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GWBBQ posted:Don't assume that, I'm getting around to tracking where in the chain the loose neutral is for my rear upstairs circuit (1950s house, we have 2 for the whole upstairs and a bunch of random stuff downstairs on one of those too) and I suspect I'm going to find it near where hot and neutral are reversed. Oh absolutely, never assume anything with electrical. I just meant that if the original poster was gonna use a multimeter to figure out what's what, the ground-wireless box could still possibly be his ground depending on construction/locale.
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Nov 14, 2016 05:48
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Just curious, why are antique knob-and-tube pieces worth money? Our inspector pointed out that the cut-out porcelain insulators and stuff are just sitting up in the attic and are worth a few hundred bucks on Ebay. What do people want this stuff for?
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Nov 14, 2016 19:43
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Collectors mostly, same as collecting the glass insulators from power poles.
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Nov 14, 2016 21:24
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i had some lady who wanted to keep all the unchipped "tubes" of porcelain we pulled out of her house. she made a bunch of weird, yuppie jewelry for her friends and to show off on her blog. *shrug* people are weird.
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Nov 15, 2016 05:48
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Yu-Gi-Ho! posted:The Nest is usually smart enough to figure out if you've swapped wires. Makes sense, didn't want to assume anything and I've never tried hooking mine up wrong. I've heard the transistor-based switching it uses can be weird.
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Nov 15, 2016 19:34
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crocodile posted:i had some lady who wanted to keep all the unchipped "tubes" of porcelain we pulled out of her house. she made a bunch of weird, yuppie jewelry for her friends and to show off on her blog. *shrug* people are weird. poo poo, I hope you cleaned all the electricity out of them first
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Nov 15, 2016 20:36
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I just wanted to thank this thread, in general, for helping me pass the rough-in inspection on a complete DIY rewire of two bathrooms and a laundry room on the first try. The inspector noted that I "sure got the memo on pigtails."
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Nov 16, 2016 01:03
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Not mine: 
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Nov 17, 2016 04:35
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CommieGIR posted:Not mine: haha what the actual gently caress
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Nov 17, 2016 04:37
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My best guess: Plastic box, switch on the right is installed correctly, switch on the left has hot and ground swapped.
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Nov 17, 2016 05:38
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Anyone willing to help me install a Nest Thermostat? I'm almost confident enough to do it myself, but I really don't want to mess it up and end up burning my place down. It would take about 30 minutes, if that, and I would be forever in your debt. We could Skype and I could either send photos or turn the camera on to show you exactly what is what.
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Nov 17, 2016 08:21
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Loopoo posted:Anyone willing to help me install a Nest Thermostat? I'm almost confident enough to do it myself, but I really don't want to mess it up and end up burning my place down. It would take about 30 minutes, if that, and I would be forever in your debt. We could Skype and I could either send photos or turn the camera on to show you exactly what is what. If you haven't just gone ahead and done it by now, take a few clear pictures of how the wires attach to the current thermostat and post them here. We should be able to tell you from that which wires are what and thus where they should connect to the Nest base.
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Nov 17, 2016 15:25
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wolrah posted:If you haven't just gone ahead and done it by now, take a few clear pictures of how the wires attach to the current thermostat and post them here. We should be able to tell you from that which wires are what and thus where they should connect to the Nest base. Sure thing. I'll take pics of the thermostat wires for the Nest, and then the other box of wires where I'll be installing the Heatlink. Only reason I haven't done so yet is because I haven't been bothered enough to turn all the electricity off in the house (via the breaker) to make sure it's safe when I remove the big box off the wall and expose all the potentially dangerous wires. I'd personally feel more comfortable having a super savvy Elec Wiz on the phone to guide me through it as an added bonus, but I can live with forum feedback.
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Nov 17, 2016 15:28
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For anything Nest-compatible it'll be only 24 volts on the control lines anyways IIRC, so no big deal one way or another. This is low voltage work with little consequence for hooking it up wrong for the short time it'd take to figure out something's not right. Basically you have a common line and a few control lines. Optionally there may also be a dedicated power line, though this probably isn't there unless the original thermostat was rather advanced. Connect the appropriate control line to the common line and the part the control line is for turns on. The worst case scenarios are the fan not running or both the heat and AC running at the same time, both of which are easy to test for and would take a lot more time to cause damage than it would take to test. You shouldn't have to cut power to the whole house, every place I've ever lived in has had a dedicated circuit or two just for HVAC so you probably have the same and can just turn off that/those. Generally the furnace has a standard 15/20A and the AC has something bigger. The Nest pulls some trickery to keep itself charged when the extra power line isn't there by connecting one of the control lines at a low voltage, enough to charge the battery but generally not enough to actually activate the system. Sometimes that doesn't work as intended and you can end up with the system activating partially or doing other weird things, if that happens you're looking at pulling a new wire to get that dedicated power connection. edit: OK, scratch a lot of that, looks like you guys do things differently over there and that Heat Link box works with higher voltages. I don't know how much of what I posted applies to your environment. wolrah fucked around with this message at 17:33 on Nov 17, 2016 |
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Nov 17, 2016 17:22
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Safety Dance posted:My best guess: Plastic box, switch on the right is installed correctly, switch on the left has hot and ground swapped. I need to crosspost the hot chassis plug from the OSHA thread. That's 120V, this one was 277V.
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Nov 19, 2016 00:00
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While I have half my first floor walls open, I think this would be a good time to run a conduit that I will eventually use to run a couple of new circuits to my largely unfinished second floor. Can anyone help me figure out the best size/material for this task? I imagine that I'll ultimately run ~5 20 amp lines to accomodate two bedrooms and a bathroom.
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Nov 19, 2016 03:09
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Chef Boyardeez Nuts posted:While I have half my first floor walls open, I think this would be a good time to run a conduit that I will eventually use to run a couple of new circuits to my largely unfinished second floor. Can anyone help me figure out the best size/material for this task? I imagine that I'll ultimately run ~5 20 amp lines to accomodate two bedrooms and a bathroom. Run something bigger than you need. If the walls are open, I'd run the biggest pipe that could fit in those walls. I don't have my table handy, but there is a minimum size that you'd need. When going through floors, the conduit must extend at least 6 inches above the floor. I assume you have an unfinished basement? It should be fine to leave that end open, but I w would put in a junction box at the top if you're not running this conduit all the way to the attic. If it were me, I'd run a second conduit for low voltage. Who knows, maybe you'll want or need to run cat6 up there one day.
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Nov 21, 2016 18:52
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I'm replacing my dishwasher, and the new one comes with a junction box to go into the under sink cabinet. The existing dishwasher is 20+ years old, and I don't believe its on its own circuit, it appears to be linked to at least 2 of the counter outlets. Do I need to put in a new circuit, and does it need a gfci/afci breaker? I'm in BC, Canada.
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Nov 26, 2016 03:04
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While my bathroom is getting renovated I have no shower. I bought a camp shower and set it up in my basement, but it's got one of those 12V car-cigarette lighter attachments. I want it to just plug directly into an Australian wall socket, my car won't be anywhere near it: But it looks like you can't buy wall->car charger adapters in Australia, because it's dangerous having such a large opening that a human finger can get into it. Will anything go wrong if I cut off the 12v extension bit and replace it with a normal wall plug?
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Nov 26, 2016 06:36
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02-6611-0142-1 posted:Will anything go wrong if I cut off the 12v extension bit and replace it with a normal wall plug? Nothing will go wrong when you replace the plug. Lots of things will go wrong if you ever plug it in. Please don't do this.
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Nov 26, 2016 06:38
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02-6611-0142-1 posted:While my bathroom is getting renovated I have no shower. I bought a camp shower and set it up in my basement, but it's got one of those 12V car-cigarette lighter attachments. I want it to just plug directly into an Australian wall socket, my car won't be anywhere near it: Nope. I've done it before, with an inline fuse too. EDIT: You mean a wall wart right? Go find a Wall Wart that will convert 230/120vac to 12vdc and hook it to that. Do NOT plug it directly into a normal straight through plug. It will end in tears and maybe fire.
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Nov 26, 2016 06:39
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i meant the bad and wrong thing, actually.
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Nov 26, 2016 07:54
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02-6611-0142-1 posted:i meant the bad and wrong thing, actually. Yeah don't do the bad and wrong thing. If you are considering it, consult the thread title.
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Nov 26, 2016 07:56
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JimbobDobalina posted:I'm replacing my dishwasher, and the new one comes with a junction box to go into the under sink cabinet. The existing dishwasher is 20+ years old, and I don't believe its on its own circuit, it appears to be linked to at least 2 of the counter outlets. What do you mean by "the new one comes with a junction box to go into the under sink cabinet."? In the US, dishwashers are either hard wired, or they have a cord and plug that plugs into and outlet under the sink. Also in the US, the dishwasher needs to be GFCI protected but not AFCI, for now anyway. However, GFCIs must also be readily accessible, so outlets in cabinets that you must first move a bunch of junk to even reach are a bit of a gray area. Then there's the fact that a lot of electricians install one duplex under the sink with one outlet always on for the dishwasher and the other outlet switched on for the disposal. Well, GFCI duplexes can't be split like a plain duplex can. To get around these problems, you can use a GFCI breaker.
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Nov 26, 2016 17:55
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kid sinister posted:What do you mean by "the new one comes with a junction box to go into the under sink cabinet."? In the US, dishwashers are either hard wired, or they have a cord and plug that plugs into and outlet under the sink. I assume it is a hardwire kit. Ours came with both. There is a modular plug in the back of our dishwasher for hooking them up. Our electrician wired a duplex outlet with a dedicated circuit for each thing and put a bar across the breakers so they both flip in tandem.
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Nov 26, 2016 18:47
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My basement workshop currently has one fluorescent fixture in the center of the ceiling. I'd like to replace it with four T8 LED fixtures like the drawing below. The ceiling is finished so I plan to mount everything externally. The plan is a 4" metal box where in the center where the existing wiring come out that will branch out to two more 4" metal boxes that will each feed two fixtures. 1/2" rigid conduit with 14/2 NM-B. Blank faceplate covers on the boxes. 1. Does that seem like a solid plan? 2. Inside each box is a ground screw. Each junction will have 3 ground wires, so do I just wrap all three wires around the screw and crank it down? 3. The conduit will be attached to the boxes with standard set screw connectors. Is there any way to also clamp the cable so if somebody in the future yanks on one of the cables in the side boxes it won't pull apart the connections in the center box?
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Nov 26, 2016 18:59
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kid sinister posted:What do you mean by "the new one comes with a junction box to go into the under sink cabinet."? In the US, dishwashers are either hard wired, or they have a cord and plug that plugs into and outlet under the sink. Also in the US, the dishwasher needs to be GFCI protected but not AFCI, for now anyway. However, GFCIs must also be readily accessible, so outlets in cabinets that you must first move a bunch of junk to even reach are a bit of a gray area. Then there's the fact that a lot of electricians install one duplex under the sink with one outlet always on for the dishwasher and the other outlet switched on for the disposal. Well, GFCI duplexes can't be split like a plain duplex can. To get around these problems, you can use a GFCI breaker. The new one comes with a junction box that looks like this photo. It has screw terminals for the supply wiring, and a flexible cord and plug for the back of the dishwasher. The existing one is hardwired, so I can disconnect it and install the box easy enough. I am pretty certain the existing washer is just teed off the kitchen outlets, not its own circuit. If I don't need an independent circuit just for the dishwasher, then can I swap the kitchen outlets for gfci, and call it good?
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Nov 26, 2016 19:04
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SkunkDuster posted:1. Does that seem like a solid plan? 1. The plan seems fine, you could use EMT to save a bit unless there's some reason you want to go with rigid. 2. Just wrap one of the wires around the screw then connect all the grounds, or add a pigtail to the groundscrew and tie it in with the others like that. 3. If it's possible to pull your connections apart by yanking on the wires you have loose connections. Always try to pull your wire nuts apart and don't close up the box unless you can't.
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Nov 26, 2016 19:04
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Mimesweeper posted:1. The plan seems fine, you could use EMT to save a bit unless there's some reason you want to go with rigid. Thanks for the quick reply. EMT is what I was planning on. I thought that it was the same thing as rigid. Any recommendations on a good brand of wire nuts? I got an assortment from Amazon and they are garbage.
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Nov 26, 2016 19:12
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SkunkDuster posted:Thanks for the quick reply. EMT is what I was planning on. I thought that it was the same thing as rigid. How long are the conduit runs between the boxes and lights? Anything past 3' needs to be supported within 3' of each end. This style of hanger would probably be the easiest to use if you need them, otherwise you'd have to bend offsets to get the conduit flush for straps. I like Ideal wire nuts. edit: oh I almost forgot, don't wrap the ground screw with stranded wire. If you're pulling solid what I said is fine, if not put a solid pigtail. Mimesweeper fucked around with this message at 19:26 on Nov 26, 2016 |
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Nov 26, 2016 19:24
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I can't answer the "is this a good design" question, but...SkunkDuster posted:2. Inside each box is a ground screw. Each junction will have 3 ground wires, so do I just wrap all three wires around the screw and crank it down? quote:3. The conduit will be attached to the boxes with standard set screw connectors. Is there any way to also clamp the cable so if somebody in the future yanks on one of the cables in the side boxes it won't pull apart the connections in the center box?
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Nov 26, 2016 19:42
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Mimesweeper posted:How long are the conduit runs between the boxes and lights? Anything past 3' needs to be supported within 3' of each end. This style of hanger would probably be the easiest to use if you need them, otherwise you'd have to bend offsets to get the conduit flush for straps. The lights are going to be about 4' apart, so each conduit piece will be less than 2'. Thanks for the hanger link. I have a conduit bender and watched a video on creating the 10 degree bends and was planning on doing that, but that hanger like that will make things much easier. The wire is all solid core, so no worries there. On a different subject... I replaced some switches in my kitchen over the weekend. The old switches just had two terminals. The new ones have a third green grounding screw. Is there any reason to run a ground wire to the switch if it is being installed in a metal box that is grounded or are those screws only used when installing in a plastic box?
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Nov 27, 2016 01:37
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SkunkDuster posted:The lights are going to be about 4' apart, so each conduit piece will be less than 2'. Thanks for the hanger link. I have a conduit bender and watched a video on creating the 10 degree bends and was planning on doing that, but that hanger like that will make things much easier. The wire is all solid core, so no worries there. If there's a ground screw or ground wire on something, then it should be wired into a proper ground source. The screws that hold the fixture to the box do not count as a valid grounding path (as I was told when I asked this same question a few months back).
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Nov 27, 2016 01:51
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02-6611-0142-1 posted:i meant the bad and wrong thing, actually. You can use a PC power supply for this. Short the green wire on the 20/24 pin plug to its black neighbor, and 12 volts will come out of any yellow and black wire pair.
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Nov 27, 2016 06:11
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JimbobDobalina posted:The new one comes with a junction box that looks like this photo. It has screw terminals for the supply wiring, and a flexible cord and plug for the back of the dishwasher. That's another code update, for the US anyway. Kitchen countertops must have at least 2 20A circuits supplying them and all must be GFCI protected. You'd have to do some testing first to see which box is first in the branch. If it's a countertop box, then a GFCI at that box can protect the one under the sink. Did that junction box come with an NM clamp? TooMuchAbstraction posted:If there's a ground screw or ground wire on something, then it should be wired into a proper ground source. The screws that hold the fixture to the box do not count as a valid grounding path (as I was told when I asked this same question a few months back). That depends on the switch. Self grounding devices do not require grounding wires if screwed into a metal box and the box itself is grounded. Self grounding devices have a little spring wire in one of their 2 mounting holes. That wire squeezes the screw in that hole against the device frame, guaranteeing a proper grounding path. Basically, the cheap entry level switches and receptacles aren't self grounding, but usually anything more expensive is. Check for that spring. Or you could just wire up a ground to your device's grounding screw and not worry about the circumstances. kid sinister fucked around with this message at 09:21 on Nov 27, 2016 |
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Nov 27, 2016 09:10
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kid sinister posted:What do you mean by "the new one comes with a junction box to go into the under sink cabinet."? In the US, dishwashers are either hard wired, or they have a cord and plug that plugs into and outlet under the sink. Also in the US, the dishwasher needs to be GFCI protected but not AFCI, for now anyway. However, GFCIs must also be readily accessible, so outlets in cabinets that you must first move a bunch of junk to even reach are a bit of a gray area. Then there's the fact that a lot of electricians install one duplex under the sink with one outlet always on for the dishwasher and the other outlet switched on for the disposal. Well, GFCI duplexes can't be split like a plain duplex can. To get around these problems, you can use a GFCI breaker. dishwashers ARE required to have AFCI protection as well as GFCI protection. 210.12 (A) says "Dwelling Units: All 120-volt, single-phase, 15- and 20-ampere branch circuits supplying outlets or devices installed in dwelling unit kitchens, family rooms, dining rooms, living rooms, parlors, libraries, dens, bedrooms, sunrooms, recreation rooms, closets, hallways, laundry areas, or similar rooms or areas shall be proected by any of the means described in 210.12 (a) (1) through (6)." the kitchens and laundry areas part was added in the 2014 version of the code.
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Nov 27, 2016 21:22
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You know thinking it through, I am not sure if my dishwasher is GFCI. Which makes me wonder what else they missed rewiring the house.  The bid says "Wired to National Eletcric Code" and proper permits were pulled/signed off on by the city. I'll go double check my box when it's not raining, but I seem to recall only 2 "reset" buttons in it for AFCI. I just went and tested all the GFCI's I could find in the kitchen and none of them turned off the dishwasher, or the outlet we use for the toaster for that matter. (Which is far away from the sink, but in the kitchen.)This is what happens when your neighbors are the most highly rated electricians on yelp for your area and actually pick up the phone to bid your job.
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Nov 27, 2016 22:35
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kid sinister posted:That's another code update, for the US anyway. Kitchen countertops must have at least 2 20A circuits supplying them and all must be GFCI protected. You'd have to do some testing first to see which box is first in the branch. If it's a countertop box, then a GFCI at that box can protect the one under the sink. crocodile posted:
Thanks for the info on the dishwasher. I haven't taken delivery of it yet, I took a couple of photos of the bits that come with it and read the install manual, so I don't know about the NM clamp. I found the dishwasher is on it's own circuit, there were a couple of unlabelled breakers at the bottom of each row that I had never got around to identifying. I thought that it was teed off another outlet because that was the path the wiring took, but once I had it all apart I found the dishwasher's separate circuit. It's hardwired, no outlet. I have a Federal Pioneer panel, but I am not able to find a combo afci / gfci breaker, so which do I actually need? This is the cheapest supplier I can find for AFCI https://www.homedepot.ca/en/home/p.single-pole-15-amp-stab-lok-arc-fault-circuit-interrupter-breaker.1000112733.html And for GFCI https://www.homedepot.ca/en/home/p.single-pole-15-amp-stab-lok-plug-on-gfi-circuit-breaker.1000110440.html Really loving expensive, considering I just put a pair of GFCI outlets in my bathroom for $33 each.
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Nov 27, 2016 23:42
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JimbobDobalina posted:Thanks for the info on the dishwasher. I haven't taken delivery of it yet, I took a couple of photos of the bits that come with it and read the install manual, so I don't know about the NM clamp. Yup, GFCI breakers cost 3-4 times as much as GFCI outlets. Stab Lok??? You're lucky you didn't get a Federal Pacific panel. They're known to be pretty dangerous in the US. They're both owned by the same company, Schneider Electric, and take the same size Stab Lok breakers, but from what I've read, each one is manufactured in its own country, with its own engineering. I hope that means that yours doesn't have the problems that ours have. That being said, I just looked through Schneider's entire catalog dated 8/16 and they don't make dual function Stab Lok breakers, at least not yet. They do make them for their Square D and Canadian Homeline boxes, but not FP. I also noticed that the catalog lists FP breakers and panel accessories, but not the panels themselves that the breakers and accessories install into. That suggests that Schneider is discontinuing Stab Loks. You might have the same problem as with Pushmatic boxes and need to upgrade the whole thing. You can't even get AFCIs for Pushmatics. I'd talk with a Canadian electrician and see if dishwashers there even need both AFCI and GFCI protection, before you go spending tons of money. kid sinister fucked around with this message at 01:37 on Nov 28, 2016 |
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Nov 28, 2016 01:33
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H110Hawk posted:You know thinking it through, I am not sure if my dishwasher is GFCI. Which makes me wonder what else they missed rewiring the house. has your jurisdiction updated to the latest code? that would be the first thing i'd check. the city i live in was on the 2008 code until the 2014 came out and they retroactively accepted the 2011 for like 3 months before the '14...it can get convoluted and it entirely depends on your who your Authority Having Jurisdiction is. their bid may not necessarily be misleading...they could be basing it off the 2005 or whatever code *shrug*
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Nov 28, 2016 03:37
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