This is why you always mount outlets with the grounding pin facing up!

enneff an hour ago | parent | next [-]

This is why you have modern circuit breakers.

cluckindan 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

How does that help?

	▲	linsomniac an hour ago \| parent \| next [-]
		The ground pin, when "up", is higher than the hot, so in certain situations it can prevent something from shorting the hot and neutral. Code (?) or convention requires it if you have a metal faceplate, and hospitals require it. People generally like them mounted ground down because then they look like little faces. :-) edit: Not code, just convention.
	▲	y1n0 2 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		It doesn't.

... it was an ungrounded plug... Plus it was a chain, so it'd drape across all 3.

TBH, in the house I mount them ground down, but under cabinets or in the garage/shop or etc I mount it ground up.

	▲	joshcartme 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		I think ground up commonly indicates that an outlet is controlled by a switch on the wall. It's not code, but I think it's a convention