Lived- in rewire

[londonfire]

I would recommend making up a second board with some 16a RCBOs with some 2.5mm flex and some metal clad sockets.

That way if you don't want to put power back to a bedroom etc they have a temp supply.

Can also be taken away at the end and used elsewhere.

 

[Geordie Spark]

Same as what has been said already really. If possible go room by room. Get it done, carpets and boards back down so you know you haven't got to return to it. Sometimes not possible to do it this way but have a good think and plan how to attack it. Dust sheets and lots of em! Keep tools safely out of the way of prying hands if they have nippers lol. Recently finished a job (not rewire) where the mum just her kid's run rampant, about 7-8 years old one of em. And they just followed me round asking questions and generally hindering my work.

I've only ever done two live in's and one was possibly the worst experience of my life. To say the people living there weren't bothered about hygiene is an understatement. Rooms chocabloc with shyte and just an all round hell hole.

The other went very smoothly though.

Good luck all in all, im sure it will be fine

I had one like that - but I was fitting the central heating.

Stinking, wet carpets because they had 2 dogs and 2 kids ****ing & crapping on them all the time. Bloody nightmare.

This was a rented accommodation and when I finished, the landlord came to inspect the job and pay me. He was horrified at the state of the place.

He paid me for the work and apologised for me having to work there under those conditions. Then he opened his wallet and gave me £60 on top of the agreed fee.

A couple of months later, he had me doing some work in his own house.

 

[iamelectric]

i also have only ever rewired an empty house , i have always wondered how the hell do you rewire a kitchen? only done 1 and the kitchen was ripped out

 

[GMES]

The guys have covered it pretty much, but I don't envy you I have done a few lived in and they are a complete nightmare I did one about 3 months ago and it was bedlam, 2 sparks, 3 builders a plumber and a joiner all trying to work on top of each other, I couldn't do DIY sos I think I would end up slotting someone. If I had to do one again I would stick 500.00 on top and then offer it back to them if they bugger off for a week.

 

[Chris sparky]

I had one like that - but I was fitting the central heating.

Stinking, wet carpets because they had 2 dogs and 2 kids ****ing & crapping on them all the time. Bloody nightmare.

This was a rented accommodation and when I finished, the landlord came to inspect the job and pay me. He was horrified at the state of the place.

He paid me for the work and apologised for me having to work there under those conditions. Then he opened his wallet and gave me £60 on top of the agreed fee.

A couple of months later, he had me doing some work in his own house.

Yeah the one's like that are hellish.

The one i mentioned, lady (and i use that term as loosely as possible) greeted us at the door with baby in one arm and ciggy in other hand. I kid you not! There was crap all over the carpets, some of it didn't even know what it was and dont want to know lol.
Dirty clothing all over the floor's and bursting from wardrobes. Her bloke surfaced around ten ish and proceeded to just sit around all day. Really was a bleak place to be. But the worst thing by far was the kitchen! Literally filthy dishes everywhere, and some stayed there for a few day's! cooker was just a metal cube of grease, cups with mold the hole shibang. Just couldn't believe how little they cared. They showed no embarrassment or even apologized for the condition of the place.

Was a bad couple of weeks lol

 

[Paul.M]

I'e walked away from 2 jobs because of these things. Once because of the things you have mentioned and the second because of needles. Not a chance I would have worked in any of them two houses. Money is one thing but FFS......

 

[Plonker 3]

Alternatively, just leave them a travelodge brochure lying around lol

Sod that, I would rather live on a rewire where it wasnt cleaned up at the end of everyday than stay in one of them dumps.

 

[Chris sparky]

I'e walked away from 2 jobs because of these things. Once because of the things you have mentioned and the second because of needles. Not a chance I would have worked in any of them two houses. Money is one thing but FFS......

Yeah needles would send me running too.
I think with the job i mentioned, when your there you were just on auto pilot so to speak, just get it done and get the ---- out! Get home and get the shower on lol

 

[telectrix]

last one we did was a bloody nightmare. went in at a low price for landlord as a foot in door, hoping for future work. 3 bed semi with 10 czech migrants living there, none spoke hardly a word of english. all on night shift at tesco, so all day, they were either in bed or in the bathroom with the door locked and CU was directly below bathroom.

 

[ChrisElectrical88]

Re wired a drug den when I was an apprentice. Got told to roll someone round the room cause he was passed out. Gaffer walked out!

 

[telectrix]

haha, from reading some of your old posts, are you sure you didn't snaffle some substances from there?LOL.

 

[Paul.M]

House rewire when I was a mate at 18 years old. Spare bedroom had 28 caged rats as pets! The carpet was soaked in the "yellow stuff", also the floorboards and the joists. Fastest I've ever worked ripping up carpet, boards and running cables. Now that was when I was younger. Never do that gain, I was lucky and did'nt catch anything.

Note to you all, If its going to be bad for your health just dont do it.

A mate of mine a couple of years ago did a kitchen rewire and got some mouse ---- in his eye from the wet floor under the counters! He was on the toilet for 4 days, his face was swollen for a week and his eye site went back to normal after 10 days so he could drive again.

Another friend/workmate I was working with at the time got pigeon muck in his face one day. He spent the next 3 days on the toilet passing out water from a "number 2 area" of his body and almost ended up in hospital with dehydration.

This is not an HSE speech. Lads, just be careful out there. The HSE tell us these things for a reason, I've seen it face to face. Lets make the correct choice on the job.

 

[ipf]

I'm doing one now - my own house.

It's been "in progress" since 2008.

These things just cannot be rushed!!

So far, the old CU has been changed for a nice new one stuffed full with a shedload of RCBOs ( you know it's the way to go ) and a main switch.

The downstairs ring is done but plaster needs patching but there's no hurry - it's been like that for about 3 years now - and the garage which has been converted into a sun room & utility room / cloakroom ( that's a downstairs netty ) has been wired with sockets & lights.

Staircase and landing lighting is in progress - 2 gang switch at bottom of stairs - same at the top and a 2 gang intermediate on the landing so I can switch the hall light & landing light on / off from either upstairs or down. There's nowt much worse than struggling all the way upstairs and then realise you left the hall light on !!

All fittings are Crabtree and the board is ..... Wylex .. (couldn't get Crabtree board off the back of the lorry - only Wylex)

Cabling is all Prysmian - 1.5 & 2.5 but now thinking about it, as the lighting is spread across 3 6 A RCBOs I can get away with 1.00 cable which would be a bit cheaper & easier to handle.

Edit:

Getting back to the OP, maybe the best way is to start at the top & work downwards?

Upstairs lights and tidy up

Upstairs sockets & tidy up

then downstairs etc.

There you go, then. Do a Geordie............swap houses and do a 'live in yourself'

 

[ChrisElectrical88]

I'm never off the bog anyway!

 

[Pete999]

Used to rewire a three bed house in two days, and before anyone says anything like "bet that's a rough old job" no it wasn't inspected by the C of W Electrical, all surface, buckle clipped, floors down,carpets relaid, no making good that was done by others.

- - - Updated - - -

Used to rewire a three bed house in two days, and before anyone says anything like "bet that's a rough old job" no it wasn't inspected by the C of W Electrical, all surface, buckle clipped, floors down,carpets relaid, no making good that was done by others.