Taking on an Outdoor GFCI Outlet

By Tammy

Pulling into our driveway about a year ago (yes, I did say a year ago), we noticed half of the exterior up-lighting was not working.  We did the normal process of checking the exterior GFCI outlet's RESET / TEST buttons.  And, neither would work.  The buttons were stuck!  It was easier to say, we’ll check it out in the morning… 

The morning came and like any busy family, we went about our normal daily activities.  So, short story… the up-lighting just wasn’t that big of a deal at the time.  It simply took a back seat.  Time went on and I would occasionally throw the jab, “Honey, we need to change the outdoor plug.”  It was usually met with, “It’s on the list.”    

We don’t know much about electricity when it comes to changing out fixtures and outlets.  But this weekend was the weekend to tackle that darn plug.  And I knew exactly where to go for some assurance. 

We started by watching a How To video on YouTube.  Okay, we watched several…but this one gave us the confidence to DIY this project.

 

The hallelujah moment came when we opened up the outlet to discover it was not connected to an interior room (only 3 wires baby!) just like the video.  Of course, it's my duty to remind you that you should never undertake an electrical project without following proper safety precautions!

Say “Hello” to the new GFCI outlet. 

See the green "on" indicator light?  Yes!  We did it right.

And now a year later, the left side matches the right side.

Plus, we can finally mark this item off of our to-do list.  I’m already seeing a new light fixture for our breakfast nook design update (hey, there’s a How To video on that too).

Has anyone else had a positive outcome working from a YouTube video?