Lost or forgotten installation tips from the past!

[Pete999]

Just thinking back to my Apprenticeship time, and working on a Large luxury Housing development, the chap I was working under, was a strict, but knowledgeable Electrician.
At the time in question we used metallic oval conduit for our switch drop and sockets etc., one of his rules where possible were that all switch drops had the conduit cut to the same length and the same for the runs from the floor up to the socket positions, during the first fix he would always inquire as to which make of sockets we were going to used for the second fix, so much so that he insisted that if the L was on the right hand side of the accessory, I had to feed the 7/029 cable up the conduit , with the L on the right hand side, didn't think it mattered all that much, until you came to install the socket, and how much easier it was with the cables entering the back box all on the same side.
Anyone else got any odd little tips that they were taught, that may have gotten lost over the years?, another one was marking the lighting cables at the ceiling rose, switched pair with a cross and the feeds in and out with a split at the end for identification, simple things I know.

 

[johnduffell]

I was told to cut the switch drops diagonally and the feed straight to identify them, seemed to work okay for me although did waste a centimetre of cable when the loose end is the wrong shape!

 

[davesparks]

Rub a wax candle on the sheath of MICC to lubricate the blade of the stripper to make the cut easier and the blade last longer.

 

[Pete999]

I was told to cut the switch drops diagonally and the feed straight to identify them, seemed to work okay for me although did waste a centimetre of cable when the loose end is the wrong shape!

When pulling multiple singles int conduit, if possible, use a piece of cardboard or thin plywood with the same number of holes in it, to correspond to the number of singles being pulled in, to alleviate possible crossover of cables in the conduit. Little things mean a lot, sometimes.

 

[Deuce]

...another one was marking the lighting cables at the ceiling rose, switched pair with a cross and the feeds in and out with a split at the end for identification, simple things I know.

I saw the switch cable marked in a rose years ago and assumed it was standard good practice, so I've done it myself ever since. Although to be honest I mark pretty much everything, my label printer has a higher mileage than my car

 

[telectrix]

with 3 plate light wiring my method has always been to mark feed with 2 x, out with 1 x, and switch with a nick,

 

[Pete999]

When dressing cable down a wall to a CU.The Electrician I was serving under always taught me to dress them into the CU as you would connect them IE Bonds, Cooker, RFCs, W/H. lights etc easier to connect, looked professional, job done. Mind you we were using Wylex CUs with the wooden frame, and the Paxoline backing, rewireable fuses.

 

[telectrix]

When dressing cable down a wall to a CU.The Electrician I was serving under always taught me to dress them into the CU as you would connect them IE Bonds, Cooker, RFCs, W/H. lights etc easier to connect, looked professional, job done.

that's what i try to do .makes life easier when connecting in CU. also like to dress the cables with all the reds(browns) to the left and blacks (blues) to the right.

 

[Pete999]

that's what i try to do .makes life easier when connecting in CU. also like to dress the cables with all the reds(browns) to the left and blacks (blues) to the right.

Yes Reds and Blacks before EU interference. Makes you wonder who it was who saved Europe in WW2.

 

[Deuce]

Yes Reds and Blacks before EU interference. Makes you wonder who it was who saved Europe in WW2.

I watched saving Private Ryan, apparently it was the Americans. God bless em.

 

[telectrix]

1815 bonaparte
1918 kaiser bill
1946 adolph hitler
2018 angela meerkat.
come on lads.

 

[telectrix]

I watched saving Private Ryan, apparently it was the Americans. God bless em.

well,the septics did give us a lot of help, once they realised that we were going to win. up till them US business wanted Germany to win as they had many lucrative contracts with the krauts.

 

[Deuce]

1815 bonaparte
1918 kaiser bill
1946 adolph hitler
2018 angela meerkat.
come on lads.
View attachment 45494

Gotta say... I do a lot of work in Germany and the slightly awkward truth is that they get all the stuff we struggle with over here, pretty well sorted. They have also somehow ended up more liberal and free than we seem to have

How did THAT happen!?

A point really driven home when I went to a Christmas market in the UK after years of going to German markets over there. I bought a beer and they gave it to me in a plastic beaker, like a child. Over there I'm an adult, so it's handed over in a glass. I get a 3 Euro's back upon returning the glass or I can opt to keep it. Why can't I have a glass in the UK? Because I might use it as a weapon or smash it on the ground and leave a 'highly dangerous situation' apparently. Needless to say the use of glasses at German public celebrations has not, in fact, led to the death and mutilation of thousands

 

[Pete999]

well,the septics did give us a lot of help, once they realised that we were going to win. up till them US business wanted Germany to win as they had many lucrative contracts with the krauts.

A lot of the younger generation have short memories Tel, or their History lessons were crap

 

[davesparks]

Yes Reds and Blacks before EU interference. Makes you wonder who it was who saved Europe in WW2.

Wasn't it the combined efforts of many nations?