c/electricians

Just counted my wire nuts and hit a weirdly round number

I was cleaning out my work van yesterday, sorting all my small parts into bins. When I got to the wire nuts, I started counting just to see what I had. I hit exactly 1,000 of the little red ones. It felt so random, like why do I have a full thousand of just that one size? I guess I've been grabbing a bag here and there for years without really keeping track. Anyone else ever find a stash of something that made you stop and laugh?

TIL about the old knob and tube wiring in that 1920s house on Maple Street

I was doing a walkthrough for a potential repaint job at a place on Maple Street here in town, and the homeowner asked me to look at a loose light fixture. When I got up in the attic, I saw it was all original knob and tube, still active. The insulation on some of those cloth wrapped wires was just crumbling away to nothing. It's a miracle the place hasn't had a fire. I guess it's been working fine for them for a hundred years, but seeing it up close was a real eye opener. Has anyone else run into this on a job and had to explain to a homeowner why it absolutely needs to be replaced?

Bought a cheap wire stripper that cost me a whole afternoon

I grabbed a no-name stripper from a discount tool bin for about $12, thinking it was a steal. The adjustment screw stripped out on the third job, and the blades were so dull they nicked the copper every time. I had to re-run three circuits in a kitchen remodel because of bad connections from those nicks. What's your go-to brand for strippers that can handle daily use without breaking the bank?

Serious question, why did it take me so long to check voltage with the breaker on?

I was swapping a switch in my own house yesterday, thought I killed the right circuit. Grabbed my Fluke to be safe, got zero reading. Finished up, flipped the breaker back, and the whole kitchen went dark. Turns out I tested a dead wire from an old remodel. The live one was tucked behind the box. From now on I'm checking for voltage with the circuit HOT before I start, just to confirm I'm in the right spot. Anyone else have a close call that made you change your basic routine?

My journeyman told me to never trust a homeowner's 'simple fix' story

Got a call for a flickering light. Guy said he just changed the bulb. Found a melted wire nut in the box from a previous DIY attempt. He had spliced a 14 gauge wire to a 12 gauge with the wrong size nut. Took me an extra hour to trace and redo the whole run. Anyone else run into this kind of hidden problem after a 'simple' story?

Just changed my mind about those push-in wire connectors

I was doing a kitchen remodel in a house over in Oak Park last month, and I had a whole circuit go dead on me. I traced it back to a junction box where I had used those quick push-in connectors for the neutral wires. The place looked clean, but when I pulled one out, the wire just slid right out with no pressure at all. It must have never seated right. I had to cut all the wires back, strip fresh ends, and use my trusty Wago lever nuts to redo the whole thing, which added about an hour to my day. I used to think the push-ins were fine for simple, solid-core wire jobs to save a few seconds. Now I'm convinced they're just not worth the risk of a bad connection you can't even see. What's your go-to connector for a box with a bunch of wires in it?

Rant: I just saw a guy in Phoenix using the old 'wrap it around the screw' trick for a ground wire

I used to do that too, thinking it was fine for a quick fix, but after a call back for a flickering light in a 2019 build, I learned better. The inspector pointed out how vibration can loosen that wrap over time, creating a high-resistance fault. Now I always use a proper crimp connector or a green wire nut listed for grounding. What's the worst 'old way' you still see people trying to get away with?

Appreciation post: A homeowner's old trick for fishing wire through a tight spot actually worked

I was running a new circuit in a 1950s house in Tacoma last week and hit a nightmare spot behind a finished knee wall. The stud bay was packed with old insulation and cross bracing. I spent over an hour trying to get a fish tape through. The homeowner, an older guy who used to do some handyman work, suggested I try a plastic grocery bag and a shop vac. I was skeptical but gave it a shot. I tied the bag to a pull string, poked a hole in the wall at the top, and used the vac at the bottom opening. It sucked that bag right down in about 10 seconds, pulling the string with it. Has anyone else had a homeowner tip that actually saved the day on a tricky job?

Rant: Everyone pushes the Klein NCVT-3 but my old Sperry VD6505 just works better

I've used both for about 6 months each on a big commercial job in Phoenix... and the Sperry's beep is way louder on a noisy site, plus the tip is slimmer for tight boxes. The Klein kept giving me false positives near some old conduit runs, which wasted a bunch of time. Anyone else have a non-contact tester they swear by that isn't the usual brand?

Question about a weird voltage reading in a 1920s house basement

I was troubleshooting a flickering light in an old Seattle basement and my meter showed 87 volts on a circuit that should have been dead, which made me double-check everything with a non-contact tester first from then on.

My journeyman told me to always use aluminum paste on 4/0 feeders, and I'm glad I didn't listen

He swore by it for years, but when we had to redo a whole apartment complex in Tampa last month, the inspector flagged every connection for excess paste. Turns out the new code just wants a light coat of oxide inhibitor, not that thick goop. Has anyone else run into this with the 2023 NEC changes?

Appreciation post: My old boss in Tampa showed me how to use a $40 fish tape puller instead of just shoving wire by hand, and it cut my time on a 50-foot basement run from 45 minutes to maybe 10.

What other simple tools have you guys found that made a huge difference on jobs you used to hate?

Pro tip: An old timer told me to never trust a green ground screw in a 3-way switch box.

He said if the screw is green but the strap is painted, it's not a true ground. I checked a batch of switches from a 2022 supply house order and sure enough, half of them had painted straps under the green screws. How many of you have run into this on a new install?

My journeyman told me to torque every lug on that 400 amp service, and I'm glad I listened

We were doing a panel swap in an old San Diego bungalow last week, and the main lugs looked tight. He made me get out the torque wrench anyway. Sure enough, two of them were a full 15 inch-pounds under spec. That could have been a real bad meltdown waiting to happen. How many of you actually torque everything to the spec sheet, or just go by feel?

Watch out for old 3-way switch setups in these 1920s houses

Got called for a simple switch swap in a 1920s bungalow, but the traveler wires were tied together in the attic junction box with old cloth tape. Spent 4 hours tracing the whole circuit with my toner before I found the hidden splice. Anyone else run into this kind of nightmare with knob and tube remnants?

Vent: A simple light switch swap turned into a four hour hunt

Got called to a house in Phoenix to swap a single pole switch for a dimmer, figured it was a 20 minute job. Pulled the old switch out and found a rat's nest of three different colored wires, none of them marked, and the box was so full I could barely get my fingers in. Spent the next three and a half hours with my tester and a notepad, tracing every single wire back through the attic to figure out which one was the actual hot feed for that circuit. The homeowner just kept asking if I was 'still playing with the wires'. Anyone ever had a simple job blow up because of a previous hack job?

Heard a homeowner in line at the hardware store say something that made me stop

I was grabbing some 12/2 at the local supply house yesterday and the guy ahead of me was telling the clerk he was going to 'just tap into the old knob and tube for a new bathroom fan' himself. He said it was 'still hot and working fine.' I didn't say anything there, but it got me thinking about how many people don't get that old insulation crumbles and it's a major fire risk. Has anyone else had to explain this to a client after they tried something similar?

Watched a guy in Tampa almost get fried because he skipped the lockout tagout

He was working on a 480v panel he swore was dead, but someone flipped the breaker back. The arc flash blew his tools across the room. Now I physically lock every disconnect myself, no exceptions. Anyone else seen a close call that changed their routine?

Question about using a torque wrench on aluminum lugs

I was helping a friend rewire his garage in Phoenix and saw him just crank down on the aluminum lugs with a regular wrench. I told him the spec sheet for the panel said 35 inch-pounds, but he said it didn't matter. How do you guys make sure you're hitting the right torque without slowing down too much?

Tried using a non-contact voltage tester on a circuit I thought was dead in an old Baltimore row house, and it didn't beep even though the line was still hot.

Turns out the tester was picking up interference from the knob and tube running parallel in the wall, so now I always double-check with my meter before I touch anything in those pre-war places, has anyone else had a similar false negative happen?

I had to choose between a $300 thermal imager and a $1500 one for my truck. Picked the cheaper one and it's been fine for residential calls.

Vent: Heard a homeowner in line at the hardware store say they just twist wire nuts until they 'feel tight'

I was at the Ace on 5th yesterday grabbing some 12/2 and the guy in front of me was telling his buddy he never uses a torque screwdriver for terminals and just cranks wire nuts by hand until they stop turning. He said he's been doing his own work for 20 years. That's a house fire waiting to happen from a loose connection or a cracked insulator. How do you guys make sure apprentices get the feel for proper torque without a tool, or do you just make them use one?

Finally got that old three phase motor running in a warehouse downtown after it tripped every time we tried to start it.

Saw some scary wiring in a rental house I was checking out in Phoenix

I was looking at a place for my sister last week and the panel cover was off. Inside, there were three circuits with double tapped neutrals on the same bus bar. One of the neutral wires was loose and arcing, you could see the burn marks. The whole thing was a fire waiting to happen. Has anyone else run into this kind of mess in old rental units?

Thought my old voltage tester was fine until a weird reading in a 1950s house

I was checking a kitchen outlet in a house from the 50s and my old non-contact tester kept blinking, but my buddy's multimeter showed a solid 120v. Turns out the old knob and tube wiring was giving off a weird field that tricked my tool. Anyone run into this with older systems and have a good tester they trust for them?