A homeowner in Columbus made me stop drywalling over outlet boxes

Did a full basement remodel last spring and I always cut the drywall tight around boxes, planning to trim later with a utility knife. The homeowner saw me doing it on day 3 and said, 'If you can't see the hole, you won't hit it, but you'll sure hit the wire.' He handed me a $25 plastic spacer jig from Menards that snaps over the box before you screw the drywall. Now I set every box flush with the board, and rough inspections go twice as fast. Anyone else use those spacers or still freehand it?

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victor_jones9918d ago

Saw a video from a sparky last month where he was ranting about this exact thing. He said freehanding it is fine until you hit a metal box with a nail and end up with a short circuit that trips the whole panel. That jig trick sounds way smarter than my method, I always used to just cut the drywall big and hope for the best with the trim. The older guys on the job site swear by the spacer too since it keeps the outlet screws from getting buried behind the board. Plus if the drywall sits flush you don't get those ugly gaps around the plate after you paint. Might have to grab one next time I run a remodel, beats messing with a knife every single box.