How to Add a Temporary Electrical Outlet to an Apartment
- 1). Turn off power to the house by switching off the main circuit breaker in the service panel. Remove the panel that covers all of the wires by taking out the screws that hold it on and pulling it off.
- 2). Insert a wire into the side of the service panel by punching the metal circle out of an unused entry on the side of the panel, screwing a metal grommet onto the hole and pushing the wire into the box through the hole.
- 3). Attach the live (black) wire, neutral (white) wire and ground (bare) wire to the appropriate places for a new breaker inside the service box (there will be lines of black, white and bare wires already attached for the other circuits).
- 4). Insert a new breaker into a vacant spot in the box by clicking it into the holding clips next to the existing breakers.
- 5). Replace the front panel and screw it back on.
- 6). Slide the length of wire that you need into a protective metal casing for added security.
- 7). Run the metal casing with the wire inside it to the location of the temporary outlet. Secure the casing to overhead joists or to the wall with large wire staples every two to three feet.
- 8). Locate the wall stud that is nearest to the desired location of the new outlet using a stud finder. Insert the wire into a side hole in an outlet box and pull it through the front. Screw the box to the wall directly over the stud so that the screws are securely fastened to the stud.
- 9). Attach the black wire to the gold screw on the new electrical outlet, the white wire to the silver screw and the bare wire to the green screw.
- 10
Push the electrical outlet into the outlet box and secure it by screwing the small bolts into the holes in the top and bottom of the box. - 11
Secure a plate over the electrical outlet and secure it with a small bolt that goes into the small hole between the two outlet holes. - 12
Turn the main breaker back on in the service panel. - 13
Test the outlet by plugging in a lamp or a radio.
