Why Are Some Outlets Installed So High Up On Walls In Older Homes?

While a typical outlet is low to the ground, you may have noticed that some outlets in certain homes are installed high up on the walls. This may seem like a strange trend to you, and it is one we wanted to get to the bottom of. When you consider what's usually plugged into an outlet — such as a vacuum, a coffee maker, or a blow-dryer — thinking about having to get up on your tippy-toes to plug in the cord simply doesn't make sense. 

We reached out to House Digest's design historian, Sarah Bilotta, to learn more about this odd outlet placement that is common in many older homes. During an exclusive interview, she shared, "The two most common reasons you might find a standard electrical outlet higher up on a wall in a home are for installing either wall lights or wall clocks."

So, why the odd outlet placement in older and historic homes? During an exclusive interview with House Digest, Bilotta shared, "Depending on the age of the home, different types of outlets and boxes may have been installed at different heights on a wall. Objects wired into a home's electrical system and typically placed higher on a wall include: Doorbells, smoke alarms, lighting, clocks, speakers, and more."

"If you find a strange-looking outlet placed high up in a bedroom, it's possible this was installed for dedicated dressing table lighting, which was recommended by early 20th-century home electrical system designers," explains Bilotta. Often called vanities, a dressing table was used when getting one's self ready for the day. As you know, proper lighting is key for such tasks, so it makes sense that homeowners would have wanted to be able to plug a light in at a more convenient height for their vanity.

High wall outlets in other rooms in the home wouldn't have been used for dressing table lighting, as that space was reserved for the bedroom. Bilotta shares, "If you find a higher-than-normal outlet in a kitchen or living area — or especially by a door, it's more likely to have previously been where a wall clock or sconce was plugged in."

As you know, modern homes don't typically have outlets located so high on a wall. So, when did these installation patterns change? When speaking exclusively to House Digest, Bilotta explained that builders likely transitioned slowly away from this practice during the second half of the 20th century. "Now that we have the luxury of powerful, long-lasting batteries and more efficient bulbs and electrical mechanisms, it is possible to power almost any wall accessory with a battery. Thus, we're not as concerned with wiring appliances into a wall outlet," she says. These days, you can easily find everything from cordless wall lighting to battery-powered artistic wall clocks. 

Today, Bilotta explains, "Most standard wall outlets in the United States are about a foot off the floor. This is intended to make the outlets accessible to anyone." However, while this is the standard placement, it is not the only spot where you could find — or choose to install — a wall outlet in a modern home. "You can install dedicated wall outlets wherever you want one, with the aid of a competent electrician. If you want to install, for example, a home entertainment system with wired-in speakers, you may need to consider having some outlets installed where those speakers will be located," shares Bilotta.