While they may have seemed harmless so far, ungrounded outlets can drastically increase personal and property risks. Electrical fires can be prevented with grounded outlets, as ungrounded ones can spew sparks when electricity misfires, damaging items nearby or even causing a major flare-up.

How do you fix an ungrounded outlet?

The ideal way to repair an ungrounded 3-prong outlet is to establish a continuous electrical path back to the main panel. If the outlet is installed in a metal box and that metal box has metal conduit wiring (BX cable) all the way back to the panel, then you can ground your outlet with just a little work.

What happens if you don't ground your outlets?

Ungrounded outlets increase the chance of: Electrical fire. Without the ground present, errors that occur with your outlet may cause arcing, sparks and electrical charge that can spawn fire along walls, or on nearby furniture and fixtures.