dragonlady7

So that I remember, I'm going to describe the process of wiring an outlet to myself. ^.^

Ingredients:

cord clip to secure Romex as it comes out of circuit breaker box
roll of Romex (with copper grounding wire)
outlet box (square or rectangular box to hold the whole shebang, preferably made of metal so that it can be incorporated into the grounding circuit-- the plastic ones they sell are for water-resistant setups, which are something else entirely)
outlet faceplate (the plate with two big holes for the sockets themselves)
the part of the outlet consisting of the sockets themselves
a circuit for your circuit-breaker-- determine the manufacturer BEFORE going to the store, as they are NOT mutually compatible

Tools:
Philips head screw driver
flat-head screwdriver
hammer, just on general principle
screws to hold faceplate on
screws to hold box to wall or ceiling
utility knife to strip wires
wire-cutter pliers to cut and bend wires

Procedure:

Determine where you're adding your circuit. Make sure the circuit breaker fits. Then figure where you're running your wire to get it out of the box. There are little pre-scored holes all around the box. Pick a good one, that's not too crowded, that goes the direction you want. Knock the hole out. Put the clamp into it so you're ready. Don't tighten it down yet.

Strip the first 8-10 inches of your Romex. Do so carefully-- take the utility knife, put out the tiniest click of blade that you can, and draw it carefully over the surface of the Romex in the visible depression between the two inner insulated wires. Just score the insulation, and then you can tear it open. Peel it back and cut off the excess insulation.
There should be three wires inside. One is white, one is black, one is wrapped in brown paper. Peel back the brown paper and cut it off, exposing the bare copper wire. This is your grounding wire.

Run the three wires through the hole in the circuit breaker box, and through the clamp. Get everything situated so you know it reaches-- the white and bare wires to the grounding strip, the black wire to your circuit breaker. Tighten down the clamp so that the wire is firmly held in place, but not in danger of being cut by the clamp.

Bend the last little bit (quarter inch) of the grounding wire. Insert it into a vacant spot in the grounding strip, and tighten down the screw to ensure a good solid ground.

Strip the last quarter-inch of the white wire. Do this carefully-- a nick in the wire will reduce the wire's diameter, causing its capacity to diminish. That can cause resistance, resistance can cause heat, heat means an electrical fire. So draw the utility knife carefully along the wire parallel to it, away from you, until you've cut enough out of the insulation that you can peel it back and cut it off.
Bend this bit of the white wire, and insert it into another vacant spot on the grounding strip, and tighten the screw to ensure a good contact.

Strip the last quarter-inch of the black wire, and be positive that it reaches the circuit breaker, but don't connect it yet. (If it ain't connected, they's no way you kin git a shock, y'folla?)

Run your Romex up along the wall, or along some surface where it will not be exposed. (The bottom of a joist: not up to code, as it can get squashed and broken. If that's your only option, you need to buy clamps to run it under that will not allow it to be crushed.) Secure the wire about every four feet with a staple or a clamp, so that it does not hang loosely and cannot be shaken loose. (Hooking it over a nail: Doesn't count.) If you must, stuff it behind the wall and try to pull it out at the opening where you're putting the outlet. That's more frustrating than complicated.)

Once the wire is as far as the outlet, make SURE of the placement, and then cut the Romex. Leave 8 inches of slack at the outlet-- that's code, so that the outlet can be removed and pulled out for inspection or improvement or repair without stretching the wires.

Strip the last 8 inches of the Romex, as above. Strip the last quarter-inch or so of the white and black wires-- the back of the socket part of the outlet often has a line on it indicating how long the stripped parts of the wires need to be, so look there to see precisely how much to strip.

Punch out the hole you'll be using to get the wire into the box. Push the wires through it so they're in the box. Clamp the wires securely into place using the (usually attached) clamps, screwing it down so they're nice and tight.

[Optional grounding method, which may not be up to code now but was not long ago and is a legitimate practice: take the grounding wire and wrap it around the Romex where you're going to clamp it. When clamped, it will be firmly in contact with the metal box. Voila, your whole box is now grounded. Best practice: leave some of it visible inside the box so the next electrician who pokes in there can see where you've stuck it, so that s/he realizes what you've done. This gets that wire out of the way, and may be far easier than trying to wrap it around the grounding screw on the outlet, particularly if you're dealing with more than one set of wires in a single outlet.]

Secure the box into place on the surface you're mounting it to.

Bend the stripped ends of the white and black wire into hooks. Fit the hook of the white wire around one of the silver screws on the side of the socket-piece. It should fit snugly. Bend it to fit snugly if it doesn't. Tighten down the screw to ensure a good contact.

Fit the hook of the black wire around one of the brass screws on the other side of the socket-piece. Tighten down screw.

Secure faceplate over sockets, and carefully bend the excess wires every few inches back-and-forth so the whole works telescopes into the box. Press firmly into position to ensure that it all fits and no wires are straying.
Secure faceplate and socket into box.

Go back to the circuit breaker. Take the stripped end of the black wire (inside the circuit breaker box, where you left it-- remember?) and fasten it into the circuit breaker-- it may have a hole you poke it into, it may have a screw you tighten down, but the method will be self-evident in the construction of the circuit breaker. Double-check that you've got everything where it should be.

Put the circuit breaker into place (method varies according to its construction, but ought to be self-evident). Ensure it is really truly firmly in place. Flip the switch.

Go test your outlet with a voltmeter or a light bulb on a cord. The light bulb should light up. The voltmeter should read that current flows through it. (If it doesn't, wiggle the prongs.) The grounding should show that current flows. All ought to be well. If it isn't, flip the switch back and take it all apart and call a licensed electrician or your daddy (depending on who you are). No sense screwing about with electricity: this is serious.

If all is well, pop the blank out of the circuit breaker box's face plate, and fit the plate back into place. Take a pencil and label your new circuit clearly, not like the crap I have in mine that makes no sense.

Now, Robert's your mother's brother, and you've got a shiny new outlet that's more up to code than anything else in this dump. ;)