DIY and Renovations

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Electrical fun

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UncleMac
UncleMac Posts: 12,920 Member
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Part of my fun with this renovation is playing with electricity. I'm not a licensed electrician... but my post-secondary is in electronics engineering so I'm familiar with the basic concepts.

The 2 car garage at the back of the property was originally powered by a single skinny wire which was installed wrong... so I rented a trenching machine and did everything right... up to code...

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  • UncleMac
    UncleMac Posts: 12,920 Member
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    There are a few advantages to what I've done...

    Not the least of which is the previous installation had a switch with fuses beside the main panel. By upgrading, I brought everything up to code, deleted the redundant switch and now I have adequate power to the garage to be able to rewire so I can power a 220v heater for the winter.
  • fitlulu4150
    fitlulu4150 Posts: 1,371 Member
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    Nice work. We always hire electrical wore here as hubby and I virtually know nothing.
  • UncleMac
    UncleMac Posts: 12,920 Member
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    fitlulu4150 wrote: »
    Nice work. We always hire electrical wore here as hubby and I virtually know nothing.
    It's not difficult but there is always some risk. I don't think I would entertain a big electrical job like replacing a main panel but rewiring a circuit is within my comfort zone.
  • Original_Sinner
    Original_Sinner Posts: 180 Member
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    Yeah I'm not touching wiring with a ten foot pole. I'll change out an old circuit box, or put in a lighting fixture but that's the end of it.
  • UncleMac
    UncleMac Posts: 12,920 Member
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    Original_Sinner wrote: »
    Yeah I'm not touching wiring with a ten foot pole. I'll change out an old circuit box, or put in a lighting fixture but that's the end of it.

    I dislike working in the main box but I'll do it if I must... Like when I rewired the garage... and the dryer... etc...
  • UncleMac
    UncleMac Posts: 12,920 Member
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    I put on my electrician's hat again. The 110v for the washing machine was, like the plumbing, attached to the foundation wall. When I pulled out the plumbing, I took the box off too. Once I got framing back into place, I wired in the dryer (240v) which meant going into the mains box (ugh!). At the same time, I added the wire to put in plugs along the north wall.

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    This pic is actually before the washer rather than behind it. I had stuff (detergent etc) stacked in by the washer so I couldn't get a decent pic. Lazy me! You'll notice I put a small loop of extra wire by the box? That's so if someone needs to rework in the future, there's a bit of "grace" for them. There's nothing more frustrating to a renovation than having the wiring so tight you can't work with it.

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    This second plug is on the other side of the large window. I have a large deep freeze so it's handy to have plugs higher than in a normal room.

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    This picture shows why I would be an expensive handyman. See the red lines lining up with the holes? Those are for the lights that I'll eventually be installing. I used the laser level to get everything straight & parallel with the walls. It only takes a few minutes to set up but it means pulling the wires through goes smoothly. I'm not quite OCD but I am fussy. Most guys just eye-ball it and start drilling holes. They're not wrong to do so and they're faster than me... and time is money in the trades.
  • UncleMac
    UncleMac Posts: 12,920 Member
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    And, yes, I do take time out from renovating to bake bread etc... :smiley:

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  • DogloverTerri
    DogloverTerri Posts: 70 Member
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    Omg that bread 🥖 looks great.👍
  • UncleMac
    UncleMac Posts: 12,920 Member
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    DogloverTerri wrote: »
    Omg that bread 🥖 looks great.👍
    I'd never made baguettes before but they turned out great. Only downside... they disappeared quickly!

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