# Simple and stupid wiring question...three prong outlet..where is ground? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 7, 2021, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226 "2021-09-07T11:37:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/61 "2021-09-10T00:18:19Z")
Correct. Where are we disagreeing? I think if the upstream outlets fail to protect against a ground fault, your (general your) GFCI also fails…am I wrong? ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/62 "2021-09-10T00:20:02Z")
Nope. I see my error. Wrong twice in a day. A record. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/63 "2021-09-10T00:20:59Z")
Sorry, I’m still not following you. Simply put, a GFCI - wherever it may be in the circuit - protects itself and things downstream from a ground fault. It does not protect anything upstream from it. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/64 "2021-09-10T00:21:35Z")
Correct. I was wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Somethingwitty1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/somethingwitty1/32/8899_2.png) [@Somethingwitty1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Somethingwitty1)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/65 "2021-09-10T00:22:03Z")
What of my upside down outlets? I was told that for a time they (code) allowed it. it wouldn’t be allowed today. But they are grandfathered in? ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/66 "2021-09-10T00:23:25Z")
My “ground is down” march is coming to your town shortly and with many women who have shill voices. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/67 "2021-09-10T00:25:14Z")
> [@Somethingwitty1](#): > > What of my upside down outlets? I was told that for a time they (code) allowed it. it wouldn’t be allowed today. But they are grandfathered in? I think it’s already been mentioned in this thread that the NEC is silent on the issue; for a three-prong receptacle (hot, neutral, ground) it doesn’t care if the ground prong is on the bottom or on the top. This assumes you’re in the U.S., of course. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/68 "2021-09-10T10:48:03Z")
Going away from power outlets, is there any rule about switches. Do you flip up for on, or down? And is there a regulation? ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2021, 11:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226/69 "2021-09-10T11:16:12Z")
Well, for three-way switches (two SPDT switches in series), flipping the toggle switch _down_ will turn on the light half the time. So it would surprise me if there’s a regulation, since three-way switches would automatically fail. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/simple-and-stupid-wiring-question-three-prong-outlet-where-is-ground/950226.md?page=3)