Quick help!! Height of horizontal outlets from counter??

15 years ago

We had planned to keep our existing outlets, which are vertical, and just match all the new ones to their height, but the electrician just arrived and pointed out that when we have the new floor (old cabs were sitting on the subfloor) the existing outlets will basically be sitting on the counter, and the covers may or may not fit. He's right, so we need to move them. But (figures!) we have a sink vent and then a window above them, which means they can't just move up---no choice but to go horizontal (which I'm not too bummed about, truth be told, since we had kind of wanted to do that anyway, and were just trying to save money).

But now he needs to know exactly what height to put them at. Our code does not specify....they can be anywhere from one inch (edge of outlet/plate) to three inches above the counter and still fit. What to do?? They got pulled off the job to go to an emergency but are coming back mid-morning, so now I'm scrambling to find an answer before they return....we like our outlets as low as makes sense, but this is near the sink, so there's splashing potential. Are we okay to go with an inch up from expected counter height, or is that too close? Backsplash will be 3" x 6" subway tiles, but I'm not even going to try to attempt the match-with-tile placement thing since floor and cabinets aren't in yet so we can't get a very exact measurement.

Any ideas?? Thanks!

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Comments (5)

skyedog
15 years ago
I had to put mine horizontal under my windows too. We have 9" between the counter and the bottom of the window sill and the center of the outlets is 4" from the countertop. They look centered in the space which I think looks good, although I don't think that switches and outlets are all that noticeable to begin with.
donaldsg
15 years ago
I would put them higher because I would not want to scrape my knuckles on the counter plugging things in and some plugs need some vertical clearance if they don't stick straight out so consider how your window sill and countertop allow for that.

But on the issue of splashing: do you really need outlets that close to the sink?
Our contractor said the code required an outlet every 3 feet, but I will have a 3 ft wide double sink and a long run of windows low to the countertop and I did not think I needed outlets around the sink and did not want the tile to be broken up in that way. I was able to talk him out of putting outlets under the window altogether (they are beside the windows higher up) and we passed the inspection no problem.
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artemis78
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks---yes, our code specifies an outlet every four feet, and skips the sink area, so we need them near the sink on either side to count for those counters. (They aren't super close---maybe six inches on each side---and we could move the one above the dishwasher a little farther away, conceivably....I think it's just where it is now because the stud was there and was a good place to mount it.)
palimpsest
15 years ago
If you are using tile like a subway, put them a tile above the counter. Three inches isn't bad anyway so there is some backsplash material below the cutout for the box.
artemis78
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks! Okay, here's a dumb question for someone who knows more about this than me....our measurements are 50" total subfloor to window. Flooring is 1/2", cabinets + counter are approx. 36" and window trim is 4.5". If we luck out and everything does actually measure out like it's supposed to, that leaves us with 9" between the counter and window trim, or three subway tiles of space. DH votes for centering the outlets in this space, which would also put them into the 3" space of the middle tile like palimpsest suggests.

Does that mean I tell the electrician I want the outlets 4.5" off the counter (or 41" off the subfloor) to the center of the receptacle? This *seems* right based on measuring the existing outlets and +/- 3" outlet covers....do my numbers jibe?