Things You'll Need:
- Voltage or circuit tester
- Screwdriver
- Electrician's pliers
- Needle nose pliers
- Switch box with ears
- Pencil
- Electric- or battery-operated drill
- 1/2-inch diameter drill bit
- Key hole or reciprocating saw
- Wire coat hanger
- Sheet rock clamps
- Wire stripper or sharp knife
- Solid switch box cover
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Step 1
Turn off the power to the current receptacle at the breaker box. Stick the prongs of a voltage or circuit tester into the receptacle to test whether the right breaker was switched off. If you still have power to the receptacle, keep turning off breakers until you find the right one.
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Step 2
Remove the receptacle cover and screws holding the receptacle to the switch box. Disconnect the wires from the receptacle, paying close attention to where each colored wire is attached. If any wires are twisted together, untwist them. Loosen the cable clamps in the switch box, and push the electrical cables out through the holes.
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Step 3
Take a new switch box with ears, and place its face against the wall where the new receptacle will be installed. Trace lightly around the outside of the box with a pencil. Then drill a hole in each corner of the box outline. Using a key hole or reciprocating saw, saw along the lines between the holes. When drilling and sawing, be careful to not cut the existing electric cable that is in the wall.
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Step 4
Straighten a wire coat hanger and, using the hook, fish the cables out of the wall through the freshly cut hole. Loosen a cable clamp in the new switch box, and remove a knock-out for each cable. There may be one or two cables depending upon how the original receptacle was wired.
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Step 5
Run the cables through the new switch box, and fit the switch box into the freshly cut hole with the box's ears resting against the wall surface. Slip the ends of a sheet rock clamp into the wall on each side of the switch box, and bend the fingers tightly around the front edges of the box and against its sides. Tighten the cable clamp inside the switch box snugly against the cables.
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Step 6
Cut off the excess length of the cables hanging out of the switch box, Strip the sheathing from the entire length of cable that is in the switch box. Peel off about 3/4 inch of insulation on each wire.
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Step 7
Reconnect the receptacle and all wires in the same manner they were originally installed. Secure the receptacle to the switch box. Attach the receptacle cover, and put a matching solid cover on the original switch box. Turn the breaker back on, and test the receptacle with your voltage or circuit tester.
