Watching "This Old House" Day on Shed - Scary US electrics

[accordfire]

I've just watched a "master" electrician from Massachussets install what is essentially a low voltage downlight.

However, like most things US, it has to be bigger and more stupid than anything we could dream up - a two foot by one foot "ayatite" (translation sealed) enclosure, and about a million step to assemble the finished product! To be fair, the box houses the transformer too, but the scary bit - the guy wiring it!

"You connect black to black - that's the "HOT" - so he strips back, I kid you not, a good two inches of Romec internal sheathing....holds the two black wires together, and screws on a wire nut - the same kind of wire nut we banned millenia ago.

Then you do white to white - That's the Nootral - same thing.

Finally you take the green and you twist it to this bare wire. That the ground.

Now. This guy effectivley just connected his earth by means of some crappy plastic "screw on connector", didn't sheath the Romec earth, and then proceeded to wedge the lot into a "wiring box" which is all sheet metal, and the size, roughly, of a two gang back box, all metal.

And thats "code" ---- stuff that.

That's dangerous in any language I say.

 

[Guest123]

Gotta love the 'screwits'

 

[ian]

God bless America!

 

[IQ Electrical]

While we don't have a licensing system, there's something tried, trusted and solid about BS7671!

 

[accordfire]

While we don't have a licensing system, there's something tried, trusted and solid about BS7671!

No wonder they call it "rough" wiring - they sell Romex and other NM cables in 25 foot rolls - where's that going to get anyone.

OMG! We'd have a field day over there. Fail. Fail. Fail. Fail.

All that money they wasted starting wars all over the world - would have been easier to send their sparks out to rewire the world - same effect!

 

[Amp David]

You sound suprised. Remember this is the same country that will spend the same amount of time jointing and sanding new drywall as it would take to fully skim it.

They reckon the finish is just as good as a skimmed wall. Don't think so.

 

[accordfire]

You sound suprised. Remember this is the same country that will spend the same amount of time jointing and sanding new drywall as it would take to fully skim it.

They reckon the finish is just as good as a skimmed wall. Don't think so.

Very true - it makes perfect sense as to why they knock their homes down and rebuild them every five years.

I just can't believe the mess they make of simple work - the walls are open for them, the ceilings, everything - and they still have no clue how to terminate, how to run a cable, and most definitely no idea at all how to make off a safe, tidy looking fuse board.

Three miles of cable all gradually meandering its way in big flowy loops into a set of breakers that look as though they came from Noah's ark in the first place.

On top of this, they seem to have no clue that their 110V lines are running twice the current to do the same job as our cable, yet they don't de-rate for burying them all in spray foam insulation in walls, and while their sockets are all radial, the equivalent isn't more than 2.5mm anyway.

Shudder!

 

[Amp David]

Another bit that made me think WTF was rather than pulling down the old lath ceiling due to extra labour costs, they just stripped the plaster off, cut holes in the lath to sprayfoam then boarded over it???

 

[accordfire]

Land of the cowboy, after all!

 

[jaresquire]

yeeee haaaaah!

 

[jpmiff]

Thats Americans for ya, the best at every thing or not

 

[millwall ken]

I've just watched a "master" electrician from Massachussets install what is essentially a low voltage downlight.

However, like most things US, it has to be bigger and more stupid than anything we could dream up - a two foot by one foot "ayatite" (translation sealed) enclosure, and about a million step to assemble the finished product! To be fair, the box houses the transformer too, but the scary bit - the guy wiring it!

"You connect black to black - that's the "HOT" - so he strips back, I kid you not, a good two inches of Romec internal sheathing....holds the two black wires together, and screws on a wire nut - the same kind of wire nut we banned millenia ago.

Then you do white to white - That's the Nootral - same thing.

Finally you take the green and you twist it to this bare wire. That the ground.

Now. This guy effectivley just connected his earth by means of some crappy plastic "screw on connector", didn't sheath the Romec earth, and then proceeded to wedge the lot into a "wiring box" which is all sheet metal, and the size, roughly, of a two gang back box, all metal.

And thats "code" ---- stuff that.

That's dangerous in any language I say.

Can't say as I'd sleep happily with that Bill, but in the words of Al Murray's alter ego, the pub landlord - their house, their rules.

 

[glynnis]

They were trying to bring wire nuts(screwits) back to uk a while back and they have them on the ideal uk web site. When you connect motors from the states they just have nuts and bolts loose that have to be taped up in the termination boxes on the motors.IDEAL INDUSTRIES - Wire Connectors

 

[Amp David]

Its all they seem to use in Canada too. Holmes on Holmes is another TV show where they use them.

 

[rocker]

I'm glad I don't have Sky telly, I think I'd have a heart attack watching that rubbish. Or a 'coronary', as our yankee pigdog counterparts may say....

 

[accordfire]

Its all they seem to use in Canada too. Holmes on Holmes is another TV show where they use them.

Yup. Good Old Mike Holmes, Canada's Most Trusted Tradesman.

For all Canada was supposed to have a British/French influence, most of its rules these days are just State level variants of the US ones.

 

[alarm man]

watched a good one today on discovery science,new york city power,about sparks,plumbers,gas men,lift men etc,showed some sparks changing a power pole live the yankees are pretety good at trades at least when your a spark or a tradesman over there your treated with respect by joe public,pity we dont get that over here.

 

[millwall ken]

watched a good one today on discovery science,new york city power,about sparks,plumbers,gas men,lift men etc,showed some sparks changing a power pole live the yankees are pretety good at trades at least when your a spark or a tradesman over there your treated with respect by joe public,pity we dont get that over here.

Aussies and Kiwis tend to treat tradesmen with respect as well, the same as the Germans.

 

[rocker]

I think the root of the problem is that people in this country don't treat ANYONE with respect. It seems to be considered a sign of weakness.

 

[BLBelfast]

do you crimp them wire nuts or how are they fastened?

 

[accordfire]

do you crimp them wire nuts or how are they fastened?

Simply screwed on.

They're like a pen lid kind of thing, and you twist them onto the ends of the wires you want to join.....

Like this

 

[rocker]

You just twist them. they're rubbish.

 

[accordfire]

I think the root of the problem is that people in this country don't treat ANYONE with respect. It seems to be considered a sign of weakness.

How true.

They used to say that respect was something to be earned.

Personally, I think there's a better way.

I'm happy to respect you but, you'll need to earn my trust.

I don't lose a thing by being polite, courteous, and helpful to you, even if you throw it back in my face.

And you know why? I know that the next time you need my help, it won't be me missing out - and that's probably worth more to you, than abusing me in the first place was.

Today's kids would get a LOT further with just a few simple attitude adjustments.