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?

 

[Pete999]

Wasn't it the combined efforts of many nations?

UK and the Septics albeit a late inclusion
Remember the Few!!!! They saved our butts make no mistake, Poles, and others

 

[Deuce]

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

I left school at 14 so perhaps I missed some important bits!

 

[davesparks]

UK and the Septics albeit a late inclusion

So no French, Polish, Norwegian, Russian, Australian, Burmese, Canadian, New Zealand or any other nations then?

 

[Pete999]

I left school at 14 so perhaps I missed some important bits!

What year was that?

 

[Deuce]

What year was that?

Umm... 1995/6ish. There were various attempts to drag me back for about a year, but by then I was approaching my 16th birthday so it became pointless. It's a bit different now - they have powers to force attendance.

 

[Pete999]

Umm... 1995/6ish. There were various attempts to drag me back for about a year, but by then I was approaching my 16th birthday so it became pointless. It's a bit different now - they have powers to force attendance.

So you should have learnt all about WW2 by then.

 

[buzzlightyear]

Old sparky i worked for said to me make sure the live was feed to the wright in the socket .me i asked but which hole

 

[ackbarthestar]

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.

We never did that as you never knew when you needed to send another up/down the tube.......lube is a very useful you know!

 

[Deuce]

So you should have learnt all about WW2 by then.

Indeed, I did. And as a young lad it was quite interesting. But history tends to recall the facts, not so much the reason.

I knew the Americans came in late and that the war was turned by that point anyway. I don't think it was ever taught that they were at one stage hoping for a ---- win.

I can certainly make sense of that knowledge now though. They didn't want to spend money on fighting someone else's war(s) and their safest bet was to try and align their trade with the likely victors. I have no doubt the same is happening elsewhere in the world today.

 

[telectrix]

Wasn't it the combined efforts of many nations?

yes, but not the vichy frogs. they opposed the Torch landings in Tunisia .

 

[telectrix]

So no French, Polish, Norwegian, Russian, Australian, Burmese, Canadian, New Zealand or any other nations then?

not to forget the Gurkas.

 

[johnduffell]

history tends to recall the facts, not so much the reason.

Only records the facts according to the winners! It's hard to get the other point of view sometimes.

 

[Deuce]

This thread may have slipped slightly off course.

 

[Deleted member 26818]

Is that, that new fangled Union Flag?
Introduced during the Peninsular campaign if I recall correctly.

 

[Pete999]

We never did that as you never knew when you needed to send another up/down the tube.......lube is a very useful you know!

That's down to bad planning Mate, pulling cables in on top of others is not a good idea.

 

[Deuce]

Only records the facts according to the winners! It's hard to get the other point of view sometimes.

Certainly true. It's hard to really understand the German mindset at that time, and why as a nation they supported a party with clearly very 'radical' ideas and plans. But they did, and on some level there must have been a genuine belief that it would somehow lead to an overall better world, however 'better' is defined.

They say the people were effectively brainwashed and mislead, but were they really? No shortage of intrigue and perceptiveness in the any of the Germans I meet and work with, I would say they're at the sharper end of nations when it comes to figuring stuff out.

Go to Germany now, and apart from an extreme minority of neo-nazis (apparently), you will find a nation of people you would never believe could be anything other than pretty decent humans. Yet in historic terms it was just yesterday that as a nation they showed great support to a party that were quite clearly about to mix things up across the world in a very risque and blunt fashion. I don't imagine the people would have guessed the extent of the persecution against the Jewish, but they seemed to be pretty chuffed at the idea of Germany expanding it's borders across of Europe and beyond.

I suppose because of my relative youth and many projects in Germany I have a different perspective and perhaps a lesser appreciation of the facts to those born closer to the end of the war. As you say, so much gets dropped from history.

 

[Pete999]

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,

One way of doing it

 

[Leesparkykent]

I don’t mark in and out. Just a slit for the switch and use a sharpie when multiple switches, 2 ways and fans etc are in the same box. I stumped a new sparks, whose just out of his time, and started with us when he had to connect an intermediate switch that also had the feed in/out and switch wire at it the other day

 

[oracle]

Strictly come wiring?

 

[TJ Anderson]

I don’t mark in and out. Just a slit for the switch and use a sharpie when multiple switches, 2 ways and fans etc are in the same box. I stumped a new sparks, whose just out of his time, and started with us when he had to connect an intermediate switch that also had the feed in/out and switch wire at it the other day

Haha. Did you prompt him by slowly handing him 2 connector blocks/wagos for the common and neutrals?

 

[Squid]

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.

The MICC strippers where all rubbish, you could do a better and faster job with a large screwdriver.

 

[davesparks]

That's down to bad planning Mate, pulling cables in on top of others is not a good idea.

It's not always down to bad planning, it is very often done as part of alterations and additions long after the original installation date. That is after all one of the advantages of a trunking and conduit installation, you can add to and alter circuits with relative ease.

 

[Squid]

It's not always down to bad planning, it is very often done as part of alterations and additions long after the original installation date. That is after all one of the advantages of a trunking and conduit installation, you can add to and alter circuits with relative ease.

Especially on industrial sites when they decide to alter the office layout.

 

[Pete999]

The MICC strippers where all rubbish, you could do a better and faster job with a large screwdriver.

How?

 

[GBDamo]

Never used the method myself as never had reason but, whilst working on a self build the owner/project manager/labourer had run a duct from the end of his house to where his cabin/office was going about 40m up the garden.

Sparks and plumbers on site giving him a right running as he hadn't put in a cord .

So he goes into the house gets a sandwich bag, a ball of string and his Hoover, ties the bag to the string and feeds it into the duct at the cabin end, comes back to the house and puts the Hoover on and sticks it down the duct at the house end.

Within a few seconds he's stood there with the bag and string in his hand and a well earned smug look on his face.

I like that kind of lateral thinking.