Do Electricians have the worst wired homes?

[allenwayne]

I'll show my cards:

What your are looking at is the #8's from the load side of my 50A FPE Main....they enter this KO and goto a backfed 50A CB in a 200A panel with a 200A MCB.
Is it "safe"?
Yes
Is it legal?
Let's not even open that can of worms!

Here is a shot looking at the new panel.
You can see the #8's coming in the side there....next to the water lineson the right, a small wall will be built there - not because it has to be, but because I want it to be ~ if that water line or the filters should ever burst(that is an exterior wall in the basement) I don't my panel getting wet. In addition to that planned wall, the water line was relocated from directly over the panel to a location 4' out from the face of the panel - not a code requirement, but I strongly dislike water dripping onto a panel or person working on the panel.

Now for your amusement is the "transition area".
In the top left of the picture are 4 runs of 3/4" EMT that goto a 12x12 JB. This is not by any means a requirement - it is for me. The panel is completely wired, every breaker (with the exception of the 50A backfed CB and the 200A MCB) has wires landed on them. I have taken the liberty of determining that when I gut the kitchen, all I will need to do is run 1 3/4" conduit to that area (in the basement) and then run up to the kitchen locations with romex...easy as pie. For my AC needs, same thing, 1 3/4" EMT from the JB to the disco...done...easy as pie. Same for when I finish the basement....2 3/4" EMTs ~ one east/west on south side; one east/west on north side both from the JB....done...easy as pie. There will be plenty of "extra room" in these conduits should I decide to add any exterior landscape lighting/recpts in the backyard area.
Having that JB there...and a plan...will make my future plans a breeze.

That entire wall where the meter and 50A FPE MCB are will be demoed...all that will remain will be the sump pit and pump below ~ you can just make out the pumps piping in the lower left...and you need to stand on the pit's cover to read the meter; and a central vac on yet another wall that needs to be built ~ extended from just right of the that grey pipe on the right (from the gutters/leaders).

Is it pretty...no, it's an ugly duckling...soon to be a swan.
Is it legal...not yet, but the foundation is in place.

So to answer your question:
Do Electricians have the worst wired homes?
Yes...
...but we are no worse off than the cobbler's kids.

Hey all that is is a temp situation in progress You know that you won`t leave it like that when done.Plumbers have leaky faucets at home.Carpenters have sticky doors,I redid a 100 year old home in NY and had bare bulbs hanging from the can lights until a week before closing on a sale and then after 2 years I installed trim s .

 

[Brady Electric]

Do Electricains have the worst wired homes

Do Electricains have the worst wired homes

Could do without this question, but I would have to agree with Iwire and Celtic. One of these days I'll do better only if I could find my panel cover. Used to when my wife wanted a new outlet I would say what coler drop courd would you like.

 

[ptonsparky]

When wife threatened to call competition for added recepts in liv rm, I managed, after a week or two. Danged if she wasn't POd because we did it the day she was having the whole family over for Xmas later.

Discussed this same topic with a group of friends. The lawer in the group had no Will.

 

[celtic]

My doorbells haven't EVER worked (we bought this house 12/25/02)....ROFL

 

[ritelec]

my door bells didn't work from 1988 till 1992..............just disconnected them again last week..........hope to have them back up by 2011...lol.....


ok , as far as the original post,, darn, what about all these 3 wire circuits and the introduction to afci breakers...... with cu prices the way they are, do i have to rewire this house again?......


They don't make it easy.

r

 

[hockeyoligist2]

My house is jam up! But.... I had to run an emergency temp at work due to a power outage, 150' of flex with 4 #10 thhn. After we took it out I used it to run power to one of my out buildings. I only buried it about 10" deep since I kept hitting big rocks.

 

[tallgirl]

My doorbells haven't EVER worked (we bought this house 12/25/02)....ROFL

Have you considered WIRELESS doorbells?

 

[emahler]

Have you considered WIRELESS doorbells?

no self respecting electrician would have WIRELESS doorbells...Now Celt on the other hand.....

 

[tallgirl]

no self respecting electrician would have WIRELESS doorbells...Now Celt on the other hand.....

Now wait a minute -- I have wireless internet, not sure why Celtic can't have wireless doorbells.

And for what it's worth, Tesla advocated for wireless power transmission. Surely if it was good enough for Tesla, it's good enough for everyone else. Except birds, airline passengers, astronauts in low Earth orbit, ...

 

[davidr43229]

My home was built in 1962. I have replaced the recepticals in the bathroom & kitchen with GFCi's. Some recepticles in the bedrooms don't have a 3rd prong (I'll get to those someday). I have 1 double wired ITE Push Matic breaker.
I have a 5.5KV generator backfeeding through the drier breaker. One time I forgot, I relatched the mains and the cordset was still connected to the generator made one hell-of-a-noise at the generator.
I also check torque on all my wires going to the breakers breakers 1/yr and I really should excersise them (sometimes I do....).
Juts my $.02

 

[infinity]

I have a 5.5KV generator backfeeding through the drier breaker. One time I forgot, I relatched the mains and the cordset was still connected to the generator made one hell-of-a-noise at the generator.

Are you saying that you don't have a transfer switch?

 

[davidr43229]

I am saying I do not have a trandfer switch.
(ducks and runs for cover)

 

[George Stolz]

When I'm killing linemen, I prefer the Savage Arms 12-Gauge at close range, myself. I like to be close enough to hear the thud.

 

[infinity]

When I'm killing linemen, I prefer the Savage Arms 12-Gauge at close range, myself. I like to be close enough to hear the thud.

That's what I was getting at. I wouldn't expect that an electrician would have such a shoddy setup which could be extremely dangerous. Sorry David.

 

[brian john]

In Southern Maryland 20+ years ago a lineman was killed exactly like that. Homeowner back fed the utility line he was the last house on the line and supposedly the line was down between the pole transformer for his house and the next house up the line.

This could be an urban legend or the truth; I heard it from a lineman for the utility.
.

 

[infinity]

In Southern Maryland 20+ years ago a lineman was killed exactly like that. Homeowner back fed the utility line he was the last house on the line and supposedly the line was down between the pole transformer for his house and the next house up the line.

This could be an urban legend or the truth; I heard it from a lineman for the utility.
.

Myth or not, the potential for a disaster is very real.

 

[celtic]

That's what I was getting at. I wouldn't expect that an electrician would have such a shoddy setup which could be extremely dangerous. Sorry David.

It's "ok" to put your OWN life and your familys at risk...but bringing an outsider in is where I draw the line.

 

[tallgirl]

Myth or not, the potential for a disaster is very real.

It can happen. People were backfeeding their homes after Katrina and linemen were finding lines energized that weren't supposed to be. The AM radio station that was set up to get relief related news ran spots every 15 minutes or so telling people not to connect generators to their homes without transfer switches.

This was followed by yet another tragedy -- people started having their generators stolen, so they moved them indoors and died from carbon monoxide. Or from getting shot trying to steal a generator that was left outside.

 

[Bob NH]

This was followed by yet another tragedy -- people started having their generators stolen, so they moved them indoors and died from carbon monoxide. Or from getting shot trying to steal a generator that was left outside.

I'm sure they were shot because the owner of the generator believed that she/he was being threatened with imminent death or severe bodily harm, and the threatening assailant/thief was facing the citizen and acting in a threatening manner toward the person who was consequently compelled to defend the life of himself/herself and family.

 

[ServiceTech1/c]

I have a 5.5KV generator backfeeding through the drier breaker. One time I forgot, I relatched the mains and the cordset was still connected to the generator made one hell-of-a-noise at the generator.

David,
I can't stop laughing,.....................you should write comedy, well...you just did...