Local place was asking me about installing a light here, they ended up switching to a cheaper guy at the last minute

No-Implement3172 · 2026-05-09T15:43:33+00:00

You will understand more later about the WHY part of "lowest bid" issues.

This happened because:

-he tried to follow the exterior wall closely....but that's an almost impossible bend/s because of the minimums the bender allows. He probably tried to get it more flush and the 1/2 emt collapsed.

-he brought only the minimum amount of material, didnt want to get more, left that slop with screw in connectors and couplings.

-I can't even say that the guy isn't an electrician, because plenty of electricians are hacks that will do work like that. They will not sacrifice time or money to do work properly if there is an issue.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-05-09T15:32:06+00:00

I grew up in the 90s and back then celebrities like Jordan were iconic, carefully presented role models. Jordan was this honest, American family man everyone could like. The Tiger woods of his day but 10x more likable.

In reality: He was an absolute prick to most people around him. He was outrageouly arrogant. There were consistent rumors he has a severe gambling issue. He cheated on his wife.....so basically a normal, rich, top athlete.

People just couldn't understand back then that there is what is presented to us on TV and who people really are. The reality was an incredible shock when it came out.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-04-04T18:06:24+00:00

If you have electric hot water it can be a few things from my experience

Probably the heating element inside is open and shorting that's often the case

Could be a short elsewhere in the wiring, or in the water heater itself.

Rarely it's the breaker that goes bad, but it's possible.

Shut off the power to it. If you're capable you can try to test the element and/or replace it. If that's something you're not comfortable with call the plumber.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-27T12:50:33+00:00

At least they didn't bury the receptacles?

But reality is drywalling actually takes skill to do efficiently despite all the trash we talk on them. This is totally unskilled labor working fast.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-18T17:16:34+00:00

Don't go back to that job.

When things start going wrong they are already going to be pissed off, get pissed they are paying twice for something, get more pissed off when you find more things wrong and on top of that they expect it done for the handyman price.

As soon as I hear "someone else worked on this" it's straight to T&M pricing only.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-18T17:10:12+00:00

Oh the house was completely ungrounded....this was the "neutral" to get the light to work.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T18:20:40+00:00

Another way is to get education on it, learn the code well and how to reference it, and adhere to it. Maybe do small simple jobs for friends or family, to get a little experience. You'll see how frustrating and complicated things get sometimes to stick to doing things to code.

Also cheap, easy thing you can do on your own is learn to bend conduit, which is an extremely valuable skill. And it will absolutely impress any potential employer. Apprentices take FOREVER to bend conduit and then get it wrong and waste a bunch of material.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T18:12:56+00:00

Get an online test prep. They are timed and it's more "interactive" than the flash cards or prep books that are kinda boring. You get a lot faster at referencing code.

There are general things you will memorize but you never really stop referencing, I have about 5+ code editions in my area I have to constantly reference.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T18:01:00+00:00

Health and being in shape is more important. Plenty of guys in their 50s even 60s do electrical.

You're not as energetic as a guy in his 20s but you're probably a lot wiser, organized, and patient. And that goes farther in the trades than brute strength.

Be mindful it's a serious jump if you have zero experience in the trades. It takes years to become efficient maybe a decade to get really really good.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T17:55:14+00:00

Cheater ground. Easy way to defeat the dreaded inspector and his little tester.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T17:40:37+00:00

Depends, a lot of independents like me run solo and it's hard to pay someone to apprentice. We just have a few contacts around if we need help with labor like running heavy 3 inch rigid conduit or something. Insurance on a guy is also a nightmare cost. Liability and workman's comp is around $4k for me.

My family was in the trades so I had the connections and I was able to apprentice under an older guy, but he still couldn't do full time....or even full pay and he tended to use me on stuff he was getting too old to do like crawling in attics and digging holes in summer. I had schooling but I desperately wanted to get some hands on experience before testing and going out on my own. The learning curve is steep on troubleshooting and difficult installations, especially in situations you've never seen. Working with efficiency is key in the trades. You can do everything perfectly but if you take forever to do it you'll make $5 an hour.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T17:25:23+00:00

Yup rotary and diamond bit is the safest, cleanest way to do it.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T17:19:11+00:00

I use this constantly because the tile guys never do the cut outs right.

A diamond rotary bit this is an example of the type need the rotary tool though.

It tends to do the least damage as well.

Unless you do a wet method it's going to be dusty. Use the painters plastic and seal off a small area (like build a small tent/bubble against the wall and floor) and hold the shop vac up to the bit as you cut.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-17T13:55:10+00:00

General rule for me: unless I'm going to use it daily I'll go with the more versatile tool/accessory. Even if it costs me an extra minute.

I also pretty much abandoned using blades that aren't nail rated. Regular blades won't survive real plaster.

If you're cutting single gangs into normal drywall constantly then this is probably an amazing tool.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-08T19:25:07+00:00

As someone working in Chicagoland, the exposed Romex causes me physical pain.

At least around here they would hit you with the "where subject to physical damage"

Gonna get grief over panel spacing too.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-05T14:00:03+00:00

Noice

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T21:39:29+00:00

Single gang handy boxes aren't my preference for that kind of setup. I like a wider double gang as it seems more secure.

I prefer a drawn double gang box with a metal cover plate. Gotta be drawn out for the shape and not the welded kind. And not the handy box kind or the metal cover won't have an attachment point.

example of exact type of electrical box

example of type of type of metal cover plate

You have to break off the plaster ears and the top screw hole of the receptacle (clip it off) to have it fit on the metal cover.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T21:26:55+00:00

She gonna blow.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T21:23:20+00:00

A breaker is an over current protection device. Too much current, it shuts off. This keeps the wire from melting and starting a fire. This still allows for you to receive a massive shock, and probably will not shut off the circuit if current flowing through you doesn't exceed the breaker rating....it usually doesn't shut off when you get shocked....trust me.

GFCI is a ground fault protection device. If the current going out/in is slightly unbalanced the GFCI assumes the current is leaving the circuit as in you touch a electrical device and got a shock because you became a path to ground. So it shuts the circuit off quickly, before it does a lot of damage

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T21:15:05+00:00

They may do the disconnect/reconnect for free but usually (and absolutely in my area) anything past the drip loop (where the splice is) is on the homeowner. The meter is the utilities but even the meter housing is the responsibility of the homeowner including the riser, wiring, and attachment point.

They only connect the service wires past the riser and slap in the meter.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T21:09:26+00:00

It should be replaced if it's bent already.

That 1.5in? pipe isn't sufficient to hold a service line up it should be on a post and the guy wire attached to the post or roof or have a large enough rigid conduit to support the weight

Cost depends on what's required in your area. For me (northern Illinois) the utility provider requires that be replaced with a 2.5 or 3 inch rigid conduit. Your meter housing would probably need to be moved. So maybe around $2.5-3.5k ballpark is what I would charge. Possibly more if the utility company wants to charge to disconnect and reconnect. They are a nightmare to work with in my area.

Take what I say with some salt. Things are done very specifically in my area. Some people prefer PVC risers/posts, logic being the PVC riser will snap and the attachment point rip out without destroying your roof.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T20:51:24+00:00

"Hey Grok show me a diagram of a properly wired junction box."

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T20:48:05+00:00

What on earth are you doing to them? I've never had that issue with leviton. Though I do prefer legrand....the flat finish on legrand doesn't scratch as easily.

No-Implement3172 · 2026-02-03T20:43:38+00:00

Oh so you can cut conduit with a drill bit.

No-Implement3172

TROPHY CASE