Supply House and DIY

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growler said:
I guess it's cheaper to by it twice than to pay a mark up.
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Growler,
I usually buy at a supply house, which sells at 5% over the big box. The special advantage is that the supply house has all the parts, in one trip. Imagine sending a helper with the truck to hit on three big boxes to find 90% of the supplies, and the guys are waiting for some of the material. Now, how much were we billing out for this helper, with the truck? And now he still may have to make another trip!

(1) I was given a helper who could be sent for a dozen widgets, and decide on his own that we only needed 3, so he returns with 3!
(2) When I explained about delaying project, and his expense to the company, he told me "Oh, it's OK, I like to drive around town." Duh!

Sorry, I'm off the subject: "Supply House and DIY".
When I'm in a big box, I give advice, and sometimes the guy gets into even deeper water, and calls me.
I admit, it is a game.

:)
:)
 
glene77is said:
Growler,
I usually buy at a supply house, which sells at 5% over the big box. The special advantage is that the supply house has all the parts, in one trip. Imagine sending a helper with the truck to hit on three big boxes to find 90% of the supplies, and the guys are waiting for some of the material. Now, how much were we billing out for this helper, with the truck? And now he still may have to make another trip!

(1) I was given a helper who could be sent for a dozen widgets, and decide on his own that we only needed 3, so he returns with 3!
(2) When I explained about delaying project, and his expense to the company, he told me "Oh, it's OK, I like to drive around town." Duh!
Click to expand...

May be time for a helper adjustment :roll:
Most supply houses will deliver ;)
 
ivsenroute said:
I was at a local supply house and a gentleman was at the counter. He had apparently asked what he needed to hook up his hot tub so the salesman gave him a 50A GFCI Spa Disco and some 10/2 UF.

Another counter person saw the transaction and told the customer to wait becuase he was given the wrong size wire. He went into the back and came out with 8/2 UF and said "here you go, now you are good for 50Amps".

I just kept quiet since it was none of my business.

How often do you see this?

I questioned the salesman the next day and said for UF he should have been given 6awg copper, not 8. He told me that they always give out 8 copper for NM and UF wire when the OCPD is 50A.

Does your supply house have an NEC handy?
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I would not stay silent, but calmly inform him:
  • that the wire size is incorrect,
  • that such installation should be perfomed by a professional,
Then I would call the BBB and inform them that the store is giving unqualified and misleading information.

Then I would go to bed sleeping well not wondering if that house ever burned down, potentially killing some people in the process. You see, my rest is of utmost importance to me......:D
 
weressl said:
I would not stay silent, but calmly inform him:
  • that the wire size is incorrect,
  • that such installation should be perfomed by a professional,
Then I would call the BBB and inform them that the store is giving unqualified and misleading information.

Then I would go to bed sleeping well not wondering if that house ever burned down, potentially killing some people in the process. You see, my rest is of utmost importance to me......:D
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I actually went to both big box stores in town and gave them my card and told them to have people call me if they had questions, because they were giving them bad information and it was causing a lot of trouble for our inspectors.

Nothing worse than having someone dig 100' of trench by hand only to be told that they needed to be six inches deeper.
 
cowboyjwc said:
I actually went to both big box stores in town and gave them my card and told them to have people call me if they had questions, because they were giving them bad information and it was causing a lot of trouble for our inspectors.

Nothing worse than having someone dig 100' of trench by hand only to be told that they needed to be six inches deeper.
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I could only imagine. It's bad enough to have to watch your helper dig a few inches of it back up after you got hit for the caution tape he forgot to put in after you told him THREE BLOODY TIMES :roll:
 
jimmyglen said:
I am not saying I was an expert -i am just saying that TONS of electricians rely on the supply house for info
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I never ask the counter help how to do a job. Only how to use the materials they are selling me. i.e. So I snap this piece around the T-grid on the suspended ceiling?
 
ivsenroute said:
There is one way to look at it.

I inspected a lot of DIY electrical services this year and except for one guy, I failed every single one of them at least once.

More people are doing their own services for some reason.
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I'm surprised they pulled a permit. Is that because your POCO requires
a inspection before they re-connect? That's the deal here. Thank God!
 
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