At left is a typical example of resistance heating caused by wiring inserted into a quick connect device on a Duplex receptacle which allows 14 or 12 gauge wire to be pushed into the back of the receptacle instead of having to be wound around a screw.
In this case in a 15 year old house the wire was not properly installed and as a result you can see the resistance heating which caused the lights to go out and luckily a fire was not a result.
back in the 90's UL and other agency's looked at the problem of these quick wire terminals and instead of redesigning them or banning them made manufacturers design them so only 14 gauge wire could be inserted but this did not solve the problem I see and get just as many calls for problem receptacles.
What they should have done is banned them out right there are side pressure plate receptacles that work just as well but as usual UL and NFPA and every one else bent over and let the home builders continue this poor practice of hurry up and get the plugs wired.
The problem is only getting worse as more products are coming on the market which supposedly do not have the same problems the quick wire receptacles do. I say bull shit it all comes down to who wires it and if its a lazy electrician no matter how well the quick wire is made he will not follow instructions and do it properly.
and as a result we will keep seeing problems with these quick wire connectors.
But for you the consumer you have no choice as long as we keep putting profit over people.
and Home owners keep trying to cut costs by speeding up jobs the quick wire connector will be around.
The distribution may vary from widespread to highly concentrated, depending on the reflector material, finish and contour, and on the shielding or control media employed. Serious Electricians
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