Outlet recepticle

[Unregistered-ESM]

I am trying to change an outlet. The new recepticle has a hole for white wire, a hole for black wire and a hole marked green or bare wire. The old recepticle (2 prong) has only a black and white wire – no bare or green wire. Can I safely just hook up the black and white wires?

[Unregistered-Dodgeman]

Your old outlet is a non-grounded 2-prong outlet. You cannot (by code) replace it with a 3-prong. The problem is that anyone using the outlet would have the false impression that it is a grounded outlet.
There are 2-prong outlets available for a direct replacement.
Or you could have a ground wire run to the oulet from the main electrical box ground bus.
Hint: do not use the push-in connections. Use the screw terminals for a better connection.
Good Luck!
Dodgeman

[Author]

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