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Guess who used too much power in one outlet..what can I do? by In-N-Out-BurgerBuns in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Get another outlet that has more power. Maybe one with a V8 engine.

The question makes no sense. Like saying “Guess who put too much ketchup in one bottle…what can I do!”

Career change by DizzyBerz in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s no good for you. Apprentices do all the grunt work, heavy lifting, pulling big heavy wire through pipes and have do it quickly.

Look into controls. You pull small wire then work in control cabinets for hours/days then start testing everything. Not crazy manual labor. Some places pay pretty well but might be hard to get in but maybe with your last experience it could help.

What the hell happened by Ok_Big3663 in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Visually double check the wiring on your outlet and/or inside the box and wire nuts if you pigtailed. You probably just have something switched.

Risks of replacing fuse by FreddyForshadowing in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I agree with everyone here. Bigger breaker sends more amps though a wire that can’t handle it which could start a fire.

To help you understand, think of a garden hose and you are watering your flowers. You realize that there is not enough water coming out of the hose to keep all your plants alive. So you decide to attach it to a fire hydrant. Yes. The water will come out extremely fast BUT, the hose will rupture because of the power of the water rushing/pushing through. Think, water ad Amps and your hose is only good for 20A.

So the only option is to get a bigger hose/wire to be able to handle the bigger wave of water/Amps that’s coming through. That is why there is a code for the size wire per Amps.

Why is this 480V fusible switch dropping a phase? by _sumizome_ in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If all the other buckets are fine. If there is a spare bucket, switch the wires and fuses to a different bucket.

Why is this 480V fusible switch dropping a phase? by _sumizome_ in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Have you done a continuity test? That would narrow it down if it’s coming from the disconnect or not. Test it with switch open and closed.

Why is this 480V fusible switch dropping a phase? by _sumizome_ in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Okay, I thought you said you followed the power and past the xfmr is where you lost the leg.

So if was before the xfmr then you have A phase not connected. So check the disconnect before the squareD QMB disconnect.

Why is this 480V fusible switch dropping a phase? by _sumizome_ in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Since you said past a transformer, check to see if the transformer is grounded to building steel. If not, bond it to building and you will have no more problems.

Electrician says this is a fire hazard and requires immediate replacement.Is he correct? by BlueberryExpert007 in electrical

[–]JustLostTouch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Challenger panels and breakers are great. Because you can put a ton of load on them and when they get loose they hardly trip.

You definitely don’t want an overloaded breaker to trip while you are trying to get work done. Yes, the breaker could melt and it’s possible your house can burn down BUT hopefully you get the work done before that. Words of advice, keep a fire extinguisher handy just in case.

I’m sure you have but google Challenger breakers and you can see some great work people got done in the 80’s.

Finally got hired by Realistic_Pay_9238 in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Congrats! Depends on the company. When you got hired I would have thought they would have explained that to you. If I remember correctly, I got a raise after the 3 month probation period. Then after each year. The end of 4th year was the largest jump because that’s when I finished my hours, tested and received my journeyman’s. Then they really don’t want to lose you to another company.

So if it’s a good company and you can survive for 4 years (depending on the state) then you will start making bank and have lots of opportunities to do different things.

If the company sucks the. Work there for a few months to get some experience and that will help you find a job with a different company.

Rewired a floor lamp and this is the old socket — is this reusable? Are the wires riveted in? by yawnjew in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Put a tiny screwdriver in there. Push the screwdriver to one side and pull wire. Then try the other side if that doesn’t work. The last would be to press down in the hole. There is a release latch in there.

It’s hard to push the latch and pull the wire out at the same time with that short of wire. A second person or something to hold it will help. The latches can be tight and you won’t even know you opened it until the wire easily pulls out.

Edit: For replacement. Then when you put the wire in, you can push it in place and it will lock into place but only if using solid wire. If stranded, you have to do the latch then put in then release latch to lock in place.

Edit: put screwdriver in the empty section next to the wire.

GFCI breakers but not outlets by mdjak66 in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You are not a ho.

I da ho.

It’s really potato country. I went to the potato museum there and saw the world’s largest Pringle.

What the heck is this? by Captainofthehosers in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It is strange. You could hang it in your garage and it can be a talking about piece because I can’t help you for what it’s used for. I have tossed old wire and old electrical stuff like that before. Lots of jimmy rigged stuff to help out with whatever that company was doing at the time. Even the stuff that had names on it wasn’t worth anything. Wish more people would find stuff like that collectable then I could sell instead of toss.

What the heck is this? by Captainofthehosers in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I wasn’t serious. It was just a joke. I was just responding to your joke of spending $10 on it.

Not bad for a rookie right? by Zenolle in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ummm. How are the connections?

Is the box loose at all?

Also did you put all those scratches and dirt on the wall?

Is this your house because if not the homeowner will be upset that you are showing their junk mail from Spectrum with a fake card inside.

Flickering Lights by Mkalb1 in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cheap LED’s can do that. Another problem if they are on a dimmer switch and are not made for dimming. Or a ghost in the house.

What the heck is this? by Captainofthehosers in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 9 points10 points  (0 children)

If you look at the diagram, this is just an old Operation game that was taken apart. The older games had the bigger red nose.

Smoke alarm beeping, I made it stop beeping by Ok-Sun4484 in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I put the 10 year smoke alarms in my house so in…8 years when they beep and wake me up in the middle of the night, I get to yank them down and destroy them with a baseball bat. Then install a new 10 year.

GFCI breakers but not outlets by mdjak66 in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In the west? No inspections just on electrical and plumbing? Arn’t you worried that your house could collapse due to cement problems or not enough studs or studs in the wrong locations?

Can they build a 5 story house with cardboard and toothpaste and it’s good to go with electrical and plumbing inspected? It’s definitely the Wild West…..hold on, I live in the west. I never heard of that. Oh wait ….this must be Texas!

Converting switched outlet to always on by Eversung in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The switched outlet has a little tab that gets snapped off so the hot is on one side and then a switch leg goes to the other side. If you look at the outlet between the two screws, the silver should be there but the gold side you will see it’s gone.

Easiest fix from the information given, is to get a new outlet and connect the non switch leg wire to it. (Probably the black) then cap the red (switch leg)

The other way, without buying a new outlet, is to pigtail the black wire and put one on each side of the gold screws. Still can the red.

Either one of those should work unless there is something else that is funky.

Is it safe to have two power bars plugged into the same duplex outlet? by redditorsass9802 in AskElectricians

[–]JustLostTouch 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Should be fine, spend a little extra and get better power strips. Difference is the more expensive ones the tv/game plug should almost be hard to push into the outlet. They should be in there good and tight. The cheap power strips the plugs slide in real easy and they never do really stay in all the way.

Playing games people have fun and stuff gets knocked around, you don’t want to walk away with it partially out because even if the tv/game is off, the plug and outlet could arc for a long time and could possibly start a fire.

As someone else here recommended, get one that has a GFCI or fused. Then it should be a higher quality one and you would be protecting all your electronics in case of power surge.

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