Electrical Contractor Needed In Your Home

When I get a call to a homeowners’ location for a problem, it surprises me the things I find in their attic. I’m not talking about Christmas decorations. I am referring to the wire mess that was left behind by another electrical contractor. My last blog post I listed 3 code violations at a particular location. Here are more code violations. 

Code Violations

Violation: The main panel had the grounding bust and the grounded bonded together on a sub panel which is illegal.

Violation:  The sub panel had open knockouts which is illegal. You can’t have open knockouts in a panel because you must have a 4 hour fire barrier. This is required. This barrier keeps air from coming into the panel to incite the fire more. If you have a fire inside the panel, you are supposed to have 3 to 4 hours simmering time or where you can have the least amount of air in the panel so it wouldn’t catch a fire and burn easily. Even if you have a short, it might melt but it wouldn’t burn down the house if your panel is sealed. But if you have open spaces or knockout spaces, air can get in the panel and burn a house down quicker and faster. This location had knockouts that are missing.

Violation: When I went up to the attic, they have what electricians call  “flying splices” which are splices that were made from 12  gauge wire to 14 gauge wire. This is illegal, unless they were all on a 15 amp breaker (which they were not). This location had 20 amp breakers on a 12 gauge wire that splits off and feeds 15 amp wire. According to code, you can’t do that because your breaker size needs to be to the lowest size of the wire size that’s used in the circuit. The lowest wire size was 14 gauge wire which is rated for 15 amps. That in itself is a dangerous code violation.

Violation: Another dangerous situation was the multi-taps that they made with wire nuts were not placed in a junction box. They left them open in the attic. We call them flying splices because as they went they just spliced.

All the connection boxes are not made into the boxes. There is a reason why code requires you to make connections in the box:  the wire is rated for so much heat. When you stripe wire and take off the insulation, you must enclose them inside a box. You put them in a box because the insulation factor has gone down, therefore; they are more vulnerable to a fire.

If the connections or splices you made happen to loosen up, it could cause a fire because it is not contained in a coded box. A coded box or junction box is 2 to 4 hours rated, depending upon the box. The box has to be hour rated. Every box I install is rated for 2 to 4 hours. You must install at least 2 hour rated boxes. Plastic boxes are 2 hour rated against fire.

Not A Violation, But Beware:  According to code, the bedroom should be on an ark fault circuit breaker. The bedroom circuit was combined with the living room.  Combining it with another room, like a living room, is just not done.  You cannot combine the bedroom with the kitchen. It’s just not a good method of wiring.  In the living room, you must consider what they are going to use these circuits like for – like Christmas tree decorations, etc.  In bedrooms, homeowners sometimes use any outlet for a hair dryer or electric blankets on beds.

In this particular case, the homeowner is having a problem in the bedroom with a hair dryer. The breaker size is correct but they’ve got circuits messed up by extending the circuitry to beyond its capacity.  It is not a code violation but it is just not done.  It is done by electricians who put a lot of circuits in a house  and don’t regard the job as they should.

Recommendations

As you can see, I’ve got a lot of work to do at this location. I realize a homeowner may not know National Electric Code (NEC), but if you walk into your attic and it looks like a spider web with wire nuts everywhere, you could be in trouble.

What makes a good house? It’s what you see, the beauty within. What is the beauty within?   A good electrical system makes a good house. That’s bottom line.  It pays for a homeowner not to use the cheapest electrician but a recommended electrician by his work ethics and his desire to do a good job for you: his desire to do every job like his first job, to do his best job, and the desire to do each job better than the first one.  I strive to do each job better than the one before.

If you are considering an electrical contractor and there is $2000 to $3000 difference in the price for electrical work, sometimes it makes a difference in the electrician but you have to look at his work.  Look back at his past. Ask around to see if that electrician has done good work.  You are going to find out. People talk.  The electrical supply will tell you.  The permits office would tell you how many times an electrician has failed his inspections, or how good is work is or if it is not up to par.  If you ask the inspectors, they might not tell you directly who is good or bad. But bad wiring goes a long way.  It also reflects on the inspector.  If the inspector doesn’t turn down a job for bad wiring, it shows the inspector doesn’t respect the electrical trade.

Would you buy or sell a house with bad wiring? What is your house worth with bad wiring?

Source: http://www.energyconsciousconsultant.com/electrical-contractor-needed-home/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=electrical-contractor-needed-home