covered in 210.52(C)

(1), Exception, or appliances occupying dedicated space shall not be considered as these required outlets.
Exception to (5): To comply with the conditions specified in (1) or (2), receptacle outlets shall be permitted to be mounted not more than 300 mm (12 in.) below the countertop. Receptacles mounted below a countertop in accordance with this exception shall not be located where the countertop extends more than 150 mm (6 in.) beyond its support base.

(1) Construction for the physically impaired

(2) On island and peninsular countertops where the countertop is flat across its entire surface (no back-splashes, dividers, etc.) and there are no means to mount a receptacle within 500 mm (20 in.) above the countertop, such as an overhead cabinet
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Roger
 
If you're using plugmold, make sure you stub out your flex at the end. The plugmold is designed as an end feed. Have fun, it's not very easy to get the cover back on.
 
application.jpg



The link:

http://www.wiremold.com/www/consumer/products/plugmold/index.asp
 
Plugmold is the way to go as Trevor showed in his post. They make special "clip-in" connectors for wire termination. The Plugmold comes with 3, # 12 solid pigtails at each end so wirenuts are out of the question (it makes it difficult to close the cover when you're done). You're not going to be able to feed wire in and out at the same location. I don't remember if there is a KO in the side of the plugmold connector. If there is, use an Arlington 1/2" black button connector. If this is a new kitchen and if you have the ability to do this I would drop whips down into the basement and install splice boxes there to interconnect all the plugmold. This is not fun to do and in my opinion it's worth at least 3 times what you would get for a regular receptacle.

The up side to doing this is that this is what your customer wants and will make her happy not seeing receptacles on her backsplash.

The downsides :
1) Although it's Plugmold you will still have to meet the requirements of having a receptacle every 48 linear inches serving the countertop
2) You're working with # 12 AWG
3) You'll have to provide GFI protection somewhere with either a GFI receptacle or breaker. So, your customer will have to travel some in order to reset a tripped device or breaker.
4) You're working with # 12 AWG
5) Make sure you have 3/8" # 10 screws to mount the Plugmold to the underside of the cabinet. Any larger and you'll blow through to the inside of the cabinet.
6) You'll have to lay on your back on the counter to install the plugmold.
7) Did I mention you're working with # 12 AWG ???

Have fun with this !!!
 
I have them in my kitchen. When the inspector came to inspect my new kitchen, he asked where the countertop receptacles were... I told him that since I am an inspector myself that the countertop receptacles were an option and my wife did not want them :) Then I showed them to him. He did not laugh... oh well!!!
 
Here is a link to a Plug mold spec sheet, it shows the different types and fittings available.

There are a few different entrance fittings available, you can get larger entrance fittings that allow feed in feed out with wire nuts although they may be to big for this application.

Phil's suggestion to run only single NMs to each plug mold and splicing them elsewhere is a good idea worth considering.

Also plug mold is available as two prewired circuits and the spacing can be 6" to 24".

Here is a suggestion from a commercial guy, use two circuit plug mold under every cabinet, run separate 12/3s to each, run each of those 12/3s back to a large capacity two gang box (I would uses a 4 11/16 deep square box with a two gang ring) located somewhere out of sight in the kitchen, install two faceless GFCIs in the box to provide the GFCI protection. From that box run 12/3 back to the panel, under the current code single pole 20s would be OK but if you want it could be a handle tied or common trip breaker.
 
Bob, would two faceless GFCI's work with a 12/3 cable? Wouldn't they be sharing a neutral? Or am I not understanding your set-up?
 
infinity said:
Bob, would two faceless GFCI's work with a 12/3 cable? Wouldn't they be sharing a neutral? Or am I not understanding your set-up?
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No your understanding it fine, it is I that have the problem.

You are correct that would not work.

Two major mistakes in a weeks time, I must be slipping.:mad:
 
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iwire said:
No your understanding it fine, it is I that have the problem.

You are correct that would not work.

Two major mistakes in a weeks time, I must be slipping.:mad:
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Two in one week. Maybe you switched to Sanka.:D

A 2 pole GFCI CB would work.
 
We do this all the time in motorhomes. Self-contained receptacles (Wirecons) are installed in the underside of the cabinet and a false floor panel placed over them.
 
This section was changed in the 1999 NEC to allow plug mold to be installed under the top cabinet. There is a support board under the top cabinets, which is set at 18" from the counter. An interior designer in Montanta submitted the code proposal to allow plug mold to be installed on the support board, so the height was changed from 18 to 20 inches.
Plugmold can be hard to work with, its not like slamming in a outlet box. Get all the parts first, open it at the wholesale house to make sure you understand how it goes. You must have the square push in connectors for the power feed.
 
I did that exact install a couple of years ago.The HO had a very expensive backsplash tile installed and didn`t want the design flawed by receptacles within the tile surface.So what I did was feed a wall receptacle within the confines of the actual kitchen using a 4 15/16 box with a mud ring and fed the receptacles with individual 12/2 nm feeds that terminated on wiremold mouse traps and fed the receptacles that way.The cabinet installer drilled a hole at the bottom of the upper cabinet and when it came trim time it was a breeze a nm connector in the mouse trap a couple of inches of wiremold and a wire mold box mounted facing down under the upper cabinet.1 gfci on one side of the kitchen and a 2nd on the other side.Hope this helps.
 
I used it in my house under the "outer" cabinets. My counter is a "U" shape. I have regular GFIC's in the wall. I added a second GFIC in a double box, extra deep and ran BX from there out a hole under the "outer" cabinets and into the plugmold. Have plugs every 12" for a total of 5. Did that for each side of the "U". Works like a charm. Be sure to wire the plugmold end before you run the BX in the wall to the GFIC, otherwise it will be awkard wiring. RC
 
iwire said:
No your understanding it fine, it is I that have the problem.

You are correct that would not work.

Two major mistakes in a weeks time, I must be slipping.:mad:
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You had it right the first time. You CAN feed two GFCI receptacles or two faceless GFCI devices from a single multiwire branch circuit. Each device will see it's attachment to the MWBC as a source. Neither device will care about the unbalanced neutral current back to the panel as long as all current leaving one device returns to that device.
 
gary said:
You had it right the first time. You CAN feed two GFCI receptacles or two faceless GFCI devices from a single multiwire branch circuit. Each device will see it's attachment to the MWBC as a source. Neither device will care about the unbalanced neutral current back to the panel as long as all current leaving one device returns to that device.
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Gary, what you've said is true but it's not exactly what Bob had said. He had suggesting running a 12/3 from two faceless GFCI's to a 2 circuit plugmold. That would not work since the 2 circuit plugmold would be sharing a neutral in the 12/3 cable.
 
infinity said:
Gary, what you've said is true but it's not exactly what Bob had said. He had suggesting running a 12/3 from two faceless GFCI's to a 2 circuit plugmold. That would not work since the 2 circuit plugmold would be sharing a neutral in the 12/3 cable.
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OK, that's one for me. I guess I'm slipping too!
 
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