question - is there such thing as a double sided electric outlet box?

[Kali]

Here I go again messing with electrical stuff. old ranch (real ranch, not necessarily the architectural style LOL) house slapped together over 100+ years. have a bedroom wall with a normal 2 receptacle outlet (whatever the proper terms are - the thingy where you could plug two lights or whatever into) that wall is old tongue and groove approximately 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick, then I assume 2x2 studs, then on the other side is some 1/4 inch plywood. no insulation or anything in there other than whatever the mice may have dragged in. on the plywood side the box sticks out maybe another 1/2 inch into a space that used to have an upright freezer and a refrigerator housed in it. the outlet for the old freezer and the current refrigerator is on a side wall of this space not on the circuit I am looking at.

what I really want is a double sided box and to have two receptacles on the both the bedroom and kitchen side of that wall. is that possible? I am pretty sure the box that is there now is entered from the top and is the end of that line/circuit, if that matters.

if there is no way to have a back to back box I can do an external mount shallow box, that isn't huge deal, but thought I would ask.

I don't know the size of the wire going in but we had that redone in more or less modern times so it should be newer than the paper wrapped two wire crap in the living room.

also I am completely incapable of speaking or comprehending electricity. watts and volts and that crap do not compute in my brain. wire gauge I can deal with. but don't waste time with voltage or amps or whatever, and even code other than logical safety, it isn't really relevant out here. (see comment about other wiring in this house LOL)

this would be for using a stand mixer occasionally and a stand alone ice maker. maybe a light of some sort eventually.


this is the kitchen side. as you can see it is all pretty ugly so looks don't really matter at this point. it will be out of view behind the ice maker anyway. eventually we might face that wall with something prettier but not high priority now.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. I don't know; I'm afraid of electricity.

I can do all the math; I understand volts and amps and Ohm's Law and all that stuff, but actual electricity scares the crap out of me. Last time I changed out a light fixture I shut off the main circuit breaker to the whole house because I was afraid the electricity would leak out and get me. So I'm no help here.

[Kali]

3. I know EXACTLY how you feel!

you are way ahead of me with the math, though - for me it is a magic force that can bite!

[rickford66]

2. You could use two shallow boxes. One on each side of course.

[Kali]

4. how do I hook them together?

but yeah that might work.

[rickford66]

6. Run a wire from one to the other.

I assume you can find shallow boxes that leave a space between them. If they actually touch, use a Romex connector through the back knockouts and run your jumper wire though it. If the space is too large, connect them with a short conduit nipple.

[rickford66]

7. If my previous suggestion doesn't work ...

use Madison straps on the one receptacle. They are "F-shaped" strips of steel that are bent in such a way as to hold a box in wall where there is no way to screw or nail the box. Not to be used on new construction ... ever.

[defacto7]

5. I wish I could draw a picture.

If you have 2" of space in the wall, you could have side by side outlets one facing one way one the other but not back to back that I know of. Codes say they have to be mounted in an electrical box. You could have two doubles side by side or a quad box open on both sides.

There's a lot you can do safely. Most hardware stores can help.

[Kali]

16. after putting up a shelf in the space I now have a better idea what I am dealing with

I think I will just cut a hole on the kitchen side and offset it from the other one. I might get a different box for that one that fits a little better if they are cheap enough, but no big deal. my lazy ass was just hoping there would be something I could use for both sides in the same hole.

[Wellstone ruled]

8. When you go to Lowes or Home Depot or a Ace Store.

They have how to books that show you how to remedy this. No biggie,what you have a old outlet box with a cover on it. Believe the best book is by Stanley Tool,it's title is Home Improvement 1-2-3. Ask if they will Copy the pages for you.

Another source is Google,pictures and videos are more than helpful.

[Kali]

17. Ace is probably where I have to go unless I go all the way to Tucson.

I'm thinking I will just switch the old box to something that fits better and have the new one off set to the side.

[Wellstone ruled]

18. When in doubt about a repair,

You Tube it,there are people who have videos of how too or even short cuts. Just type in what you are looking for.


BTW,your ACE in Tucson should fill the bill,take a Phone Pic with you.

[Kali]

19. I did try the google for back to back boxes, and there are tons of vids for adding boxes in a line

but I didn't find anything with what I was asking here. there were a few old discussions in a couple pro forums but the only one that mentioned a part that might have been it went to dead link since it was from 2008. LOL

[TexasProgresive]

9. This box is 1 1/4" deep so maybe 1 3/8"

I think you need to run 2 circuits. Freezers and Fridges draw a lot of power.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/1-Gang-8-cu-in-Flanged-Shallow-Old-Work-Box-B108R-UPC/100404058

[Kali]

13. Fridge is on another circuit.

when we had most of the electric redone about 20 years ago, he put in dedicated circuits for stuff in the kitchen. now that old freezer is gone and I have moved a cabinet in the space and want to put my mixer and ice machine there (and a bookshelf above them which I just finished. should have been a 5 minute job that ended up taking all freaking day because of that damn 1/4 inch plywood. thought it was 1/2 at least since the whole area there is made out of that, but no somebody actually lined the space with thinner stuff when they built it! (probably in the 40s)

[hedda_foil]

10. What kind of wiring is behind that wall?

Given the age of the house, it might have old wiring that is both dangerous and not allowed under current code. If you're not sure, please have a real electrician take a look at it and determine whether you can make the fixes you want both safely and legally.

[Kali]

14. that is "new" in there. looks like regular romex from what I can see, as I haven't got into it yet.

we had most of the out buildings and the house redone about 20 years ago when the nail holes in the metal garage were glowing. there are just a couple lines (probably all on one circuit) that are old that didn't get done. they are on three walls of the living room embedded in adobe walls. and they are in conduit. we didn't do them at the time because my poor Grampa was suffering from severe dementia and was starting to freak out about the people tearing his house down. he carried a .45 until he died. LOL

I am 20 miles from town and we are pretty much do-it-ourselves or it don't-get-done. if I have to call an electrician to add a couple of outlets, I might as well call it quits. We wired the yard for a hot tub and above ground pool, hooked up pumps and various other projects. I just didn't know if there was such a thing as a two sided box for situations like this. Apparently not.

[Control-Z]

11. I have done every home repair you can think of

doing yourself. Plumbing and electricity suck.

The plumbing because of the no standards or requirements - parts that require extra parts to fit new parts with old parts. And because of the stink that goes with opening some pipes. I literally gag and can't stop the reflex once I get a whiff.

The electrictricity is because I've shocked the crap out of myself one too many times and I damn near started a fire once.

The plumbing I'll do if I don't have to get into any major pipes and if it doesn't have anything to do with the garbage disposal.

The electricity? Never again. I won't even try to repair a simple lamp cord.

I really have no help to offer other than please be careful.

[Kali]

15. yeah we do all our own plumbing, both for the house and

to keep 6 miles of pipe functioning. THANK DOG plastic was invented. my sons have no freaking clue what working with galvanized pipe was like! most of the electric got updated 20 years ago, so I haven't really done much here in the house yet. I really want to put in some ceiling fans next.

[OilemFirchen]

12. By your description, it seems you already have a pass-through box.

That said, back-to-back receptacles violate NEC code. Even in boxes with closed backs.