DIY ELECTRICIANS.. PLEASE NOTE

[BHD]

just because someone has a licence does not mean they know there trade,
and just because someone doesn't hold a licence means there clueless,

 

[GLyford]

 

[widefat]

You may think you know about electricity, and even realize there's thing you don't know (so they get ignored if everything works). But I guarantee there are aspects you don't even know that you don't know. And you know it.

Like Rumsfeld said:
"there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns -- the ones we don't know we don't know"

True to a degree - but electricity as discussed in this thread is not humint or some mystical quark theory, it is an established science and practice. The knowledge is available to anyone willing to study and learn, and the practice is available through the NEC, books, even youtube.
Especially residential wiring - learn the code, follow the code, proper safety, permitted and inspected.
Stupid will always be stupid; electricty can be learned and practiced by just about anyone.

 

[mbohuntr]

View attachment 572566

^This!

 

[Fuddy1952]

Lots of great advice here from knowledgeable people. I just wanted to add one thing I do, after throwing breaker, after verifying no power with meter or other tester is using an insulated screwdriver is short wires together! That way you can be sure circuit is dead.

 

[newbury]

Not dropping names, not the point, and that wasn't the poster.. The poster did not understand the basic purpose of a starter circuit, and when it was suggested to seek out a qualified electrician, they were rather indignant and said they can learn by doing, and people shouldn't be afraid to learn things themselves.. this is coming from memory, and not exactly quoted.
Either way, it is a good recipe for smoke and sparks. Maybe you get it right, maybe you die.. maybe you burn down your home with your family in it...
I have seen scorch marks where someone was standing before they died, another friends home burn down, and personally smoked circuitry because I didn't understand what I was touching.. this stuff is serious and not a "Hold my beer" hobby..

And it is not much like driving. With 3 phase it goes from 0 to 240V FAST. Most people learn driving starting at slow speeds where a small accident won't kill them.

just because someone has a licence does not mean they know there trade,
and just because someone doesn't hold a licence means there clueless,

But because someone has a licence that means either some authority has approved them or they have faked their license.

True to a degree - but electricity as discussed in this thread is not humint or some mystical quark theory, it is an established science and practice. The knowledge is available to anyone willing to study and learn, and the practice is available through the NEC, books, even youtube.
Especially residential wiring - learn the code, follow the code, proper safety, permitted and inspected.
Stupid will always be stupid; electricty can be learned and practiced by just about anyone.

And keep up to date on the code. I don't know how often it is updated but it is updated. For example on work I had done a few years ago I found I needed GFCI outlets in many existing fixtures that when built passed inspection with out GFCI based on code when originally installed.

 

[widefat]

I work on most stuff live. It's just the way we used to do it.

Yes, been there. In my younger days - you simply did not kill the main power feeding a couple of hundred racks in the network control center.
You learned to be methodical, patient, and thoughtful. And, where to hide if you did let the screwdriver slip and trip a few breakers.

 

[ctrider]

The NEC is a continuous cycle. Proposals are constantly being submitted, then are reviewed by different panels and approved every 3 years. Each state can then adopt or reject all or part of the new code. Some states have license requirements and others don’t, so you need to know what is required in your area

 

[Industrial Toys]

Besides. Setting that useless microwave clock is a PITA.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

My lights just went out. Which one of you is messing in my panel??? Lol

Where i used to work, most existing work was done hot.

 

[buickanddeere]

I guess no Electricians have ever been electrocuted on the job? (not by the state)
With every trade there are risks and too often the pro will get hit also.
With electric I will quote Ronald Reagan "trust but verify".
I sold a 3 phase Ironworker to a guy with a single to 3 phase converter that I made.
I showed him that it worked and gave him a schematic on how to hook it up.
He called me 2 days later saying that he hired an electrician to hook it up and the electrician called me "a con man" that you can't get 3 ph from single!
I told him, you saw it run! Find a REAL electrician!

Per hour worked and per job . The home tinkerers are going to die more often and burn down more buildings .

 

[dieselcrawler]

Im not the DIY electrician... been a state licenced journeyman for about 20 years. Work in an industrial setting currently, spent 15+ years in the residential/ light commercial field. I like to think I understand electricity better than the average DIY, but humble enough to know I'll always have more to learn.

My go-to is what I call an 'idiot stick', a volt sensening pen, that requires no contact with live conductors, but glows red if any AC voltage over 90 volts is present, and reads if a,wire is live thru the insulation coating. It is one step of verifying that a wire is dead, hence idiot stick. You're an idiot if you don't use it, but you're an idiot if you trust it without verification.

At work, we have a very strict 'hot work' policy, anything over 50v and I gear up in an 8cal arc flash suit, complete with face shield and rubber voltage rated gloves and tools. A real PITA, after years of working things live with nothing to save me but safe habits and luck, but they pay me by the hour, and pay me well... I'll put on that suit and fill out the hot work permit as required, and go home alive.

 

[dstig1]

I view electricity and gas lines as much more dangerous than HVAC or plumbing. I don't know the numbers but I bet more houses are QUICKLY destroyed by bad electrical wiring than by bad plumbing.

You might be surprised to hear otherwise then. Had an insurance agent tell me and my friend one time that plumbing/water causes way more damage than electrical problems overall. Now an electrical problem may cause loss of the entire house, but plumbing incidents are so much more common and can cause so much damage dollar wise that they add up to much more overall than electrical issues. Obviously that is POV of insurance folks, but was surprising to hear, IMO.

As for the topic, I am with many posters: Home wiring is not rocket science but electricity does deserve significant respect. But outright fear is not productive. Ask. Learn. Do. And be careful.

 

[check]

Besides. Setting that useless microwave clock is a PITA.

Hey, Tom, did you lose power in that last heavy wind storm? We were out for five days, and burned up a lot of propane with my generator. Resetting the clock on the microwave was the least of my worries!

 

[mbohuntr]

As for the topic, I am with many posters: Home wiring is not rocket science but electricity does deserve significant respect. But outright fear is not productive. Ask. Learn. Do. And be careful.

I work in live 4KV cubicles, and 600v panels frequently.. On the day I stop puckering up when I reach in there, I need to quit.

I am laser focused each time I pull wire in a residential panel box..

 

[Oldoak]

just because someone has a licence does not mean they know there trade,
and just because someone doesn't hold a licence means there clueless,

The NEC is a continuous cycle. Proposals are constantly being submitted, then are reviewed by different panels and approved every 3 years. Each state can then adopt or reject all or part of the new code. Some states have license requirements and others don稚, so you need to know what is required in your area

These two sums it up pretty well. All it really takes is knowledgeable people, licensed or not, professional electricians or not.

 

[Cord]

I've had licensed masters exceed box fills, forget the third wire to interconnect smoke detectors and wire a bathroom circuit from two sources on the same pole. The last one was really fun to diagnose. Turn one breaker off and the second one hums for a couple of seconds before tripping. There are good electricians and there are bad electricians. To say that somebody can't do do their own electrical work just because they don't hold a card is a casuistry.

 

[Industrial Toys]

As much as I detest Government intervention. I do think that when a person buys a house or whatever, it's nice to know that things, not just electrical, were done to some code. Working as an electrician, I got more than one shock from someone having livened up the neutral. Kind of pisses a guy off.

As for the wind storm, I wish! The power didn't as much as flicker, despite our rather long, old, getting increasingly overgrown (again) , rickety line that feeds our place. I had the genset all warmed up too.

I am still curious and never heard how that guy electrocuted himself during the last tropical storm (news cycle long over, can't remember the name) with his generator.