You are here:
- Home
- Home/Garden
- Home Improvement/Repair
- Electrical Wiring in the Home
Electrical Wiring in the Home/Questions Answered by Expert PASCACK VALLEY ELECTRIC Bob Mossman
| Subject | Date Asked |
| Attic Wiring | 1/2/2012 |
| Q: I have an unfinished attic that has access from a small hatch in a closet and a small opening in the ... A: Craig, Before the 2X4s and plywood you have to use steel plates (made for the purpose) over the ... | |
| Overheated Electric Meter | 9/1/2011 |
| Q: The electric company came out yesterday to shut off my power. In the past three months I've had ... A: Michelle, The faulty connection just made it difficult for the electricity your were using to get ... | |
| main breaker is stuck on | 6/21/2011 |
| Q: I have a 200A Culter Hammer panel in my home, 23 years old. I tried to operate the main breaker and ... A: Chris, At this point you either reset the old breaker or you have a new one. Sometimes breakers can ... | |
| Electrical killing appliances | 6/20/2011 |
| Q: I am having an issue with the electrical in the house I'm renting. Not long after I moved in my ... A: Erica, Make sure the outlets that you plug the refrig into and the freezer are not GFI protected ... | |
| Electrical conduit through stucco | 6/15/2011 |
| Q: We want to install an exterior electrical box on the outside of our garage in order to provide power ... A: Jane, My apologies for going from quick to extremely slow to respond, just too much going on right ... | |
| Electrical conduit through stucco | 6/14/2011 |
| Q: We want to install an exterior electrical box on the outside of our garage in order to provide power ... A: Jane, Make a hole in the stucco and the plywood behind it just big enough to allow the connector ... | |
| Dim Ceiling Fan Light | 6/13/2011 |
| Q: When my friend came over to replace a bedroom door, he pushed the wall button to try to turn on the ... A: Karyn, If you have a remote to control the fan speed and light then you not only don't need the ... | |
| 220 dryer outlet | 6/12/2011 |
| Q: When I probe the two hot leads on my dryer outlet I get 220 but when I probe one or the other hot ... A: Jim, The neutral (white) wire in your main panel may be compromised, thats where the bare ground ... | |
| can I plug a l630p male plug into a l530r adapter to nema 515p? | 6/11/2011 |
| Q: can I plug a l630p male plug into a l530r adapter to nema 515p? A: Matt, The L5-30R and the 515P match voltage wise but the L5-30 is rated at 30 amps while the 515 is ... | |
| electrical fire in utility company's meter | 6/10/2011 |
| Q: Utility co. requests me to hire and pay electrician to supply new can, to replace burnt can which ... A: Irene, Unfortunately the utilitys responsibility ends where their over head cable attaches to your ... | |
| Electrical Code | 6/9/2011 |
| Q: WE are buying a home built in 1999 in new jersey. I was told by my home inspector that the 150amp. ... A: Jim, Aluminum wire especially in the larger sizes for instance like a 150 amp service is fine when ... | |
| Number of #12's in one wire nut? | 6/8/2011 |
| Q: What is the maximum number of #12 wires I can put in one wire nut? I've seen red nuts with 4 or so ... A: Duane, I thought I answered this already but in the event I didn't, two # 12 for yellow, 3 - 4 ... | |
| Garbage Disposal Ground Wiring | 6/7/2011 |
| Q: This past weekend I installed an InSinkerator Evolution Cover Control in my new construction town ... A: Ryan, Code requires a disconnect switch under the sink by the unit. I'm assuming thats where the ... | |
| Wiring issue with recessed lighting and switch | 6/6/2011 |
| Q: I have finished my basement. I wired the recessed lighting. Here is the scenario: I have a chain of ... A: Joan, I don't know how your lights lay out in the ceiling in relation to the beams but if fix #1 ... | |
| 20 amp breaker tripping | 6/6/2011 |
| Q: for one year now in a new home I have a kithen aid refrig. small one and a kithchen aid ice maker ... A: Mark, Remove the GFI and put a regular receptacle in there which is fine. Remove the regular ... | |
| Wiring issue with recessed lighting and switch | 6/5/2011 |
| Q: I have finished my basement. I wired the recessed lighting. Here is the scenario: I have a chain of ... A: Joan, If you are saying the power or the cable with the power is in fixture # 1 and your cable to ... | |
| adding a single pole combination switch | 6/3/2011 |
| Q: I'm installing direct wire, undercabinet LED lights. I want to add a combination switch to the ... A: John, Good illustration. Ok this a horse of a different color. Yes it does change things a bit and ... | |
| adding a single pole combination switch | 6/3/2011 |
| Q: I'm installing direct wire, undercabinet LED lights. I want to add a combination switch to the ... A: John, On one side of the switch you have two dark screws that are close togther and actually tied ... | |
| electric shock at my kitchen sink | 5/30/2011 |
| Q: within the last week almost every time i touch my kitchen sink (metal) or the metal around the edge ... A: Mary, Your sink and or the metal plumbing piping attached to it is coming into contact with wiring ... | |
| Reverse Current in home outlet | 5/29/2011 |
| Q: Had an outlet burn out. It had 3 incoming and outgoing wiring cables. Replaced the outlet and ... A: Rafa, Shut the circuit off and make note of everything thats on the circuit. You'll get a feel for ... | |
| Main breaker shutting off | 5/28/2011 |
| Q: I am having a problem with my main breaker shutting off just when i turn on my new 18000 btu AC. ... A: Craig, The main needs to be changed. The fact that it gets hot when the AC comes on indicates a bad ... | |
| economical | 5/26/2011 |
| Q: What is economical and how? a 60 watt bulb with 90 volt or with 240 volt AC supply A: Snehansu, It is the same at either voltage. In other words its no less expensive to operate the 60 ... | |
| Convert 6-30 to L14? | 5/25/2011 |
| Q: I have a milking machine for our dairy which is wired for 220v with a NEMA 6-30 plug for the same ... A: Matt, Your a better man than me I wouldn't want to do it either way. OK the best thing to do here ... | |
| Need good advice on aluminum clad wiring | 5/24/2011 |
| Q: We live near Pittsburgh, PA & we are puting in a new kitchen. We have been told that we have to get ... A: Tammy, With out seeing what you have I can't give a good opinion on your particular situation. For ... | |
| Laundry Center 220v | 5/21/2011 |
| Q: My house was totally rewired 2 years ago. This included a new service panel etc. I was given a ... A: Laura, The 4 wire connection is better than 3 so stick with that. Inside the unit you should see ... | |
| wiring in line thermostat | 5/19/2011 |
| Q: HTM511A line voltage stat I want to use this to turn on 240 volt 26-99 grundfos circ pumps. I have ... A: Ok then you don't have a 2 pole thermostat its 1 pole. L1 and L2 usually stands for "Line 1 and Line ... | |
| wiring in line thermostat | 5/19/2011 |
| Q: HTM511A line voltage stat I want to use this to turn on 240 volt 26-99 grundfos circ pumps. I have ... A: Berwin, The black and red wires would have to be hooked up to a 2 pole breaker in the panel (20 amp ... | |
| voltage drop | 5/18/2011 |
| Q: What would cause a voltage drop of 60 volts in a line? One of the incoming supply/hot lines only ... A: Tommy, It is most likely where you made the repair but before you dig just check to make sure you ... | |
| Electrical | 5/17/2011 |
| Q: I am replacing an electrical wall-mounted light fixture in the bathroom with an old light fixture ... A: Carlos, The bare ground wire coming out of the wall must attach to the metal of the fixture VIA ... | |
| badoutlet | 5/15/2011 |
| Q: i have a wall outlet that was working but quit there is power to the breaker box in all the circuits ... A: Steve, Double check the breakers in the panel. Sometimes a breaker can appear to be on when its ... | |
| Swamp cooler motor | 5/13/2011 |
| Q: My swamp cooler on/ off switch broken to old.Is it possible to hook up motor directly to a 110 ... A: Richard, I don't see why you have to have the switch and not go direct but I'm not there and don't ... | |
| Hd receivers and tv fried | 5/12/2011 |
| Q: Ok so recently I got directv the tech came out and installed it about two weeks ago on the day of ... A: Lisa, I suspect that you have what is called an "open neutral" which destabilizes the voltage ... | |
| a/c | 5/11/2011 |
| Q: My window air conditioner is about 40 years old and works perfectly. The 3 prong plug has 1 very ... A: Margaret, Wow 40 years, you got your moneys worth on that one. Anyway, yes you can change the plug ... | |
| double oven | 5/10/2011 |
| Q: If yes. Were do I put the red wire. I dos that so for an the oven is not get hot. Is that do to the ... A: Jacque, No can do. The red wire on the oven will connect to the red wire from the cable. The black ... | |
| bathroom light fixture | 5/9/2011 |
| Q: bought a bathroom light . rtying to put in and i can get it to come on but always on , so trying to ... A: Terry, One of the 2 wire (black and white) cables in the box goes to your switch. You have to find ... | |
| mobile home breaker box problem | 5/7/2011 |
| Q: I have lost power to the left side of my mobile home. I have replaced the main breaker, but nothing ... A: Dale, You need to check the power at the pole circuit breaker and see if you have full power at ... | |
| 208/230 voltage for welder | 5/6/2011 |
| Q: I need some advise about a supply for a welder. I am using a 4/3 wire with a ground wire and a 50 ... A: Tracy, I'm going on the assumption your wire is copper which it probably is. First, 208 is a ... | |
| URD to outbuilding | 5/5/2011 |
| Q: I am running 120 ft. of URD 24" deep to an outbuilding. I was told to use #2 aluminum and was sold ... A: Charlie, You want to come out of the 200 amp panel not the other one and use a 2 pole 100 amp ... | |
| ceiling fan/light | 4/30/2011 |
| Q: Ceiling fan/light...dimmer rarely works, light flickers slightly (only at times), fan feature works ... A: Jeff, I would say its the dimmer. Buy a new one at HD or Lowes and try it, if it solves the problem ... | |
| wiring a whirlpool tub | 4/29/2011 |
| Q: when installing a whirlpool tub. do i need one or two dedicated GFI circuits one for the motor and ... A: Douglas, All the prepackaged whirlpool tubs I've hooked up over the years had one main line into ... | |
| Post time and new switch - old wires... | 4/28/2011 |
| Q: I am trying to install a time for my outdoor post light. I am also replacing a switch to two lights ... A: James, After looking closely at your picture I can see that the white wire coming out of the BX ... | |
| Post time and new switch - old wires... | 4/28/2011 |
| Q: I am trying to install a time for my outdoor post light. I am also replacing a switch to two lights ... A: James, The neutral may not be present in the box which is not unusual. If you bought a timer that ... | |
| replacing ceiling fan with light fixture | 4/23/2011 |
| Q: I took off the old ceiling fan fixture and there are two white wires and two black wires and a ... A: Tammy, If the 2 white wire's were together and the 2 black were together on the fan, connect the ... | |
| Panel upgrade | 4/22/2011 |
| Q: I'm doing a 200 amp panel upgrade. I don't know if I should run my #4 bare ground from main water ... A: Mark, The #4 goes right to the main panels neutral block. The # 6 from the ground rod also goes ... | |
| Wiring a new detached garage | 4/20/2011 |
| Q: When we built the home 6 years ago we poured a pad for an 18 X 24 garage and the contractor ran wire ... A: Karl, You could put in a 60 amp or 100 amp 12 circuit "main lug" panel which should be adequate and ... | |
| Crackling noise in all switches including the ceiling fan... | 4/18/2011 |
| Q: We have a home built in 1969. It has the original wiring and for the past couple years I have ... A: Its possible the "popping" you hear is a mechanical sound with in the switch and not a sound caused ... | |
| Crackling noise in all switches including the ceiling fan... | 4/18/2011 |
| Q: We have a home built in 1969. It has the original wiring and for the past couple years I have ... A: Shayna, Switches shouldn't be turned on or off "slowly", it should be a quick action so the ... | |
| Outlets don't work | 4/17/2011 |
| Q: Some of my outlets stopped working suddenly. House built 70’s. I’ve lived in for 20 years. Never any ... A: Don, Take a close look at the receptacle that makes the receptacle in the master bedroom work when ... | |
| bathroom ceiling fixture sparks | 4/11/2011 |
| Q: We have just changed our ceiling fixture in the bathroom. When the circuit was turned backed on the ... A: Bao, Its not hard to pinch wires in the box or on the fixture when installing a new fixture. This ... | |
| same phase on neutral | 4/9/2011 |
| Q: i was told that i can't use a single neutral for two circuits of the same phase.i would like to know ... A: Joe, Thats right. With out getting too deep into AC theory, two circuits on opposite phases (A & ... | |
| GFI | 4/7/2011 |
| Q: We are selling our 20 year old house and getting ready for an inspection. What are the laws for GFI ... A: Sue, If your selling your house "as is" then it shouldn't matter but if your buyers insist you do ... | |
| FIXTURE WON'T WORK | 4/6/2011 |
| Q: Turned the power back on and light fixture in upstairs bathroom won't turn on. Replaced switch still ... A: Rhonda, Having 36 volts at the fixture suggests it could be a connection problem. If the switch for ... | |
| electrical | 4/5/2011 |
| Q: I have ceiling lights out in bedroom, bathroom, laundry and garage also ceiling exhaust fan in bath. ... A: Pat, Check the breakers and GFI's again. A breaker can be tripped and not appear to be. Turn each ... | |
| Suspect tenant of tampering with Circuit Panel | 4/3/2011 |
| Q: My last tenants had unscrewed and taken off the cover to the main circuit panel of the house. To my ... A: Serena, The circuit breaker panel is after the electric meter so what ever they're doing they're ... | |
| Wiring from house to shed | 4/1/2011 |
| Q: I just had someone run electric to my new shed. They wired it up adding outlets and a disconnect ... A: David, I suspect that the white and black wires on the 10-2 are hooked up to a 2 pole breaker in ... | |
| elctrical | 3/31/2011 |
| Q: I have a 60a fuses panel with only 4 rooms for fuses.I want to add a circuit breaker sub panel in ... A: Ronald, Its not OK. You must use #6, 4 wires and the bare wire (grounding wire) must go to a ... | |
| Bathroom light switch sparks when its off | 3/30/2011 |
| Q: My bathroom light switch started sparking and making that sparking noise last night while my wife ... A: Carlos, What bothers me some is you say it lit up the whole bath room which makes me wonder how ... | |
| wire color in ceiling box | 3/29/2011 |
| Q: My son lives in a high rise in NYC. He wanted to hook up a ceiling fan/light with a remote control. ... A: Dennis, The ceiling outlet is most likely in metal conduit which acts as the "grounding" means. ... | |
| Non-working Outlets | 3/28/2011 |
| Q: Recently 9 electrical outlets in two bedrooms suddenly stopped working. I suspect an electric ... A: Joe, Yes it is possible but very unlikely. I don't know what type of voltage tester was used to ... | |
| Panel/Sub-Panel | 3/27/2011 |
| Q: Bob, I have a 200 amp main disconnect panel on an exterior wall of my garage serviced by 3/0 for ... A: Shawn, Ok I think I have the picture. As far as the neutrals and grounds go you will set the new ... | |
| Panel/Sub-Panel | 3/27/2011 |
| Q: Bob, I have a 200 amp main disconnect panel on an exterior wall of my garage serviced by 3/0 for ... A: Shawn, Thats correct any panel after the main breaker on the side of your garage is a sub panel and ... | |
| cooktop wiring | 3/26/2011 |
| Q: How do I hook up the 4 wire from the cook top to a 40 amp 2 wire (both black) and a bare wire from ... A: OK, The white and bare ground or green wire from the cook top will connect to the bare stranded ... | |
| Service for new out building | 3/22/2011 |
| Q: Parent’s house has a early 70’s Pushmatic panel, there is an outbuilding we wired off this panel ... A: Questioner A, Since its not clear what was run between the house and the outbuilding you need to ... | |
| Elect. prob | 3/21/2011 |
| Q: Since you are an experienced electrician, you may like this trouble shooting problem. In a ... A: Larry, You could have 2 separate problems here or they could be related. One thing is for certain ... | |
| electrical | 3/17/2011 |
| Q: I would like to run conduit from an existing outdoor outlet to a newly installed patio which will ... A: Diana, If the conduit will be under a minimum of 2" thick concrete or equivelent like pavers and ... | |
| NEMA rated L6-30 | 3/16/2011 |
| Q: I am trying to understand what precisely an L6-20 and an L6-30 is. Is it a 20 or 30A maximum rated ... A: Chas, The L6-20 has a 20 amp rating and the L6-30 has a 30 amp rating which also corresponds to the ... | |
| Time lag Cartridge Fuse | 3/14/2011 |
| Q: I have a Samsung DVD VCD player Model DVD-V5600 which does not power up at all. There is a fuse ... A: John, "time delay" or "time lag" fuses will allow for a momentary surge of current over the amount ... | |
| Time lag Cartridge Fuse | 3/13/2011 |
| Q: I have a Samsung DVD VCD player Model DVD-V5600 which does not power up at all. There is a fuse ... A: John, The fuse is OK. When its in the fuse holder its completing the 240 volt circuit so you won't ... | |
| Buzzing, not light after power wash | 3/12/2011 |
| Q: We had our house power washed this week as we prepare to put our house on the market for sale. About ... A: Your very welcome, OK if water gets into those sockets it will create a "short circuit" condition ... | |
| Buzzing, not light after power wash | 3/12/2011 |
| Q: We had our house power washed this week as we prepare to put our house on the market for sale. About ... A: Cathy, It sounds like water from the power washing made its way into the fixture some how. Shut the ... | |
| Switch/outlet | 3/10/2011 |
| Q: ! My daughter bought a new townhouse. For some reason the bedroom switch will not turn on a light ... A: Dennis, One or both of us is having a senior moment here which is fine. Anyway after rereading your ... | |
| Switch/outlet | 3/10/2011 |
| Q: ! My daughter bought a new townhouse. For some reason the bedroom switch will not turn on a light ... A: All you need to do is repeat what the electrician did and remove the "tab" that connects the screw ... | |
| Lights dimming because of hair dryer | 3/9/2011 |
| Q: I noticed when I turned the hair dryer on high, it dims the lights a little. Is that normal? A: JB, Yes especially if you have an older home and its a 15 amp circuit with a combination of lights ... | |
| electricity leaking into ground | 3/6/2011 |
| Q: My cable server tells me there cable keeps melting because electricity is leaking back into the ... A: Jim, You need a "clamp on" "Amprobe" (amp meter) to do this so if you can get your hands on one, ... | |
| Breaker for pump | 3/5/2011 |
| Q: Need you advise for wiring and a breaker for a Goulds pump. The 110V version max amp rating is for ... A: Reese, When motors first start up under load they are momentarily drawing more than they do when ... | |
| NEMA 14-30 convert | 3/4/2011 |
| Q: I have a dryer and a washer that both are equipped with NEMA 14-30 plugs. The problem I have is that ... A: Hans, Wether you can do this or not hinges on what type of cable you have or if its conduit. If you ... | |
| NEMA 14-30 convert | 3/3/2011 |
| Q: I have a dryer and a washer that both are equipped with NEMA 14-30 plugs. The problem I have is that ... A: Hans, The Nema rated 14-3 plugs are a dual voltage plug (120/240) which means your washer and dryer ... | |
| New Install Electric Baseboard Heating | 3/2/2011 |
| Q: I am installing Cadet electric baseboard heating as part of my basement finishing. One room is a ... A: Ok, I understand you want to use 1 thermostat however the simplest all around approach to this is to ... | |
| 110/220 V 50 amp service | 2/27/2011 |
| Q: Bob I have a fifth wheel camper that runs 110/220 v 50 amp service my question is in my shop I ... A: Richard, You can't use the 10-4 and you don't need to go as high as 6-4, save your money, copper is ... | |
| floor-mounted outlet gets wet | 2/26/2011 |
| Q: we have a lot of floor mounted outlet on our store, but accident happened. when the last person that ... A: Al, The outlets should still be usable but before doing so, open each floor outlet and blow it out ... | |
| wiring in series vs. parlle | 2/25/2011 |
| Q: I was reading this past answer from you; ... A: Bill, That is correct and the reason is simply because the switch is at the same end as the power. ... | |
| wiring breaker | 2/20/2011 |
| Q: Is there anything wrong with running two wires to one breaker, or is it better to have a junction ... A: Dave, There is nothing wrong with it as long as the breaker is rated for 2 wires. Square D breakers ... | |
| dimmer switch | 2/18/2011 |
| Q: My old can lights had a plug at the top instead of a male thread, bought new can lights, but my ... A: Matt, Most dimmers are rated for 600 watts. I don't know how many lights you have, or what type of ... | |
| AC and well pump wire colors | 2/14/2011 |
| Q: I have recently replaced my old problematic pushmatic load center with a new square D unit. I found ... A: Kevin, Its perfectly fine for the white wire in a cable assembly to remain white when it is used as ... | |
| Extension Cord watts | 2/13/2011 |
| Q: I am buying a 15 amp snow blower and have three long extension cords for yard tools. Is there any ... A: Frank, Along the entire length of each extension cord you SHOULD see in small writing what size the ... | |
| Home Electric Panel | 2/12/2011 |
| Q: Panel is in the laundry room right above the dryer but I am getting a new pedestal dryer and washer ... A: Boe, Its against code to put a dryer or washer in front of a panel which is your first problem so I ... | |
| dimmer won't work on new light | 2/11/2011 |
| Q: The dimmer switch won't work on the new light fixture I installed. The old light fixture was ... A: Marta, No you didn't get the wires backwards. In the process of changing the fixture did you short ... | |
| Bye Bye Standby | 2/10/2011 |
| Q: I'm getting ready to retire and money will be tight. I am considering buying a Bye Bye Standby ... A: Betty, They are talking about the 4 way (4 - receptacles) extension receptacle strip that they ... | |
| premature bulb failures | 2/8/2011 |
| Q: A bathroom fixture has 3 incandescent lamps in a downward descending tulip style controlled by a ... A: Chuck, Based on what you said it must be the sockets. They do wear out in time and the first sign ... | |
| Electrical Question | 2/7/2011 |
| Q: I have lived in the same place for 6 years now and I have never noticed any problems with the ... A: Jason, It sounds like it could be a connection problem in the making. Try banging the wall with ... | |
| Shorted out Outlet | 2/4/2011 |
| Q: We were thawing some frozen pipes with a heat lamp and fans, left the house for a short while and ... A: Carol, Recheck and reset the breakers. In order to reset a tripped breaker it must FIRST be turned ... | |
| Residential panelboard | 2/3/2011 |
| Q: I have a 200A General Switch panelboard 120/240V, about 25 years old, and apparently with aluminum ... A: Greg, General Switch panel boards are extremely rare in our area, I don't remember the last time I ... | |
| electrical outlets not working | 2/1/2011 |
| Q: my daughter plugged in a lap top computer in her bedroom outlet and it blew all the outlets in half ... A: Tracy, Check any GFI receptacles you may have in that area like a bathroom for instance and see if ... | |
| Adding a 115v/15A receptacle | 1/31/2011 |
| Q: I'd like to add a new 115v/15A receptacle in my basement. There is another receptacle very close to ... A: Mike, You can do this two ways. Shut the circuit off of course. Pull either cable out of the ... | |
| Arc Fault On Shared Neutral Circuits | 1/25/2011 |
| Q: We are having siding put on our house and they hit a wire with a nail that blew the 15amp breaker. ... A: Kurt, Thats exactly what will happen, the Arc Fault breaker will trip. In other words you have an ... | |
| Radiant Heat- Replacing Thermostat | 1/23/2011 |
| Q: Hope you can help me. I am trying to replace a 30+ year old dial thermostat for my ceiling radiant ... A: Kristen, I looked at the instructions on line and the 4 wire installation is your situation. The 2 ... | |
| radiant ceiling heat | 1/22/2011 |
| Q: I cut open a small area in the ceiling containing the heating wire to determine if we could route a ... A: Ray, If you patch the opening you made with plaster and the wire is sandwiched nicely in the middle ... | |
| 3 Wire Range Outlet | 1/21/2011 |
| Q: I have an older home. The current kitchen stove outlet is a Duplex 3 pronged GFCI outlet. I've ... A: TT, Unfortunately I feel I'm delivering bad news. You can't use the existing outlet. You need a ... | |
| water heater wiring | 1/20/2011 |
| Q: I am replacing a Titan Tankless N-120 water heater after 12 years of use. It was connected to a ... A: Scott, The N-120 pulls 54 amps when running so it should have tripped a 30 amp breaker. Maybe some ... | |
| Electric outlet | 1/19/2011 |
| Q: Tonight when my husband was checking to see if a computer would work with our phone line, I believe ... A: Cara, Check any GFI receptacles you may have like in the kitchen, bathroom etc and see if they are ... | |
| 100amp wiring | 1/18/2011 |
| Q: I am considering buying an older home with updated (circuit breakers)100amp wiring. The 30 gal. h/w ... A: Jackie, You should be fine. All the things you listed are not on all the time. They cycle on and ... | |
| 2 electric dryers | 1/17/2011 |
| Q: I have a condo that needs a washer and dryer and I need to put the electrical connection. My ... A: John, The information you've given me is a bit vague for me to give you a solid answer. Not sure ... | |
| Ceiling Fan problem | 1/16/2011 |
| Q: I recently tried to turn on my ceiling fan. It start to tremble ever so lightly as wanting to turn. ... A: Michelle , Try starting the fan on "high speed" and see what the fan does, then try starting it on ... | |
| breakers tripping | 1/15/2011 |
| Q: Out of the blue my washer breaker started tripping. Now when my furnace comes on....the washer ... A: Ok the circuit with the washer, attic fan, and well pump is overloaded and needs to be broken up. In ... | |
| commercial electric question | 1/14/2011 |
| Q: My electrician is out of town till next week and my curiosity is getting the best of me. Perhaps ... A: Charles, Just a quick note, who ever you spoke to at the utility is confused because there is no ... | |
| commercial electric question | 1/13/2011 |
| Q: My electrician is out of town till next week and my curiosity is getting the best of me. Perhaps ... A: Charles, The 212 to 215 is fine its just a little higher than 208. Better on the higher side than ... | |
| Installing a AFCI | 1/12/2011 |
| Q: I am installing an AFCI breaker but do not know where I am supposed to attach the ground wire from ... A: Joe, The white pig tail wire from the breaker goes to the neutral bar where all the other white ... | |
| Problem with breaker blowing, and building managers office going out as well? | 1/9/2011 |
| Q: I recently moved into a new apartment, during the day time I have had problems with the breaker ... A: Missy, Its seems apparent the managers office is on your electric meter and you are not only paying ... | |
| High light fixtures | 1/8/2011 |
| Q: The builders of my home hsd the bright idea of placing cosed-glass-ball type light fixtures (the ... A: Rick, I agree not a very practical fixture to have at 25 or 30' up. Unfortunately you have to get ... | |
| Doorbell | 1/7/2011 |
| Q: Last night my door bell began to ring on its own. I thought the button was stuck so I pressed it a ... A: Ryan, If you have a back door bell button as well that button could be the problem and not this one ... | |
| Ground circuit and 6/3 wiring at disconnect | 1/4/2011 |
| Q: I have a pottery kiln in my basement. It is 240V rated at 48 amps so the circuit is set up with a ... A: The "grounding" bar or terminal strip (buss bar) you speak of must be "bonded" (connected) ... | |
| Ground circuit and 6/3 wiring at disconnect | 1/4/2011 |
| Q: I have a pottery kiln in my basement. It is 240V rated at 48 amps so the circuit is set up with a ... A: Brian, I understand the white is not needed in this case. But first you must either use the bare ... | |
| lighting requirements | 12/29/2010 |
| Q: I have an office space adjacent to my 2 car detached garage. I use it as a bit of a man cave. When ... A: Mark, Given the dimensions you have two patterns to choose from that will work well depending upon ... | |
| old circuit breaker box | 12/27/2010 |
| Q: Our house was built in 1943 and has the same breaker box now ( it as the circuit breakers that hook ... A: Mary, The only question I can really answer is the one receptacle in the living room that "went ... | |
| Neutral & Ground | 12/21/2010 |
| Q: I purchased a GE kitchen range with a 4-plug wire from Best Buy. When the guys who do the delivery ... A: Rick, Your right they didn't do it correctly. The white wire from the plug should connect to the ... | |
| Replacing a 120V 1 pole with 2 Pole Thermostat | 12/19/2010 |
| Q: Bob, The breaker for the heater is 240v not 120v. Joe A: Joe, OK back in the old days they sometimes would break only one side of the 240 volt circuit which ... | |
| Replacing a 120V 1 pole with 2 Pole Thermostat | 12/18/2010 |
| Q: Morning Bob, The thermostat controls a radiant ceiling heater. The old one is 1 pole and the wall ... A: Joe, I just walked in the door here on the east coast and its 12:09 AM so good morning to you as ... | |
| radiant ceiling heat not working properly | 12/16/2010 |
| Q: I will try to keep this as simple as I can, having no experience in this kind of stuff whatsoever. ... A: Karen, Ok if these are the original thermostats I would change them. They are way past due. If they ... | |
| radiant ceiling heat not working properly | 12/16/2010 |
| Q: I will try to keep this as simple as I can, having no experience in this kind of stuff whatsoever. ... A: Karen, Radiant heat operates differently from normal heating systems, it heats objects more so than ... | |
| Confusion about Neutral to Ground Short | 12/5/2010 |
| Q: I have a receptacle that has a dedicated 20 amp breaker. Plugging a tester in it, it's telling me I ... A: Mick, Thats an interesting little tester. I'm almost tempted to buy the darn thing. Ok here's how I ... | |
| Confusion about Neutral to Ground Short | 12/2/2010 |
| Q: I have a receptacle that has a dedicated 20 amp breaker. Plugging a tester in it, it's telling me I ... A: Mick, There is no tester I am aware of that will tell you if the neutral and ground are touching ... | |
| 1970 SQ D QO 8 space load center | 11/29/2010 |
| Q: I have this small panel in a vacation condo 8 space it has 2 20 amp 120 brks & 2 tandem 20 amp 120 ... A: David, Your fine, sometimes breakers make buzzing sounds to different degree's and it has to do ... | |
| power to my garage | 11/27/2010 |
| Q: want to put a sub panel in garage have 3/4 Pvc going to it now can i put 3 6ga and 1 8ga ground and ... A: Todd, Yes you can but help your self a little and undersize the neutral one size to get a little ... | |
| ARCHING | 11/23/2010 |
| Q: I LOST POWER IN THE HOUSE AND SMELT SMOKE IN THE GARAGE. I OPENED THE FUSE PANEL AND NOTICED THE ... A: Chev, Start with changing the 40 amp 2 pole and see if the arcing stops. Your breakers shouldn't ... | |
| lamp post problem | 11/23/2010 |
| Q: I have an outdoor lamp post that does not light up. I measured the voltage inside the bulb socket, ... A: Andy, Yes turn the breaker off and disconnect the wire to the breaker, also disconnect the white ... | |
| lamp post problem | 11/22/2010 |
| Q: I have an outdoor lamp post that does not light up. I measured the voltage inside the bulb socket, ... A: Andy, If the lamp post is supplied by a UF underground direct burial cable it has probably been ... | |
| Installation of 2 timers in a 3 gang switch box | 11/18/2010 |
| Q: I just bought two GE digital wall timers (model 15086) to for a 3 gang switch box. Each timer has 4 ... A: You assume correctly and it is OK, you just have to use a large enough wire nut to accomadate the 2 ... | |
| Wiring recessed lights with a 3way dimmer | 11/13/2010 |
| Q: I am wiring 6 Halo recessed lights in a remodel job. The power comes into the first switch, travels ... A: Ron, The way you have it set up its not possible to control the lights from 2 switches. Here's what ... | |
| No power to bedroom | 11/10/2010 |
| Q: There is a follow up question at the end of this, the original expert is maxed out so I wanted to ... A: Adam, It is unlikely the powerless room is supplied by the GFI. Its not only not required but can ... | |
| florescent lights | 11/9/2010 |
| Q: We have florescent lights in our basement cieling, four enclosed units in all each with two tubes, ... A: Sue, First make sure the new tubes are in the sockets correctly, that you don't have one of the bi ... | |
| rewiring antique floor lamp | 11/8/2010 |
| Q: purchased a double cluster socket-pre-wired. Coming out of the socket are a white wire and a black ... A: Nancy, Yes it does make a difference. Lamp cord wire is flat with 2 rounded sides. On one side it ... | |
| switch tripped | 11/13/2009 |
| Q: is it ok to reset the entire electrical box if one switch is tripped and won't go back online? A: Craig, You can but its not going to help you much with the one breaker your having a problem with. ... | |
| Outlet connect | 11/10/2009 |
| Q: I need to add an outlet to plug in an aquarium and the closest connection is a single pole switch ... A: George, First you need to find out if the neutral (white wire) is available in the switch box. If ... | |
| house wiring | 11/9/2009 |
| Q: what is best to use in a house 12-2 or 14-2 wiring wanting to upgrade our house and make sense of ... A: Thomas, Follow this simple rule: Use 12-2 for receptacle's and 14-2 for lighting and never mix the ... | |
| Electric to detached shed. | 11/8/2009 |
| Q: .. I am running electric out to my detached shed, and have a couple of questions. Here are the ... A: Steve, 1. 30 amp 2 pole. 2. You could use a 12 circuit 100 amp sub panel which sould be plenty and ... | |
| Tracing wire | 11/7/2009 |
| Q: Here's the situation. I built my own house - had a guy running the wires. Asked him to label ... A: Mike, The tracer you mention is for "live" circuits only and yours are not live. What you could use ... | |
| Grounding | 11/6/2009 |
| Q: A few years ago we upgraded the service to our house. We put an eight foot copper rod into the ... A: Paul, What the inspector said is correct. You do need to run a separate wire from the water meter ... | |
| Buzzing from service panel | 10/31/2009 |
| Q: Well I finally opened up the service panel to see if the wire to the AC breaker was loose. I had ... A: KC, Sticking a shop vac in there isn't a bad idea, just make sure its plastic. The breaker may ... | |
| AFIC tripping once a week | 10/31/2009 |
| Q: I recently purchased a home with aluminum wiring and am replacing it with copper. For the second ... A: Rich, When you installed the sub panel do you have a separate ground bar (terminal) for the bare ... | |
| Buzzing from service panel | 10/30/2009 |
| Q: Well I finally opened up the service panel to see if the wire to the AC breaker was loose. I had ... A: KC, It looks like you've had some critters in there. The buzzing could also be coming from the main ... | |
| THHN wire | 10/29/2009 |
| Q: I want to ask, what is the maximum distance which wires a)THHN 14 b)THHN 12 c)THHN 10 can still work ... A: Gilbert, It depends upon the size of the load on each respective size wire you have listed. In ... | |
| Hardwire Christmas lights into an overhead light fixture? | 10/28/2009 |
| Q: My wife wants to run Christmas lights around a ceiling light fixture. Her idea is to cut off the ... A: If you have "medium base" lamps in the fixture you could temporarily take one lamp out and screw a ... | |
| electric baseboard heating | 10/27/2009 |
| Q: For some reason the heat in the back of my house isn't working properly. I have to shut off the ... A: Chad, If you have a "line voltage" thermostat that controls the heaters directly which you most ... | |
| ceiling fan install | 10/26/2009 |
| Q: i installed a ceiling fan and i have 2 white wires from ceiling . i tied the 2 white wires witht he ... A: Mike, Check the connections in the ceiling box anyway just to be sure the connections are solid and ... | |
| recessed lighting | 10/25/2009 |
| Q: I am trying to install 3 recessed lights above a peninsula in my kitchen. It is a 15 amp circuit ... A: Ryan, Based on the information you provided because thats all I have to go on, a shorted black wire ... | |
| recessed lighting | 10/25/2009 |
| Q: I am trying to install 3 recessed lights above a peninsula in my kitchen. It is a 15 amp circuit ... A: If you have exposed wire (black) anywhere or if you pinched any wire (black) when you pushed the ... | |
| recessed lighting | 10/25/2009 |
| Q: I am trying to install 3 recessed lights above a peninsula in my kitchen. It is a 15 amp circuit ... A: Ryan, Your connections from the last recessed light to the first one where you bring in the power ... | |
| lights per circuit | 10/24/2009 |
| Q: How many 8ft shop lights can you run on a 20amp circuit? the lights are 110 watt HO. A: Jim, First, you can load a 20 amp circuit up to 80% of its capacity. .80% X 20 = 16 amps so this is ... | |
| baseboad heaters | 10/23/2009 |
| Q: How many baseboard heaters can I run off 1 fuse/breaker and what size fuse. 2 are 4ft heaters and 1 ... A: Kevin, It depends upon 2 factors: The operating voltage of the heaters (120 or 240) with 240 being ... | |
| 3 cables/2 baseboards w/TStat | 10/21/2009 |
| Q: My apologies, Bob. Apparently I used up my followups. From what I recall, the 3 cables were fed into ... A: Ok I didn't mention this because you had an existing situation but for 240 volt BB htrs like you ... | |
| 3 cables/2 baseboards w/TStat | 10/20/2009 |
| Q: My apologies, Bob. Apparently I used up my followups. From what I recall, the 3 cables were fed into ... A: Ok we have the relay figured out not that it was a big deal. The red and black wire's coming off the ... | |
| 3 electrical connections/2 baseboard heaters | 10/19/2009 |
| Q: Bob, I'm a do-it-yourselfer. We purchase a house that needs work this past Februrary. The house has ... A: Tim, The relay has 2 screw terminals on it just for the "coil", which when energized is what pulls ... | |
| Basement lighting | 10/18/2009 |
| Q: Is there a rule of thumb when it comes to placing recessed lights, how many per sq foot? 1watt per ... A: Jason, Your most basic rule of thumb when it comes to laying out your lights is this: The higher ... | |
| service enterance | 10/14/2009 |
| Q: I want to put my 200 amp breaker box to basement wall an mount meter can on board an 2x4 above ... A: Charles, Before you mount the panel to the board, tack up a small tarp to the board first, then ... | |
| Photocell switch | 10/13/2009 |
| Q: My building has 8 outside lights on it that one indoor switch controls and turns them all on. I ... A: Andrew, Yes it will work but you have to find the first fixture the power comes into from the ... | |
| Subpanel Safety | 10/9/2009 |
| Q: Recently I had a licensed electrician replace a breaker sub-panel in my kitchen. He removed the old ... A: Hal, Yes the metal armor of the BX cable serves as the "grounding" means as opposed to a separate ... | |
| baseboard heater 110 volts reading | 10/8/2009 |
| Q: 1250 and 1500 watts i used double pole 20 amps breaker and # 12/2 wire ,My thermostat has 2 red ... A: Enrico, Lets start here. Check the voltage right at the breaker in the panel. You should get 240 ... | |
| Recessed light & cold weather | 10/6/2009 |
| Q: Everytime the weather cools down at night (40's) the recessed light (reflector flood)in our bathroom ... A: Jenny, I suspect it is the small "thermal protector" that is inside the fixture where it would be ... | |
| electrical can lights | 10/5/2009 |
| Q: I had two can lights that are on the same switch, flash like a bulb was burning out and then both ... A: Doug, If power is making it through the dimmer as you say the light that didn't blow should work. ... | |
| fuse box | 10/4/2009 |
| Q: I have a old fuse box and want to change it to a new breaker style i was wondering if i can take the ... A: I can't answer that accurately with out seeing a picture but if your fuse panel is only rated for 60 ... | |
| fuse box | 10/4/2009 |
| Q: I have a old fuse box and want to change it to a new breaker style i was wondering if i can take the ... A: Thats OK, let me put it another way. The range fuse holders will not except a fuse higher than 60 ... | |
| fuse box | 10/4/2009 |
| Q: I have a old fuse box and want to change it to a new breaker style i was wondering if i can take the ... A: Brandon, You could do that but those range fuses only go up to 60 amps so your new breaker panel ... | |
| wiring a switch | 10/3/2009 |
| Q: While adding a light to an existing circuit in my basement, I discovered that they had used the ... A: Roger, Yes there is a danger to it and there is a reason the "hot" is switched and not the neutral ... | |
| 3-way dimmer switch | 10/2/2009 |
| Q: I tried to install a 3-way dimmer switch in a exsisting box. The box,with a 3-way toggle switch, had ... A: Harvey, The key to replacing an existing 3 way switch or in your case installing a 3 way dimmer, ... | |
| ballast? problems. | 10/1/2009 |
| Q: I've replaced the ballast (twice) in my kitchen ceiling fixture, changed bulbs, and am making no ... A: Steve, Electronic ballasts are not wired the same as magnetic ones. It sounds like you didn't ... | |
| electrical baseboard heater problem | 9/30/2009 |
| Q: In one room, I have 4 electrical base board heaters controlled by 1 thermostat. 2 of the heaters ... A: Jack, You need to find out if your thermostat is "line voltage" or "low voltage" first. In other ... | |
| light strip | 9/29/2009 |
| Q: I bought a halogen 'strip' light at the flea market - the outside wire was cut but it looked new. ... A: Sharon, Ok, connect the 2 reds coming from the pucks to the other 2 reds. Connect the 2 black wires ... | |
| Between 220v and 110v | 9/28/2009 |
| Q: I live in USA and I went back to Egypt and I want to build a two story home in Cairo, and I need ... A: Maha, I think you have to look at the cost of shipping those items over there and then the cost of ... | |
| Wiring light sensor | 9/27/2009 |
| Q: I have an exterior pole light with a light sensor on it that some kids tore up, now I'm trying to ... A: Tony, The red from the panel should be connected to the black on the sensor, the red from the ... | |
| wrong voltage | 9/25/2009 |
| Q: Several of my electrical outlets and lights are working improperly. Many of my 120v outlets meter ... A: Ron, You have a common but potentially dangerous and serious condition called an "open neutral" ... | |
| GFI Tripping | 9/24/2009 |
| Q: I have recently added a GFI outlet mid-circuit. I needed to add a circuit and since its in a ... A: David, GFI's can trip for strange quirky reasons. Sometimes nothings really wrong but there is ... | |
| hot to touch service panel | 9/23/2009 |
| Q: recently bought a 2 story col'l. Breaker box is hot to touch. It's 100amp service & max'd out. Owner ... A: Deryl, You need to address this NOW. The box should not be hot to the touch. You probably have a ... | |
| who to hire? | 9/22/2009 |
| Q: I would like to know what is the difference between an electrical contractor and a certified ... A: Elsa, You want to hire a licensed electrical contractor. In other words some one who is in buisness ... | |
| acceptable service for a 1BR apt | 9/21/2009 |
| Q: my wife and i have recently purchased an 800sqft unit in a coop in brooklyn. we currently have an ... A: David, Lets assume the one electrician is right and you could upgrade the line to 50 amps which is ... | |
| MH fixture question | 9/20/2009 |
| Q: I recently purchased at auction, 2 cooper lighting shop light fixtures that hang from the ceiling. ... A: Thomas, The picture is blurred and I can't read it. I know they make MH lamps that will work in a ... | |
| Light loses power when bulb is plugged in | 9/19/2009 |
| Q: I am installing a new light into an existing ceiling box. The box is controlled by a dimmer switch ... A: Jim, Its possible it could be the dimmer. Take it out and just wire nut the two wires together and ... | |
| Light loses power when bulb is plugged in | 9/19/2009 |
| Q: I am installing a new light into an existing ceiling box. The box is controlled by a dimmer switch ... A: Jim, You just made the wrong connections in the ceiling box. You have the new fixture wired in ... | |
| double 30 am breaker | 9/17/2009 |
| Q: I have a double 20 amp Circuit breaker and I want to change to 2= 15 am Circuit breaker. how do ... A: Ken, We have to clarify the terminology so I know exactly what you mean. There is such a thing as a ... | |
| Single Pole Switch and GFCI Outlet Combination | 9/16/2009 |
| Q: I recently purchased a cooper Single Pole Switch and GFCI Outlet Combination Item #: 205614 ... A: Jerry, Your not wrong as long as you have the necessary wires in the box to attach to the switch on ... | |
| Replace fan/light switch to single switch | 9/13/2009 |
| Q: I have a ceiling fan with light fixture which can be seprately controlled by a verically sliding ... A: Narendra, You can still easily and cheaply maintain separate control of the fan and light at the ... | |
| remote control ceiling fan | 9/12/2009 |
| Q: When I went to install my new ceiling fan I found that it is designed/ sold/ packaged to be ... A: Joe, I understand, Ok what you could do maybe is ask the manufacturer if they will send you the ... | |
| Low Voltage Lighting | 9/9/2009 |
| Q: As part of my Eagle Scout project I am installing some low voltage lighting at my church. I am ... A: Will, HADCO (maker of low voltage lighting) makes a special connecter (LVC3) that is used to ... | |
| Wiriring basement breaker box to detached garage breaker box | 9/5/2009 |
| Q: I have the main power coming into the basement of my house and into a 200 amp breaker box.I then ... A: Joe, Yes you can add another 100 amp main though you don't want a 60 amp main in the garage you ... | |
| electrical odor? | 9/3/2009 |
| Q: We have a finished basement where my teenage sons daily use (and keep plugged in) Xbox, TV, an old ... A: Barb, I would check the wall receptacle's that are in the general area you notice the smell. You ... | |
| outlets that don't work | 9/2/2009 |
| Q: We have just purchased a 4 year old house in Tampa area, since we have moved in we have found that ... A: Sharon, The half of the outlet that does not work is controlled by a wall switch for that ... | |
| Boat to house power supply | 9/1/2009 |
| Q: I have a boat that can plug into a 30A power station at marinas. The boat is current at home and I ... A: Dave, Technically speaking it is not correct and I can't say its Ok to do it this way. However ... | |
| company no longer around | 8/31/2009 |
| Q: What can I do if a company is no longer around? I don't think Wadsworth is still makeing panels or ... A: KC, The hot side of the receptacle at some point came in contact with the side of the box and ... | |
| Water heater timer | 8/30/2009 |
| Q: I have a double pole single throw timer, the problem is that the wire coming form the box is single ... A: Cris, Yes, the only minor problem your going to have is the clock motor for the timer runs on 240 ... | |
| company no longer around | 8/29/2009 |
| Q: What can I do if a company is no longer around? I don't think Wadsworth is still makeing panels or ... A: KC, I always look at a customers wants or needs on a needs basis and what they can spend to try and ... | |
| Add a new electrical outlet | 8/28/2009 |
| Q: I have a wardrobe room and it does not have any electrical outlet. Can I tap into the electrical ... A: J, Ok you can do it. Now if its the common wall between the two rooms that has the existing outlet ... | |
| minimum service size for 201.1 amps | 8/28/2009 |
| Q: I am currently enrolled in a pre-apprentice electrician course.My final project is to draw a 2400 ... A: Bonnie, Your coming up with too high a number because your not figuring in your "demand factors". ... | |
| tripped breaker | 8/27/2009 |
| Q: I have 2 light post fixture in my yard that have been there for approximate. 10 + years. Recently, ... A: Rob, That is the right thing to do because it will at least tell you if there is something wrong ... | |
| upgrade 150A service to 200 A | 8/26/2009 |
| Q: I presently have a 150 amp service to my home, I have a detached garage that I would like to supply ... A: Ron, The fact that you have not tripped your 150 amp breaker with the loads you have is a good sign ... | |
| upgrade 150A service to 200 A | 8/25/2009 |
| Q: I presently have a 150 amp service to my home, I have a detached garage that I would like to supply ... A: Ron, You don't necessarily have to upgrade to 200 amps because you want to add a 60 amp line to the ... | |
| Splicing wiring | 8/24/2009 |
| Q: I recently started a bathroom remodel project and after pulling out a whirlpool bathtub found some ... A: Darrin, If it were me I would notch the cabinet VS splicing the wires. Besides being a lot more ... | |
| 30 Amp wiring for a Washer -Dryer | 8/24/2009 |
| Q: I just bought an electric washer dryer (off craigslist) and realized that there is no 3 prong outlet ... A: Kiran, Changing the existing line you have is not an option unfortunately. You SHOULD be able to ... | |
| Splicing wiring | 8/23/2009 |
| Q: I recently started a bathroom remodel project and after pulling out a whirlpool bathtub found some ... A: Darrin, Ok with a little more demo like you say it looks to me look your going to make it. I think ... | |
| detached garage subpanel | 8/22/2009 |
| Q: Bob. I've a bit of a puzzle regarding my friend's detached garage. Originally it had only an old ... A: Craig, If you mean its not the same brand breaker as the panel but it does fit and work, let me put ... | |
| Ceiling light fixture | 8/20/2009 |
| Q: I have installed a ceiling light fixture and it is not part of a ceiling fan. The outlet box has 4 ... A: Russell, All you need to do is disconnect the black wire in the box to the black wire on the ... | |
| Ceiling fan hook-up | 8/19/2009 |
| Q: Just bought a new house and a new ceiling fan. My question is I have four wires coming out of the ... A: JD, Its the coil shaped florescent bulbs. These particular lamps can not be dimmed with your ... | |
| too many kilowatts | 8/18/2009 |
| Q: I recently got my electric bill and it stated we used 1400 kilowatts in one month... this is more ... A: Teresa, Your dryer shouldn't be pulling that kind of amperage so something isn't right there. ... | |
| 2 Bulb Outdoor Flood | 8/17/2009 |
| Q: Checked wiring black to black and white to white. Lamps bulbs ok. Socket...center contact - how do ... A: Ira, I must ask this question and I don't mean to insult your intelligence but the bulb that is not ... | |
| Outside Outlets | 8/17/2009 |
| Q: My two outside outlets no longer work. I have checked every GFCI in the house and everything is ... A: David, Besides resetting them, if you haven't done it already, pull them out and check the "Load" ... | |
| Outside Outlets | 8/17/2009 |
| Q: My two outside outlets no longer work. I have checked every GFCI in the house and everything is ... A: David, Is it possible you may have overlooked a GFI receptacle some where or a receptacle it ... | |
| Ceiling fan hook-up | 8/17/2009 |
| Q: Just bought a new house and a new ceiling fan. My question is I have four wires coming out of the ... A: JD, Congratulations on your new home, probably the most exciting purchase any one ever makes. Ok ... | |
| 2 Bulb Outdoor Flood | 8/16/2009 |
| Q: Checked wiring black to black and white to white. Lamps bulbs ok. Socket...center contact - how do ... A: Ira, With a voltage tester put one prod of the tester to the center contact and the other prod ... | |
| Electrical panel making intermittent buzzing | 8/15/2009 |
| Q: Lately, my electrical panel has been making sporatic buzzing noises, very short in duration (maybe 1 ... A: Charrie, Breakers do sometimes make the buzzing sound you describe usually for short duration while ... | |
| Street light | 8/15/2009 |
| Q: I live in an manufactured home.I want to set up a street light in my back yard. What is the best way ... A: Chad, Digging is the best way or you could run a cable over head from your home to the pole which ... | |
| Main House Panel | 8/14/2009 |
| Q: According to new 2009 NEC rules, can you install the main house load center panel facing a enclose ... A: Wayne, When you say "enclosed", how enclosed is it and where is the panel in relation to what ever ... | |
| Adding 220 | 8/14/2009 |
| Q: After doing quite a bit of small electrical jobs around the house, I am finally starting to get ... A: KC, Take stock of what you have in the panel to get an idea of your loads. Make a list of all the ... | |
| electrical | 8/14/2009 |
| Q: I am preaty good at wiring(expert by no means)but i know people who have rather high bills. It ... A: John, OK 240 volt loads (2 pole breakers) are already perfectly balanced so there is no point in ... | |
| grounding home wiring | 8/13/2009 |
| Q: Panel is 200amp. New circuits are 12/2 w/ground. Existing wiring #12 is w/o ground. Can a ground ... A: Ron, Your very welcome, Yes you could. Also I don't know if you have the computers plugged into ... | |
| grounding home wiring | 8/13/2009 |
| Q: Panel is 200amp. New circuits are 12/2 w/ground. Existing wiring #12 is w/o ground. Can a ground ... A: Ron, If your existing wiring cable w/o ground has a metal outer covering your receptacles are ... | |
| electrical | 8/13/2009 |
| Q: I am preaty good at wiring(expert by no means)but i know people who have rather high bills. It ... A: John, The utility will not take kindly to any one trying to make any sort of adjustment to their ... | |
| disconnect one 3-way switch and use for another circuit | 8/12/2009 |
| Q: I have the outside lights connected to two switches (3-way) one in living room Sw#1 and another in ... A: Dev, Ok now thats a horse of a different color. Ideally you need a steady feed of 120 volts in this ... | |
| disconnect one 3-way switch and use for another circuit | 8/12/2009 |
| Q: I have the outside lights connected to two switches (3-way) one in living room Sw#1 and another in ... A: Dev, It would be far easier to leave the 3 way system alone and just install a new swiitch from ... | |
| adding a switch to existing circuit | 8/11/2009 |
| Q: . I asked my husband this.. but he was talking before I got finished.. so I thought you might help ... A: A wall switch could still be added with out effecting anything else on that circuit but not nearly ... | |
| Sub-panel | 8/10/2009 |
| Q: I am planning to pull a 100-amp subpanel to a detached building. I have plenty of "play" in the ... A: Keith, Given the length of your run and the ability to terminate a (1/0 copper THHN) wire under a ... | |
| electrical short? | 8/10/2009 |
| Q: As new homeowners my husband removed an old ceiling fan and installed the new one in our livingroom. ... A: Jackie, The best thing to do here is open the canopy completely exposing all the wires and take a ... | |
| Basic 240v for compressor | 8/9/2009 |
| Q: I've been given an air compressor that requires a 240v receptacle but unfortunately don't have one ... A: Jason, Your on the right track with the material and you would need a 250 volt 20 amp receptacle ... | |
| Problem with electrical socket | 8/9/2009 |
| Q: I just turned a light in my bedroom off then on again and the nearest electrical socket started to ... A: Marianne, You don't need to rewire the place because of this particular incident but definitely ... | |
| GFCIs needed in older home... | 8/8/2009 |
| Q: Bob, I have just had a safety inspection done on a house I recently purchased and the results state ... A: Jacob, You don't have to nor want to put your lights on a GFI circuit because if it trips it could ... | |
| breakers tripping | 8/6/2009 |
| Q: I've had several circuits trip, some repeatedly, over the last couple of days. Heat pump, microwave, ... A: Chris, I'm suspecting it may be the voltage coming into your house. When it gets hot like that and ... | |
| GFI | 8/5/2009 |
| Q: Our house was built in 1974 in NJ. House is sold but buyer wants us to pay for GFI installation. ... A: Debbie, I had customers just last week in Woodcliff Lake who are selling thier home and the buyer ... | |
| Panel Breaker | 8/4/2009 |
| Q: I'm in a bit of a silly bind, really hope you can help me! I'm pretty much a novice so bear with me. ... A: Sure I think we can do something for you and your Great Uncle, and its great your helping him out ... | |
| Open Ground | 8/2/2009 |
| Q: I purchased a home that has a detached garage. The previous owners told me that the power never ... A: Ok, it sounds like you have BX cable which explains why there is no bare ground wire. The outer ... | |
| cord from appliance getting warm | 8/2/2009 |
| Q: we have a window air conditioner. After running it for several hours the plug and the wall around ... A: Robin, Your very welcome, the "feed back" like yours when you get it makes it rewarding. You ... | |
| cord from appliance getting warm | 8/2/2009 |
| Q: we have a window air conditioner. After running it for several hours the plug and the wall around ... A: Robin, You did the right thing but check the plug on the AC unit. It may have sustained damage from ... | |
| wiring heat pump | 8/2/2009 |
| Q: I am having a Lennox air handler [cbx27uh] and a Lennox heat pump [14hpx] 2 ton. What size wire from ... A: Lawrence, The information you need is on the heat pump. It will say what the minimum circuit ... | |
| Open Ground | 8/2/2009 |
| Q: I purchased a home that has a detached garage. The previous owners told me that the power never ... A: Pixanna, Please describe the cables that are in the box. Do they have plastic outer covers on the ... | |
| hard wired hanging light to plug in | 8/1/2009 |
| Q: I have a hanging tiffany lamp that i want to just plug in to an outlet as opposed to hardwiring into ... A: Jill, Yes you could and here's how you can do it. They make what are called "swag kits". I'm almost ... | |
| single power outlets | 8/1/2009 |
| Q: I am trying to find information on adding to a new home, in the kitchen, hardwired power plugs. I ... A: Karen, Please elaborate on your situation. You say you have a new home so its not clear to me why ... | |
| Electrical problems | 8/1/2009 |
| Q: My television, lights, and fan dimmed then came back on yesterday. Afterward, the A/C thermostat ... A: Kate, Yes, you have what is called an "open neutral" condition which destablizes the voltage coming ... | |
| ceiling fan/lights get very very hot !! | 7/31/2009 |
| Q: My ceiling fan in my dining room gets very -very hot after I turn on the lights that come with the ... A: Sue, Some thing has definitely gone wrong with that fan. Don't use it or the lights till you ... | |
| Dishwasher Electrical Install | 7/31/2009 |
| Q: How do I connect my dishwasher to my circuit breaker panel. Pretend that I am starting from scratch ... A: Ok Rick lets play pretend. You are going to run 12-2 romex from the dishwasher to the panel. You ... | |
| ceiling fan/lights get very very hot !! | 7/31/2009 |
| Q: My ceiling fan in my dining room gets very -very hot after I turn on the lights that come with the ... A: Sue, Give me a little insight to your situation. Did it just start doing this. Is this a new fan. ... | |
| meter base | 7/30/2009 |
| Q: but I'm not sure if I was completely clear. Let me try again. Can I use the meter base that is ... A: Steve, Yes you probably can. What I wanted you to do was check the size of the existing meter base. ... | |
| Splicing into current wiring | 7/29/2009 |
| Q: 1. I want to install a new ceiling fan where there is not a fixture. 2. I have easy access to the ... A: Grady, It will be far more difficult for you to cut the existing cable and splice into it. You have ... | |
| Adding a 240V branch for a/c | 7/29/2009 |
| Q: I am an avid DIYer, who has considerable electronic experience and knowledge. I also have quite a ... A: Phil, What size cable you will run depends upon the specification label on the outside unit but ... | |
| Reversible Whole House Fan | 7/28/2009 |
| Q: I'm moving into a tri-level house on the hillside that does not have an attic. Because hot air ... A: John, I don't know how big your house is but this particular fan a 36 incher is designed to move ... | |
| replacing a wall plug | 7/27/2009 |
| Q: I have a home thats around 30 yrs old. I can replace simple switches and plugs. My one problem is i ... A: Rose, You can absolutely do that, its not a problem at all and it solves your problem quickly and ... | |
| detached garage subpanel | 7/27/2009 |
| Q: Bob. I've a bit of a puzzle regarding my friend's detached garage. Originally it had only an old ... A: Craig, Ok its pretty simple and straight forward. What he can do is remove the two breakers for the ... | |
| Fuse keeps blowing | 7/27/2009 |
| Q: Bob ~ My mom tells me she has to keep changing one of the fuses in her home fusebox every two days ... A: Is it possible there are other kitchen counter receptacles on that same circuit that are being used ... | |
| voltage dip | 7/26/2009 |
| Q: My inlaws home in California is 40+ years old. We have lights dimming all through the house whenever ... A: TJ, Changing all the switches and receptacles has nothing to do with solving this problem where ... | |
| entrance service mobile home | 7/26/2009 |
| Q: a week ago i lost half of the main its 100amp service no breakers were tripped the meter has ... A: Eric, I don't blame you, I think Mother Nature is having hot flashes or something, anyway if you ... | |
| Turning 2 3-way switches into 2 way switches | 7/25/2009 |
| Q: I currently have a setup where I have two 3-way switches wired up to control 2 separate lights (I ... A: Andrew, There is no easy way to do this unfortunately. A 3 way system can be wire'd many different ... | |
| use of existing meter base | 7/25/2009 |
| Q: I am upgrading my Federal Pacific 150 amp panel to a different make 200 amp panel. The meter was ... A: Steve, Great idea. As long as you have a 200 amp meter base and 200 amp service entrance wiring ... | |
| does main breakers go bad? | 7/25/2009 |
| Q: "Is the breaker is bad? No changes in the home for 6 years. breaker is getting hot and sometimes ... A: Jeff, Yes they can and DO go bad. The breaker getting HOT to the touch and begining to trip is a ... | |
| replacing 100 amp main breakers | 7/24/2009 |
| Q: Can I replace 100 amp pushmatic main breakers with a different type that is more available? A: Robert, Unfortunately you can't, the pushmatic breaker is a unique design that will not except any ... | |
| 100 AMP Service - Adequate? | 7/24/2009 |
| Q: Bob, I'm a homeowner in Philadelphia, PA, and would like to do a load calculation to determine if I ... A: Steve, Suffice it to say Daniels not an electrician and I'll just leave it right there. What I ... | |
| shockinsink | 7/24/2009 |
| Q: I installed a small sink crock in a basement to pump up to the drain. THe receptacle I tapped off in ... A: Bob, If your saying your pump has a grounded plug (3 prong) and your running it with out it being ... | |
| Moving a 220v line. | 7/23/2009 |
| Q: I am moving my washer/dryer. Rather than run a new line from the breaker box, can I run a new line ... A: Tom, If this is a separate 20 amp circuit with nothing else on it but the washer and dryer you can ... | |
| flickering lights and voltage spikes | 7/23/2009 |
| Q: I have an extensive home theater set up. The Monster Power control center controls all plugs. It ... A: Aaron, The symptons you describe may indicate an "open neutral" or partially "open neutral" which ... | |
| license to run conduit | 7/23/2009 |
| Q: Would you happen to know if it is the law in Connecticut to have a license to run conduit? ANSWER: ... A: Fran, Ok if this is for YOUR home thats a different story. I believe Connecticut like NJ and MA ... | |
| license to run conduit | 7/22/2009 |
| Q: Would you happen to know if it is the law in Connecticut to have a license to run conduit? A: Fran, It depends what your installing it for. You could be using it for "low voltage" landscape ... | |
| breaker box placement | 7/21/2009 |
| Q: I live in Texas and have an older home (circa 1920's). I'm upgrading all the wiring including the ... A: Ann, The National Electrical Code does not permit a panel to be located in a closet but that ... | |
| Brief flicker - new pendant light installation | 7/20/2009 |
| Q: I recently installed a new pendant light (2 "A" type 75W incandescent bulbs) to replace an older one ... A: Rob, I would try 2 new A lamps in the event there is something going on with the filament in either ... | |
| wondering if wires shorted | 7/19/2009 |
| Q: I took out an outlet and noticed the hot wire either shorted or had the insulation cut back very ... A: KC, The black wire that is skinned back isn't that way from shorting out and why it was done is a ... | |
| breakers | 7/18/2009 |
| Q: one side of my panel is dead. i have traced back and am getting 120 through one side and only 54 ... A: Robert, Its most likely a connection problem on your Utilitys end though it could be a problem in ... | |
| Wire a floor standing lamp with a switch. | 7/18/2009 |
| Q: I took apart and old floor standing lamp to move from one location to another. I did not label the ... A: Gary, Ok the first thing you need to do is take a look at the wires in the lamp. If you take your ... | |
| sub panel ground | 7/17/2009 |
| Q: I have a 50amp sub panel fed by 3 #6 (2 hot and 1 neutral). The sub panel is 10" away from main ... A: John, Your going to have a tight fit getting those wires in 3/4" so use plenty of pulling compound ... | |
| GFI half-hot outlet | 7/17/2009 |
| Q: I need some help. I am redoing my kitchen and underneath the sink I would like a half hot (switched ... A: Kevin, You don't have to put either of those items on GFI protection unless you want to for some ... | |
| Sub panel upgrade | 7/16/2009 |
| Q: I own a 3 flat building. The main electrical distribution panel is 400 amps fused. The 3 subs are 1 ... A: Chris, I need to know what you have running from the meter to the sub panel you want to change.Its ... | |
| Sub panel upgrade | 7/16/2009 |
| Q: I own a 3 flat building. The main electrical distribution panel is 400 amps fused. The 3 subs are 1 ... A: Chris, If you have 3/0 copper you can up grade to 200 amps if you wanted to, so no problem going ... | |
| high electric bill | 7/15/2009 |
| Q: the electric bill for my niece is around 500 to600 a month they have 10acres avg. house no air cond. ... A: David, I can only suggest that your niece closely monitor what she's using and how long she's using ... | |
| Open Hot | 7/15/2009 |
| Q: I own a 5 year old home in Bossier City LA. It was new construction and is in the $300k range, so ... A: Thomas, First I would advise you to go back and reuse the line that was installed for the dish ... | |
| Diming Lights | 7/15/2009 |
| Q: I installed a 2.5 ton lennox condenser and air handler. The data plate on the condenser reads 1PH, ... A: Ok Pete, you have plenty of beef there, again even with a 200 amp service you can still notice a ... | |
| Diming Lights | 7/15/2009 |
| Q: I installed a 2.5 ton lennox condenser and air handler. The data plate on the condenser reads 1PH, ... A: Pete, The size of the cable's you ran are fine. Technically the 12-2 should have a 20 amp breaker ... | |
| Dryer Wiring | 7/14/2009 |
| Q: I recently replaced a section of dryer (220) wire in an older home that runs to a three-prong dryer ... A: John, No that would not be the problem. You could further test the dryer by putting a volt ohm ... | |
| self contained switches | 7/14/2009 |
| Q: I have a park model mobile home.I want to install a dimmer The existing switch is self ... A: Mitch, I have not seen this type of set up but the way you can handle it is by using a surface ... | |
| GFIC | 7/14/2009 |
| Q: Does a Gfic have some warmth to the outlet, the receptacle appears warmer than air temp? A: Melinda, There could be a connection issue going on inside of it which could cause some heat build ... | |
| high electric bill | 7/13/2009 |
| Q: the electric bill for my niece is around 500 to600 a month they have 10acres avg. house no air cond. ... A: David, How long has she lived there ? is this something new that just started ? how many square ... | |
| Jacuzzi GFI Wiring | 7/13/2009 |
| Q: I think I know the answer to this question, but here it goes anyway. I am wiring in my Jacuzzi and ... A: Patrick, Your connections at the panel are correct. Check your disconnect by the jacuzzi. If the ... | |
| outdoor lighting/sensor control | 7/12/2009 |
| Q: I have two light fixtures on either side of my garage. Can I have one light with a motion sensor ... A: Bob, The built in motion sensor fixture's that I have seen and hooked up have not had an extra wire ... | |
| bedroom lights and receptacles | 7/12/2009 |
| Q: All my bedroom lights and receptacles are blown. No breakers or reset buttons are found. please tell ... A: Kevin, The first thing to check again are the breakers. They can appear to be OK but unless you ... | |
| Moving single pole switch | 7/11/2009 |
| Q: I am moving a single pole switch from one wall to another--going up the wall, across the cavity in ... A: Mark, The way the switch is currently wired is not acceptable code wise. I think your saying that ... | |
| Electrical wiring | 7/11/2009 |
| Q: I have a generator that has an NEMA L14-30 female receptacle. The paper work on the generator states ... A: Chris, The right thing to do here with out jury rigging something is to install the correct ... | |
| Light fixture connection | 7/11/2009 |
| Q: I am changing a bathroom light fixture. The switch for the fixture has 2 white wires 1 black wire ... A: Joe, Based on what you've told me here's what you need to do: Connect the 2 black wires from the ... | |
| Moving single pole switch | 7/10/2009 |
| Q: I am moving a single pole switch from one wall to another--going up the wall, across the cavity in ... A: Mark, If I'm reading you correctly you have power in the ceiling box and a two wire cable coming ... | |
| Dryer Wiring | 7/10/2009 |
| Q: I recently replaced a section of dryer (220) wire in an older home that runs to a three-prong dryer ... A: John, Take your voltage tester and measure from each "hot" slot on the dryer receptacle to the ... | |
| eletrical short | 7/10/2009 |
| Q: Master bed room and 1st bed room power goes out at the same time. i have check the breaker and it is ... A: Nick, OK it sounds like you have an "open neutral"(wite wire) which means you still have power on ... | |
| remote panel | 7/9/2009 |
| Q: We are finishing our basement and need to install a remote panel in the basement because the service ... A: Jerry, I recomend a 100 amp 20 circuit main lug panel which is a full size panel. There are ... | |
| changing a 220 volt outlet to a 110volt outlet | 7/8/2009 |
| Q: I need to change a 220volt outlet to a 110volt outlet at the wall plug for an air conditioner I am a ... A: David, You will remove the 2 pole breaker which SHOULD have a black and white wire connected to it. ... | |
| Motion Detecter Broken | 7/7/2009 |
| Q: I have a motion detector that is not on a switch. It was working fine, just great, in fact too ... A: Ian, Since you covered the motion sensor to effectively stop it from operating the light, I'm ... | |
| home wiring, fan to light | 7/7/2009 |
| Q: Removed ceiling fan, want to replace with pendant light. There are red, white, black and ground ... A: Bob, Connect the black wire in the ceiling box to the black on the fixture and connect the white ... | |
| hello | 7/3/2009 |
| Q: Greets sir Why does a car battery loose its power if the engine is not turned on for too long? How ... A: The type of battery that is in a car is desigined for short bursts of high amps to start the car and ... | |
| new 200 amp service box | 7/2/2009 |
| Q: I Have under ground wire to the house with 2 ot wire, I bought a 200 amp load center and new 4 0t ... A: Then you have a problem upgrading to 200 amps unless those wires are removed and replaced with ... | |
| new 200 amp service box | 7/2/2009 |
| Q: I Have under ground wire to the house with 2 ot wire, I bought a 200 amp load center and new 4 0t ... A: Mark, I don't know if you have copper or aluminum wires. If you have copper its no problem, you can ... | |
| mobilehome/aluminum wire nightmares | 7/1/2009 |
| Q: i purchased a mobilehome a couple years ago.i had never heard of aluminum wiring or that it was ... A: Deanna, You certainly did the right thing for the machines in your make shift shop because those ... | |
| wiring issue | 6/30/2009 |
| Q: I have been rehabing a barn on my property and decided the next step was to change out the poor ... A: Jesse, It does sound like you have a break underground but just to be certain of that, free the ... | |
| Subpanel for Dock and Boat Lift | 6/29/2009 |
| Q: I am self-installing a subpanel for a boat dock and lift. I am comfortable with basic sub-panel ... A: Dave, Your not missing anything. What you have there is a very common situation well within ... | |
| Changing switches in mobile home | 6/29/2009 |
| Q: I own a mobile home and just recently the back porch. light stopped working. The last time one ... A: Edgar, Your giving me conflicting and confusing information. When you say a "double switch" do you ... | |
| Electrical code question: does the code require neutrals in wall switch boxes? | 6/29/2009 |
| Q: I tried reading NFPA-70, 2005 edition to answer this, but I found it difficult to understand. My ... A: Paul, The NEC does not require a neutral to be installed to a switch outlet. However if this is ... | |
| light timer | 6/28/2009 |
| Q: My outside lights are currently switched on by means of a 'day-night' switch. ie when the sun goes ... A: Billy, Yes this can be done and how you actually wire it depends upon the device you currently have ... | |
| light switch plug combo | 6/27/2009 |
| Q: I am trying to install a light switch plug combo. The only wires are a black one and a white one. ... A: Bill, I'm assuming you had just a switch before and now you want to add the combo ... | |
| 2 speed fan wiring | 6/27/2009 |
| Q: I have a 2 speed evaporative swamp cooler. When I plug the pump in, the circuit breaker trips. I ... A: Kevin, It may not be the pump but the circuit your trying to run it on. I don't know how large ... | |
| lights and wall sockets | 6/26/2009 |
| Q: How can lights,wall sockets and the dishwasher not work without the breakers not switching off? The ... A: Diane, It sounds like you may have lost one of the main power legs coming into your home which can ... | |
| Dimmer noise | 6/26/2009 |
| Q: I am a electrician by trade @ a public school, I do some work for staff off hours. I recently wired ... A: James, Yes this is a common problem with electronic dimmers causing the filaments to vibrate and ... | |
| Generator idle control switch | 6/25/2009 |
| Q: I have goggled and researched and compared but no luck so here i am. I have a Black Max powered by ... A: Andy, I would address this problem with the manufacturer of the generator. They should be able to ... | |
| 2 AWG wire in 150 amp main | 6/25/2009 |
| Q: We are looking to purchase a home in Indiana, and our inspection report turned up these comments: ... A: Charlie, First of all the Home inspector is correct in what he is saying regarding the size of the ... | |
| lighting | 6/24/2009 |
| Q: i just redid my room, and i have tube lighting in there, it worked just fine before, but not the ... A: OK lets back up a little, what were the circumstances leading up to the switch not working and I'm ... | |
| Loud 'snap' or 'crack heard. | 6/24/2009 |
| Q: Every so often I hear a loud crack (or snap), which happens even at midnight. About every three ... A: I think you'll be fine but now that you mention this, my girlfriend had the exact same problem with ... | |
| Installing a double switch | 6/24/2009 |
| Q: I am installing a ceiling fan in a room in my house. The house is new construction (bought Nov. ... A: Patrick, Using a combination switch over switch will only let you turn the light on and off and ... | |
| Outlet Receptacle | 6/23/2009 |
| Q: Have a receptacle wall plug in the kitchen used by a 12.7 amp microwave and a 15 amp tea kettle. ... A: Larry, Your very welcome, OK you can run the two 12-2's and there are advantages to doing it that ... | |
| New Shop | 6/23/2009 |
| Q: My new shop is approx. 110 ft. from my house, but perhaps more importantly, about 150 ft. from my ... A: Mike, If your going to dig a trench I would install 2" PVC from the service to the shop which ... | |
| Outlet Receptacle | 6/23/2009 |
| Q: Have a receptacle wall plug in the kitchen used by a 12.7 amp microwave and a 15 amp tea kettle. ... A: Larry, They do not and you can't use a 20 amp receptacle. Its not about risk its about whats legal ... | |
| Electrical problem | 6/22/2009 |
| Q: My name is Jason Taylor,I live in Knoxville,Tn.I have been an Hvac service technician for 10 ... A: Jason, First check that all the white wires in the main panel are tight, then check again for ... | |
| 6 Wire Outlet Replacement | 6/22/2009 |
| Q: I am trying to replace a 'normal' outlet (2 plugs) with a new outlet that only has one plug. The ... A: Sidney, Very simple, you will connect all 3 blacks together then add a 4th black wire to this group ... | |
| wiring a wall sconse from a light switch | 6/21/2009 |
| Q: we have a very old house complete with old wiring. we are putting a wall sconce above a light ... A: Kathy, The new wall sconce is in "series" with the overhead light which is why they are both dim. ... | |
| electrical outlet | 6/21/2009 |
| Q: I have an electrical outlet that has stopped working. It still has 120 on the hot side when tested ... A: Peter, The neutral (white wire) has developed a bad connection at some point. If it is the only ... | |
| replacing my exisiting timer | 6/20/2009 |
| Q: I have a pair of Intermatic timers, which control the front light and the rear pool lights. The pool ... A: I think we can get you back on track. First determine which of the two cables is your "feed" with a ... | |
| grounding existing slab | 6/20/2009 |
| Q: We have a 20X20 outdoor covered pavillion, we want to run electric from the house to the pavillion ... A: Edward, Do you know there is rebar in the existing slab ? Obviously if there is none you don't ... | |
| Electrical wiring and arcing. | 6/20/2009 |
| Q: Kitchen light - single switch. When light was turned on the wiring arc'd at the light. CB did not ... A: Harry, Remove the single black wire you have connected to all the white wires. Thats your problem. ... | |
| 240V Heater Tape | 6/19/2009 |
| Q: I have a submersible well pump that is wired with 2 wire- 240V. I would like to add a heater tape ... A: Ron, No problem, Ok you will "tap" the line side of the pressure switch in the pump house since ... | |
| Service to new shop. | 6/19/2009 |
| Q: I just completed a new workshop 21'x38'x14H. I have a 200A service at the house with 100A breaker ... A: Lex, That bar has an important function because it ties the two neutral terminal bars on the left ... | |
| Telephone Jack Lock | 6/19/2009 |
| Q: I need a lock for a telephone jack, so that others will not have access to my phone line. I searched ... A: Reuven, The easiest way would be to "hard wire" your connection, in other words run the wire from ... | |
| 380 volts applied to a 240 volt main | 6/19/2009 |
| Q: I'm working as an electrician in Afghanistan, and the contractor I work for insists that we install ... A: James, As a matter of fact its a flagrant violation and an extremely dangerous one. You have very ... | |
| 5th wheel | 6/19/2009 |
| Q: Our 5th wheel is in a back yard and we want to run the air conditioner...it is a heavy three prong ... A: Shannon, We need to make sure the AC unit in the back is definitely 240 volt not 120 volt. It is ... | |
| Loud 'snap' or 'crack heard. | 6/18/2009 |
| Q: Every so often I hear a loud crack (or snap), which happens even at midnight. About every three ... A: That sounds like a good idea to me and as a matter of fact now that I'm thinking about this what you ... | |
| 240V appliances don't work and rest of house has voltage problems | 6/18/2009 |
| Q: We are having some problems with the stability of our electricity. It started out as slight ... A: Angel, What your describing is a problem that is either in your main breaker or its on the utilitys ... | |
| Loud 'snap' or 'crack heard. | 6/18/2009 |
| Q: Every so often I hear a loud crack (or snap), which happens even at midnight. About every three ... A: I don't think its the circuit breaker because a sound that loud coming from a circuit breaker would ... | |
| Loud 'snap' or 'crack heard. | 6/18/2009 |
| Q: Every so often I hear a loud crack (or snap), which happens even at midnight. About every three ... A: Corinne, When you hear it can you associate it with any thing in your house or apartment and can ... | |
| 240V Heater Tape | 6/18/2009 |
| Q: I have a submersible well pump that is wired with 2 wire- 240V. I would like to add a heater tape ... A: Ron, They do make 240 volt heat tape for pipes so no neutral would be needed. I'm assuming since ... | |
| 5th wheel | 6/18/2009 |
| Q: Our 5th wheel is in a back yard and we want to run the air conditioner...it is a heavy three prong ... A: Shannon, If you look closely at the plug there is a number on it like 5-30P, let me know exactly ... | |
| HVAC | 6/17/2009 |
| Q: I replaced my fuel oil furnace with a wood furnace and i need some info on how to hook up the ... A: OK if you have a "line voltage" limit switch that turns the blower on when the plenum chamber gets ... | |
| HVAC | 6/17/2009 |
| Q: I replaced my fuel oil furnace with a wood furnace and i need some info on how to hook up the ... A: Branden, we have some missing pieces to your puzzle. Were there separate thermostats for the AC and ... | |
| 30 amp rv plug | 6/17/2009 |
| Q: What is the correct hookup (hot leg) on a 30 amp rv plug. Please specify plug of receptital and the ... A: Ok, your saying the male plug but the number your giving is for the female plug so I'm going to give ... | |
| sub-panel to sub-panel? | 6/16/2009 |
| Q: I have an in-ground pool. The pad has a sub-panel with a 100 amp main breaker. There are 3 wires ... A: Ok Tom, Lets put it this way, if you have a 100 amp main breaker for the panel by the pool and you ... | |
| sub-panel to sub-panel? | 6/16/2009 |
| Q: I have an in-ground pool. The pad has a sub-panel with a 100 amp main breaker. There are 3 wires ... A: Tom, 4. Do you have enough information to answer my questions? What type of conduit (HW, EMT or ... | |
| non-working outlets | 6/15/2009 |
| Q: i plugged an electric air pump in, like many times before. the outlet sparked, and blew 3 fuses. ... A: Tera, Start by checking the receptacle you plug the compressor into. It may be shot from repeated ... | |
| ceiling fan | 6/14/2009 |
| Q: I am trying to install a ceiling fan, but the fan has three wires, but the ceiling has four: one ... A: Hal, The bare wire is your ground. You will connect white of the fan to white in the box, black of ... | |
| Power is out but the breaker is not triggered and I do not have the GFCI? | 6/14/2009 |
| Q: I have house built in 1953. We have been having power surges for about a week and last night the ... A: Nicole, I know you said you checked the breakers but check them again. Sometimes a breaker can be ... | |
| 3-10 wiring cable for hot tub insulation place to get lowest pricing | 6/14/2009 |
| Q: where to purchase in columbus, ohio A: Revenda, I think your refering to 10-3 Romex cable. The first number refers to the "gauge" of the ... | |
| Wierd Wiring | 6/13/2009 |
| Q: I am remodeling contractor and pretty savy on most wiring but my sister in law just bought house ... A: Robert, What your describing doesn't sound right. Its possible this could be some sort of home made ... | |
| forgot the picture | 6/12/2009 |
| Q: Am in the process of trying to put a ceiling light in what was a previously closed-off box in the ... A: Ok Chris those appear to be alarm wires to me , as a matter of fact they are probably for a smoke ... | |
| Installing Indoor Wall Timer | 6/11/2009 |
| Q: Ok, I'm installing an Intermatic EJ500 wall switch timer for a single switch. When I removed the ... A: Mike, Take the timer out and disconnect it completely so yourt starting from scratch. The two black ... | |
| electric switch for submersible pump | 6/10/2009 |
| Q: Recently the water pressure in my parents 46 year old house stopped sending working and no water was ... A: Vickie, It sounds like the well pump motor might be defective for whatever reason. You said you ... | |
| 200 amp service | 6/8/2009 |
| Q: I will try to make this as simple as possible. I am building a house new construction and will be ... A: Bryan, I need to know if you have a copper water pipe coming into your house or if its plastic and ... | |
| gfci recpticle | 6/7/2009 |
| Q: I have 2 gfci's 1 in each bathroom the main gfci works good but the one in the other bathroom only ... A: Ok your neutral (white wire) connection is compromised some where, probably at the previous up ... | |
| Conduit Wiring | 6/6/2009 |
| Q: I'm in the process of wiring a shop that I intend to expand in the future. The current structure is ... A: Your very welcome Tom, 1) yes you can run 1 ground wire for every 2-110V circuits in a single phase ... | |
| gfci recpticle | 6/6/2009 |
| Q: I have 2 gfci's 1 in each bathroom the main gfci works good but the one in the other bathroom only ... A: Charlie, Pull out the GFI your only getting 100 volts on and put the tester directly on the ... | |
| Ceiling light installation | 6/5/2009 |
| Q: I have a shed I would like to add a ceiling light. I have run a line from an outlet to the light ... A: Jay, If you used a plastic box and a pullchain fixture there is no place or need to connect the ... | |
| greenhouse heater requires 220/240 volt outlet | 6/4/2009 |
| Q: I am researching heater models to use in a medium-sized greenhouse in Wyoming where winter temps dip ... A: I think a 4000 watt heater would keep your plants nice and toasty in a small green house the size ... | |
| Conduit Wiring | 6/4/2009 |
| Q: I'm in the process of wiring a shop that I intend to expand in the future. The current structure is ... A: Tom, 1) one ground wire for each of the 3 - 220V circuits and if this is single phase wiring we're ... | |
| house voltage | 6/2/2009 |
| Q: ..I am rather confused about the power in a house we are purchasing. The house is about 2900 SF and ... A: Kimberly, If this house was built in 1974 it should have at least a 100 amp service with 120 / 240 ... | |
| possible short in light fixture? | 6/1/2009 |
| Q: There is a 3-switch control that sparked when I turned on the light fixture over my bathroom mirror ... A: Ok Jane from what you've described it sounds like its the switch itself and changing it will solve ... | |
| lighnting grounding rod for a well pump? | 5/31/2009 |
| Q: My mother-in-law is trying to buy a house and has had an inspection done, the inspector wrote in the ... A: Ron, In all my 38 years I've never heard of it either but here's what you can do. Call the building ... | |
| wiring a compressor | 5/30/2009 |
| Q: i have an igersoll rand 242 5n compressor im changing the motor from 3 phase to 5hp 230v 1 ... A: Daniel, You must have a pressure switch other wise the compressor could keep pumping till it blows ... | |
| Electrice fireplace above tub | 5/29/2009 |
| Q: I've asked this question before but no one could answer it. Is it compliant to most residential ... A: Fleet, Probably not. Unless this fireplace is at least 5 feet away from the tub and GFI protected. ... | |
| converting 200 amp main breaker to 100 amp main breaker | 5/28/2009 |
| Q: When I purchased this house there was a 200 amp 4 wire feed (4/0) to a main panel. There was ... A: Erin, 1) Yes and you can either leave the breaker there and turn it off or remove it and blank the ... | |
| starting up on my own/ | 5/27/2009 |
| Q: i am a journeyman electrician and i have been for 8 our 9 years now working for another company..My ... A: Eric, You would have to check with your states licensing board on that point but I don't beleive ... | |
| Installing new wiring in old 1931 bungalow | 5/26/2009 |
| Q: I live in an old 1931 brick bungalow. I'm replacing the old knob and tube wiring. I am putting in ... A: Barbara, I'm going to give you a closely guarded trade secret of mine as to how I drill up safely ... | |
| Subpanel for Dock and Boat Lift | 5/24/2009 |
| Q: I am self-installing a subpanel for a boat dock and lift. I am comfortable with basic sub-panel ... A: Dave, 1) You don't need the 50 amp GFI since you have the other GFI breakers down stream in the sub ... | |
| aluminum to copper butt splices | 5/23/2009 |
| Q: Bob, I saw your response to another question in 2004 regarding the use of a 12 or 14 awg butt ... A: Al, 1. Stranded wire is very flexible and much easier to put away in the box than solid wire so I ... | |
| aluminum to copper butt splices | 5/23/2009 |
| Q: Bob, I saw your response to another question in 2004 regarding the use of a 12 or 14 awg butt ... A: Al, Even though you have aluminum wiring you can still make it safe using the method you describe. ... | |
| dimmer switch | 3/5/2009 |
| Q: I just installed a light fixture. It's an old fixture and the fixture wire was just a plain two ... A: Peter, The dimmer could be damaged for what ever reason, try a new one and go from there. There is ... | |
| Breaker Box with no main breaker | 3/4/2009 |
| Q: Some friends and I have a hunting property that has a "camp" area with power. We keep our RV's ... A: Jason, As long as there are no more than 6 circuit breakers in the panel it is not only safe but ... | |
| 208v 175 watt mercury outdoor security lights | 12/4/2008 |
| Q: I have three mercury lights installed over the enbtrance of a carwash. All on the same breaker, ... A: Brian, I would replace the bulb first and see what happens, if it still flickers then its not the ... | |
| weird wiring | 12/2/2008 |
| Q: This outlet is in my bathroom. I have a nightlight plugged into this out let just to let me know ... A: Lindsey, you most likely have a loose connection in another receptacle that is close to the one in ... | |
| GFI outlet | 11/25/2008 |
| Q: I have an old house and currently I have an outlet and a switch in the bathroom. I tried to replace ... A: Debbie, It sounds like you have it right but check to make sure that the black and white wires from ... | |
| Fixture Tripping Circuit Breaker | 8/4/2008 |
| Q: The wife is tired of no lights, so I need your help! We recently moved into a 2-year-old home, and ... A: Cody, Keeping the wife happy as you already know is extremely important so lets see what we can ... | |
| FOR NEW RECEPTACLE | 8/3/2008 |
| Q: I WANT TO ADD A NEW RECEPTACLE TO THE LIVING ROOM. IM NOT SURE IF ITS SAFE TO BORROW POWER FROM A ... A: Will, You can not take it from a switch where you only have one cable and the white and black wire ... | |
| wrong fuse? | 8/2/2008 |
| Q: My home built in 1950 still has fused panel with 60 amp service. My problem: I think one fuse ( ... A: Gary, You should have no 30 amp fuse's on any circuit in your home thats for lighting or ... | |
| dryer receptacle | 7/1/2008 |
| Q: For some reason, an electrician installed a 50-amp receptacle in our laundry room. Mywhat is the ... A: Ok you seem to be saying instead of a 30 amp dryer receptacle being installed on the 30 amp line for ... | |
| ceiling fan hum | 5/30/2008 |
| Q: I have a similar situation with 4 identical hampton Bay accubreeze 52" fans l mounted in four ... A: Kathy, Basically the cheaper fans do hum louder and a flush mounted fan because of the close ... | |
| How do I install a subpanel in detached garage | 5/29/2008 |
| Q: I would like to install a 100 amp rated subpanel in my detached garage being fed by a 40 amp double ... A: Jack, You can use the black 8/3 Romex and sleeve it with the PVC. You don't have to install a ... | |
| need to upgrade/need ground faults | 5/28/2008 |
| Q: I am purchasing an older home, (1951), and with the inspection found the service panel needs to ... A: Rebecca, I think I can safely say that it would be less expensive by you but the only way to find ... | |
| Wiring for a new garbage disposal | 5/27/2008 |
| Q: I am trying to install a new garbage disposal and there's no existing wiring. I have a couple of ... A: Ben, I don't know what else is on the circuit you want to tap so I can't predict wether or not ... | |
| wall outlet | 5/26/2008 |
| Q: my wall outlet is about 36" from the floor and i want to move them to the baseboard.do i have to run ... A: Kathy, Cutting a receptacle into the baseboard is more difficult than cutting it into the sheet ... | |
| white, red and orange wires in ceiling wiring | 5/26/2008 |
| Q: I am trying to replace a ceiling fan that does not work in my new apartment. Upon entering the ... A: Michael, If your fan has a light connect the black wire from the fan to the two red wires then ... | |
| Replacing porch light on older two-wire home | 5/21/2008 |
| Q: My home is in South Texas, built around 1960. When I replaced the porch light, I noticed that the ... A: Rudy, Its not unusual for those voltage sensors to do that but to be certain the fixture is ... | |
| Dim Lights | 5/20/2008 |
| Q: Bob i am the guy who came home and half the house had no lights . Well i checked some more and fond ... A: Jerry, If you have breakers that are only putting out 88 volts then you have a connection problem ... | |
| In-ground wiring | 5/19/2008 |
| Q: I'm running an in-ground cable from my garage across the gravel driveway to a pond aerator pump; is ... A: John, I highly recommend you use 3/4" PVC instead of burying the UF cable directly in the ground. ... | |
| ceiling fixture install blew circuit | 5/18/2008 |
| Q: I was attempting to re-install a ceiling fixture; the white wire touched the black wire and circuit ... A: Mary, The circuit breaker should be fine, as long as the white wire is no longer touching the black ... | |
| recessed lighting | 5/18/2008 |
| Q: I want to install recessed lighting in my living room. I am thinking i can disonnect my light ... A: Mike, Take stock of whats on that circuit. Shut the circuit off and go around and see what is not ... | |
| Wiring Diagram | 5/16/2008 |
| Q: Good morning Bob, I am trying to wire an outdoor light pole so I'm thinking that I can tap off ... A: Jim, Tapping into the existing outlet may prove challenging especially if there are already two ... | |
| Question on running wires in a chase | 5/15/2008 |
| Q: I have split level house in Rochester NY. I am currently renovating an area and have an opportunity ... A: Tom, If you use PVC run 2". If its possible to leave a "drag" (rope , string) in lieu of the pipe ... | |
| electric kiln | 5/15/2008 |
| Q: I have a chance to buy a 208 3 phase pottery kiln at a good price but all I have at home is 120/240 ... A: Rick, It may be possible to reconnect the kiln for single phase operation without too much trouble. ... | |
| Replacement cord | 5/13/2008 |
| Q: I have been asked to replace a power cord on an old (60's) window fan. The exhisting cord looks to ... A: James, If this is a 60's vintage fan I'm suspecting its probably made of metal and not plastic, if ... | |
| bathroom wiring | 5/12/2008 |
| Q: Hooking up a few receptacles and switches. I have power from my panel to a receptacle,then from that ... A: Mike, "Ok if I run power to my first receptacle then I just carry down the line to the next ... | |
| replacing 3 gang switch. | 5/11/2008 |
| Q: My in laws have a modular home and they have a set of 3 switches in the bathroom. The switches are ... A: Chris, I don't know how big the opening is that you have there but you mentioned 3 switches which ... | |
| bathroom wiring | 5/11/2008 |
| Q: Hooking up a few receptacles and switches. I have power from my panel to a receptacle,then from that ... A: Mike, You can run the power to the switch box and then run from the switch box directly to the ... | |
| Antique Clock Lamps | 5/8/2008 |
| Q: I have an antique clock (apprx. 40 yo). It uses 2 15 watt bulbs to light it up . The bulb on the ... A: Stephen, Sockets are the usual culprits when bulbs begin to burn out quickly but you say you've ... | |
| switch to outlet conversion | 5/7/2008 |
| Q: Can we convert a light switch to a straight power outlet? Our dining room looks like it once had a ... A: Mark, Maybe. The circle probably is the old box covered over and the wires are probably still live. ... | |
| Bathroom Light and Fan | 5/6/2008 |
| Q: I have purchased a Broan QTR100L bathroom fan with a light and night light. The wiring diagram only ... A: David, All you have to do is bring the power cable into the fans junction box and bring a new cable ... | |
| Electric Circuits | 5/5/2008 |
| Q: How many duplex receptacles or light fixtures does the code allow on a 15 amp & 20 amp circuit ... A: Richard, 9 duplex receptacles for 15 amps and 12 for 20 amps. OK light fixtures, first of all you ... | |
| Chandelier/Dimmer | 5/4/2008 |
| Q: My husband installed a new chandelier today and when the power went on we heard a "pop" in the ... A: Wendy, When Hubby installed the new fixture a wire must be getting pinched under the new ceiling ... | |
| Splicing Romex Copper to Aluminum in wall | 5/3/2008 |
| Q: I'm putting in some new lighting and do not have enough of the original romex (aluminum) to make a ... A: Jim, You can not bury a splice inside the wall with no access and I agree it won't look very ... | |
| Lights that flicker when I start appliances | 5/2/2008 |
| Q: We have a new house and if we turn on anything the like the vacuum the lights flicker and dim. You ... A: Kevin, You have a loose connection some where and most likely on your utilitys end. The problem ... | |
| ceiling fixture | 4/30/2008 |
| Q: We recently tore down our old plaster and lathe ceiling and had a new sheetrock ceiling installed. ... A: Ray, You mentioned a dimmer, a florescent light will not work properly on a dimmer so try a regular ... | |
| 100amp breaker box | 4/30/2008 |
| Q: i am adding 2 additional breakers into a 100amp box. there are several open spaces for additional ... A: Mark, Yes I agree it is a little curious as to why its OK for the bare ones and not the white ones ... | |
| pool subpanel in shed | 4/29/2008 |
| Q: Bob - question - I built a shed and had installed all new pool equipment near our pool. I've got 2 ... A: Dave, 1.) The panels are OK in the shed. 2.) Romex is fine. 3.) No ground rod required but it ... | |
| How to bury service | 4/28/2008 |
| Q: I Live in Interlaken, NJ and currently have 100A service overhead from a pole in the back yard. I ... A: Donald, The National Electrical Code has standards that must be followed. Such as: Minimum height ... | |
| Hum from Electric Box in Basement | 4/27/2008 |
| Q: Bob - the other day in the laundry room I noticed one of my electric boxes was emitting a very low ... A: Henry, If the transformer for your door bell is attached to this box it could be the source of the ... | |
| caps | 4/26/2008 |
| Q: Regarding those plastic twisty caps for holding wire connections; Do the wires need to be twisted ... A: Larry, It can be done either way. Pros usually twist them before putting the cap on because trying ... | |
| bathroom nightlight | 4/26/2008 |
| Q: Just read your advice to Fran & George re: adding a nightlight in a bathroom that currently has ... A: Becky, Much easier to add the receptacle and just as effective. You may even be able to do it right ... | |
| Wiring a ceiling vent fan and a light | 4/24/2008 |
| Q: Bob - I would like to rewire a vent fan and light in the bathroom from being on the same switch to a ... A: Brian, Your first challenge is to get another 2 wire cable from the switch box to the fan light. In ... | |
| range outlet | 4/23/2008 |
| Q: Replacing a direct wired cooktop with a free standing range. house was built in the late 70's. the ... A: Helen, Generally speaking full size free standing elec range's use a 50 amp line which allows full ... | |
| Ceiling outlet for projector | 4/18/2008 |
| Q: I am wanting to figure out the best plan for adding a outlet in my ceiling in our family room. The ... A: Bryan, In the 90 degree corner where the ceiling meets the top of the wall you have to cut a small ... | |
| New chandelier won't work with dimmer switch | 4/15/2008 |
| Q: yesterday I bought a new chandelier to replace my old one that worked perfectly, using an existing ... A: Alan, Ok this will be fairly easy, you will need a voltage tester to determine which of the 2 old ... | |
| New chandelier won't work with dimmer switch | 4/15/2008 |
| Q: yesterday I bought a new chandelier to replace my old one that worked perfectly, using an existing ... A: Alan, Tell me exactly what is in the box as far as wires go, in other words how many individual ... | |
| wiring under a slab | 4/13/2008 |
| Q: Bob, Couple of questions... #1 - I'm putting a log home on a slab, so I need to run electrical ... A: Brian, I don't recommend running UF under the slab, it has no protection and if it gets damaged ... | |
| power cutting out in doublewide | 4/9/2008 |
| Q: I have a 1986 doublewide that I recently put on my property. The problem is without any warning the ... A: Michelle, The problem is most likely on your utilities end but it is possible it could be in your ... | |
| recessed under cabinet lighting (pucks) | 4/7/2008 |
| Q: Bob, You helped me out about 5yrs ago with a 3-way switch and that turned out fine. This time I'm ... A: Mark, I understand why you don't want the plugs to show but code wise you can't run the zip cord ... | |
| 220v hot tub | 4/6/2008 |
| Q: a friend recently purchased a hot tub from China, I am going to look at it in a couple of days but ... A: Andy, What I know of European voltage is that every thing operates on 220 including lighting. If ... | |
| 3-way with 2 lights | 4/5/2008 |
| Q: I would like to know how to wire a 3-way with 2 lights so both switches turn both ligts off & on. ... A: William, There are many ways to wire a 3 way system but this is how I do it and its very simple. ... | |
| Dryer | 4/4/2008 |
| Q: When I convert a three wire dryer pigtail to a 4 wire pigtail, is it okay to put the green wire and ... A: Jesse, No, the white wire will go to the middle terminal by itself and if there is a "jumnper" ... | |
| AFCI TRIPING | 4/4/2008 |
| Q: THIS IS NEW CONSTRUCTION.I HAVE A 15 AMP AFCI BREAKER INSTALLED IN A BEDROOM. THE LIGHTS AND FEED ... A: Tony, Check the neutral connection (white) wire for this circuit, it should be connected to the ... | |
| electrical wiring for steamshower | 4/3/2008 |
| Q: My electrician ran 8-2 wire (actually 8-3 but the red wire is capped at both ends) with a 40 Amp ... A: Susan, No problem you can use the existing cable and just size down the 40 amp breaker in the main ... | |
| Replacing plug-in ceiling light | 4/2/2008 |
| Q: Bob. I live in a 55-yr old house outside Philly. I was hoping to replace the old ceiling light in ... A: Joon, Try removing the receptacle. The screws that are holding it to the box you should be able to ... | |
| What type of Thermostat | 3/31/2008 |
| Q: Good Morning Sir, I am trying to figure out what kind of wall mounted thermostat (single pole or ... A: Good morning Chris, If your BB heaters are 240 volts and they probably are, you want to get double ... | |
| kitchen lighting | 3/30/2008 |
| Q: we have green, red and black wires coming out of our fixture. And we have red, black and white ... A: Natalie, If your ceiling box is made of metal the green wire will connect to it, if the box is ... | |
| neutrals | 3/28/2008 |
| Q: I have just built a home in ct and the electrician did something that I am not comfortable with, and ... A: Richard, The neutral wires from two different circuits, from two different panels should NOT be ... | |
| Question about wiring problem for 100 amp service panel | 3/27/2008 |
| Q: We are replacing an older outside service panel, which this identical panel is no longer available, ... A: Robert, Yes you can splice them in the new panel. An easy solution is to use mechanical "butt ... | |
| Sub-panel / Panel Brand | 3/27/2008 |
| Q: Quick question... I am putting in a sub-panel in my house. I wanted to know first whether a main ... A: Mark, Square D breakers "react" in short circuit conditions quicker than other breakers so there ... | |
| Sub-panel / Panel Brand | 3/26/2008 |
| Q: Quick question... I am putting in a sub-panel in my house. I wanted to know first whether a main ... A: Mark, Unless you need the main breaker you could just get a main lug panel but I'm assuming you ... | |
| re-wiring electric cooktop | 3/25/2008 |
| Q: I purchased a used electric glass cooktop to install over my built-in oven in my kitchen cabinet. ... A: Bob, I seriously doubt the wire is aluminum, its probably copper wire that has been what they call ... | |
| switches | 3/25/2008 |
| Q: Bob, I have a single pole to single pole(light and bath fan). I want to make sure I am wiring them ... A: Peggy, Are you replacing an existing switch or is this a new installation ? Let me know how many ... | |
| dryer | 3/24/2008 |
| Q: dryer has 3 prong cord wall has 4 got a new cord were dose the red green blk white wire go on my ... A: Carla, Open the back of the dryer. You should see black wires that go to a terminal, red wires that ... | |
| Tapping into the main lugs in a panel | 3/24/2008 |
| Q: Is it okay to install double lugs into a circuit breaker panel where the feeder comes into then tap ... A: Anthony, First of all you need to know that the line your tapping will carry the new panel and what ... | |
| Light Fixture | 3/23/2008 |
| Q: I purchased a light fixture that is a hard wire. The room that I wish to put it into has ceiling ... A: Mary Ann, You could "swag" the fixture using chandelier chain, zip cord, decorative hooks and ... | |
| Amperage Question | 3/22/2008 |
| Q: I was wondering if you could assist. I originall asked Rick Meill a question about roughing in the ... A: BC, If your baseboard heat is 240 volts thats your problem. The fan light heat combination is 120 ... | |
| outlets | 3/20/2008 |
| Q: I have an outlet in my living room. If you push the wall(the paneling around the outlet) it will ... A: Brandon, This is the # 1 problem I get here and its receptacles like yours that have been "back ... | |
| wiring problem | 3/20/2008 |
| Q: I installed a recessed light but the bulb won't light. I tested the circuit and have power at the ... A: Alicia, Just to be sure the two other bulbs you tried were good ? Bad bulbs have caused more ... | |
| Temporary Service Relocation | 3/19/2008 |
| Q: Background: Project includes a 12x22 addition extending from west end of dwelling. Existing service ... A: Rob, The way this is usually done unless there are circumstances in your case I'm not aware of but ... | |
| 220 panel wiring | 3/19/2008 |
| Q: Can I use 1 pole each from 2 different 2 pole breakers to make a 220 circuit? This would mean that ... A: Joe, No can do. Yes a 2 pole breaker not only has the bar across but the breakers are tied together ... | |
| door bell | 3/18/2008 |
| Q: I have a door bell that is plays an electronic chime. When the button is pressed and released, the ... A: Michael, The contacts on the door bell button may be making poor contact due to corrosion on them ... | |
| LCD Wall mount electrical problem | 3/17/2008 |
| Q: I installed a LCD on my wall and when I went to plug it in my circuit breaker in my room popped. I ... A: Corey, It is unlikely but possible you could have hit just the hot wire in a cable with the ... | |
| Dryer Plug/ Recepticle | 3/14/2008 |
| Q: I just moved into a home I am renting and the dryer outlet is a 3 pole/ 3 wire 10-30R type. My ... A: Rob, Its not the outlet you want to change its the 4 wire plug and cord on your dryer you want to ... | |
| changing a light switch | 3/14/2008 |
| Q: Here is my situation: I am attempting to change the outlets and switches in my bathroom from almond ... A: Lisa, That 3rd black wire you spliced to the other "HOT" black wires is the wire that goes to your ... | |
| GFI circut | 3/13/2008 |
| Q: Good day Bob, I have noticed a few answers on GFI's and have one more. I have 30amp circuit with a ... A: Randy, Redundant GFI protection obviously isn't necessary when one will do but I've never had a ... | |
| 3 way switch | 3/13/2008 |
| Q: I was in the process of swapping out our old switches with new rocker switches today, when one of ... A: Kristi, Try using the screws on the side of the old switch for the red and white wires instead of ... | |
| Wiring multiple lights on one switch | 3/12/2008 |
| Q: I'm putting lights in my attic. I have 4 lights and want to put them on one switch. I've wired ... A: Ric, You've got the lights wired in series which is why they aren't very bright. Here's what you ... | |
| Pendant lighting Question | 3/12/2008 |
| Q: I currently have a light fixture in my dinning room that is contrlled by a light switch and hangs ... A: Veronica, No problem, all you need to do is go to Home Depot or Lowes and get a "canopy kit" in the ... | |
| Particial Power | 3/11/2008 |
| Q: my house was built in 1990 and this past weekend we lost power due to a storm. When the power ... A: Monica, If you have confirmed that you have full power coming in then the first place I would have ... | |
| Can I pigtail power off of a 3 way switch. | 3/10/2008 |
| Q: 3 way track lighting switch. White is "hot" Want to pigtail power from this 3 way to an additional ... A: Gayle, If you only have the 3 wire cable in the box its not possible. 3 way systems can be wired ... | |
| breaker problems? | 3/9/2008 |
| Q: all three bathrooms lost all lighting/electricity. i'm pretty sure they are not on the same circuit ... A: Rich, It sounds like a connection problem to me. Pull the switch(s) out in the bedroom and you may ... | |
| Replacing Ceiling Fan | 3/9/2008 |
| Q: We are replacing a ceiling fan that is on a 3-way switch, and replacing it with just a light. The ... A: Jeremy, Try this: You will need a voltage tester. Disconnect the fixture completely, leave the 2 ... | |
| Sub-panel feeder gage | 3/8/2008 |
| Q: I'm building a 30 x 50' shop building. I just buried 2" conduit the 120' run from the house with 1 ... A: Jim, Copper VS Aluminum : AL is cheaper and if terminated properly will work fine for your ... | |
| Possible overload and circuit breaker trouble | 3/8/2008 |
| Q: I tried to do some work on an older house. There is one breaker in particular, that has half the ... A: Nick, One of the two main power legs is out. Now its just a question of where the problem is. The ... | |
| home receptacles | 3/7/2008 |
| Q: I am replacing the old receptacles in my home in Ocean County. My friend, who is a retired union ... A: Rich, There is no code requirement to the ground being up or down in your situation. The most ... | |
| Installing new pendant lights | 3/6/2008 |
| Q: I want to install two pendant lights over kitchen peninsula. There are no ceiling boxes over the ... A: Jerry, This is one of the most difficult situations to deal with in a home with out making holes ... | |
| Recessed Lighting in Suspended Ceiling | 3/6/2008 |
| Q: I am looking to finish out my basement ceiling with recessed cans lights in a suspended ceiling. I ... A: Pat, My pleasure, you do want to leave some slack by each fixture for flexibility, I usually leave ... | |
| Recessed Lighting....No Light | 3/5/2008 |
| Q: My question is this...I have two scenarios in my basement, on one light switch i have a total of 6 ... A: Stefano, The sockets are probably burned out, in other words they are not making effective enough ... | |
| Recessed Lighting in Suspended Ceiling | 3/5/2008 |
| Q: I am looking to finish out my basement ceiling with recessed cans lights in a suspended ceiling. I ... A: Pat, Todays recessed lighting "cans" are a lot different. Gone are the separate "wips" and "J" ... | |
| Garage renovation | 3/4/2008 |
| Q: I am renovating my attached garage and adding 2 20 amp circuits for outlets. One of the walls of ... A: Gary, Your correct in that there is nothing to stop a nail or a screw from going through the wall ... | |
| Bathroom light/fan/nightlight | 3/4/2008 |
| Q: Bob, we installed a Nutone bathroom exhaust fan,light and nightlight fixture. The bathroom had a ... A: Not at all, OK the fluorescent lamp may be defective or the electronic ballast for the lamp could be ... | |
| Bathroom light/fan/nightlight | 3/2/2008 |
| Q: Bob, we installed a Nutone bathroom exhaust fan,light and nightlight fixture. The bathroom had a ... A: Fran and George, The extra switch for the night light feature is whats causing all the trouble. ... | |
| Sub-panel feeder gage | 2/29/2008 |
| Q: I'm building a 30 x 50' shop building. I just buried 2" conduit the 120' run from the house with 1 ... A: Jim, Lets look at it this way. Assuming you have 200 amp service and a 200 amp panel, the biggest ... | |
| Wiring new kitchen island/ renovation | 2/29/2008 |
| Q: We're renovating our kitchen & having a new island installed. I would like to run electrical in the ... A: Doug, Using a grinder and a concrete cutting saw , cut a channel wide enough and deep enough to ... | |
| Replacing ceiling fan with regular light fixture | 2/28/2008 |
| Q: I'm replacing a ceiling fan with a regular light fixture and wondered if you could help me. I took ... A: Tim, The connections you gave don't make sense and I'm not saying thats not how they are but they ... | |
| Replacing ceiling fan with regular light fixture | 2/27/2008 |
| Q: I'm replacing a ceiling fan with a regular light fixture and wondered if you could help me. I took ... A: Tim, Describe for me in detail how the two 3 wire cables are connected to each other in the ceiling ... | |
| Replacing ceiling fan with regular light fixture | 2/26/2008 |
| Q: I'm replacing a ceiling fan with a regular light fixture and wondered if you could help me. I took ... A: Tim, Your going to have to so some home work. Pull out each switch. Each one has two brass colored ... | |
| Dimmer Switch to Non Dimmer Switch | 2/25/2008 |
| Q: I have two rows of recessed lights in my basement and I wanted to take them off dimmer switches ... A: Charles, One of the 3 black wires is the "HOT" and the other two go to the lights. You will need a ... | |
| light | 2/25/2008 |
| Q: we have a flourescent light in the kitchen with 4 lights. Two have gone out, and my husband tried ... A: Stephanie, The ballast inside the fixture is most likely the problem. There should be two of them, ... | |
| connecting an overhead light | 2/24/2008 |
| Q: I'm replacing an overhead light. This light is on a dimmer switch. At the box in the ceiling, ... A: Dan, The way you have it hooked up, if you were to turn the switch on you would blow the breaker or ... | |
| wiring cieling fan | 2/24/2008 |
| Q: I have a remote control ceiling fan I am installing where I had a regular light with a black and ... A: Anselmo, The remote module that goes in the ceiling by the fan should have a black and white wire ... | |
| sub panel for tankless heater | 2/22/2008 |
| Q: Have a 200 amp service and I am installing a new tankless water heater.I understand the reasoning ... A: Bill, It is a lot of amps because you have to make a large quantity of water hot instantly. You may ... | |
| Can Euro 220V be used with US 220V? | 2/21/2008 |
| Q: Mossman, I am moving back to the States in a few months from Germany. I have a steam cleaner that ... A: Greg, You would need the right voltage converter to use it here (US 120 volt to Euro 220 volt) and ... | |
| New Cooktop Wiring 40 amp Cooktop | 2/20/2008 |
| Q: From my service panel I have a dedicated line 8/3 with grd..my old cooktop (30amp)..I put an 50amp ... A: Russ, I understand why you want to do it this way but its not the right thing do , besides you you ... | |
| Adding a switch for basement lights | 2/20/2008 |
| Q: I have two lights in the basement that I want to put on a switch. They are the pull string type now. ... A: Cale, The best way to do this is from scratch. Believe it or not it will be easier and more ... | |
| Bare Wire As Neutral | 2/19/2008 |
| Q: Our house was built in 2003 and it came with a GE 24" microwave oven that uses 120 volts/20 Amp. ... A: Quang, I have good news, if your new micro just says its 240 volts and not 120/240 volts then all ... | |
| GFCI in Kitchen Remodel | 2/18/2008 |
| Q: We are updating the kitchen of our condo which was built in 1985. I have a couple of questions about ... A: Tim, The disposal should not be on with the counter outlets so double check that to make sure but ... | |
| Bedroom lights - Accent cable kit | 2/18/2008 |
| Q: My wife wants to install an accent cable kit light with 5 halogen bulbs (20 watt MR16)in our ... A: Ted, They are referring to the wire's in your ceiling box and the kind of insulation on them. If ... | |
| main panel | 2/17/2008 |
| Q: I am replaceing a 100 amp panel in an old house there is two hot wires and a ground coming in from ... A: Kevin, What may appear to be the ground coming from the meter is actually the neutral. You see the ... | |
| Outdoor Lighting | 2/16/2008 |
| Q: I need to replace an existing photoelectric sensor. Rather than a light fixture there is an AC ... A: Jorge, If your aim is to control the AC outlet then wire it as follows: You will disconnect the ... | |
| Compact Fluorescents & Timers | 2/15/2008 |
| Q: I purchased 3 Intermatic flush-mount programmable timers to operate 3 different sets of outside ... A: Lyn, Its very possible you have a defective CFL and thats why its flickering so try a new one and ... | |
| wiring for a garage light | 2/15/2008 |
| Q: I have an outside light above garage door, that I have put a switch in and works, now I would like ... A: Leviton make's a programable electronic digital timer that I've had good luck with over the last 7 ... | |
| electrical box | 2/13/2008 |
| Q: I entered my home through the garage yesterday I used the code to open garage I then closed it from ... A: Angela, make sure the timer for the lights is in the "off" position and try the breaker again. Also ... | |
| bath light/exhaust wiring | 2/13/2008 |
| Q: Sir, I currently have a 40 amp circuit which used to feed a barn,(currently unused),this 40 amp ... A: Jim, If this is just a 2 wire cable with an additional bare ground then I would say forget it and ... | |
| 2 prong to 3 prong outlet wiring | 2/12/2008 |
| Q: I have a house that was built in 1952 and the electric panel has been updated to breakers and 100 ... A: Ok, you have the old style cloth covered cable that looks like Romex, its not very common around ... | |
| 2 prong to 3 prong outlet wiring | 2/12/2008 |
| Q: I have a house that was built in 1952 and the electric panel has been updated to breakers and 100 ... A: Victor, If your house was built in 1952 its probably wired with BX cable which has the typical ... | |
| switch/outlet problem | 2/11/2008 |
| Q: I recently replaced an old outlet/light switch. I am having problems getting it wired correctly. ... A: Trevor, On one side of the device you'll see two dark colored screws that are close together, put ... | |
| Current in the ceiling joist and bathroom drain piping | 2/11/2008 |
| Q: I am experiencing a current in both the bathroom drain piping and the wood (which is wet)joist in ... A: Marc, Yes you definitely have a problem there. Something in your drop ceiling like a light fixture ... | |
| 240 or 120 on Hot Tub? | 2/10/2008 |
| Q: We inherited a hot tub w/ our new home. There is a square D 50 Amp 2 pole Breaker that powers the ... A: Mike, It is a 240 volt hook up given the 50 amp 2 pole breaker. Converting this line to 120 volt ... | |
| voltage high/low | 2/10/2008 |
| Q: I have a kill a watt meter hooked up to my computers and I notice that the readings for voltage ... A: Brian, Your voltage can fluctuate depending upon whats on in your house at the time or your ... | |
| can light | 2/9/2008 |
| Q: I have a recessed can light in a kitchen soffet that pops on and off. I took out the bulb and I can ... A: Jim, The problem is most likely the thermal device in the can. Its there to prevent a higher ... | |
| please help | 2/9/2008 |
| Q: in my kitchen and in my living room the 4 lights that are on the 2 ceiling fans (total 8 bulbs) have ... A: Natalie, This is typical of a loose connection some where. If this problem only involves the fans ... | |
| baseboard heat wiring | 2/7/2008 |
| Q: my house was built in 1972, we have total electric baseboard heat. I remodled my bathroom and ... A: Mark, No problem, now look closely at the body of the thermostat. You should see two wire's coming ... | |
| exploded bulb damaging dimmer switch | 2/6/2008 |
| Q: My wife screwed a bulb into an old multi-bulb fixture and it exploded. Now the dimmer switch that ... A: Bryan, The bulb exploding caused a short circuit which is what blew the dimmer. I don't think the ... | |
| electical panel | 2/5/2008 |
| Q: I hope you can answer this question. I live in NYC in a pre-war building. My studio apartment has ... A: Wayne, At least you don't have Federal breakers, fuses are by far better as long as they are sized ... | |
| Counter Top Stove Hook-up | 2/4/2008 |
| Q: Good Day, Just tried to install a counter top stove for my father in law. His old stove had 4 ... A: Darryl, Its not clear to me what the old stove was hooked up to. Describe the cable that comes from ... | |
| dimmers | 2/3/2008 |
| Q: I have a new home with a Eight 75W bulbs in "cans". The One dimmer switch gets extremely warm (hot) ... A: Ken, I don't know who's dimmer your electrician used but if its Lutron and it probably is because ... | |
| re-wiring a switch to cieling fan | 2/2/2008 |
| Q: I currently have a switch that controls an outlet in my bedroom. I wont to disconnect the switch ... A: Jason, Yes, your blacks SHOULD be your "Hot" wire's just confirm that with a tester, the whites are ... | |
| Thermal cutouts in recessed cans | 2/2/2008 |
| Q: Well I have a problem where these brand new recessed lites I installed were turning off then later ... A: William, It could mean that yes and it does happen. Just to be sure though if you look inside the ... | |
| bathroom gfi | 2/1/2008 |
| Q: does the code require a 20A dedicated circuit gfi receptacle in bathroom or can it be a 15A ... A: Tim, The code requires a 20 amp circuit, 15 amps is not permitted. Now if there is only one GFI ... | |
| Need help with electrical hookup on remote control ceiling fan | 1/31/2008 |
| Q: A number of years ago an electrician installed a Minka-Aire Ceiling Fame with remote control in my ... A: Charles, If its working the way you want it to then it sounds Ok to me. The white wire turned out ... | |
| dryer outlet | 1/30/2008 |
| Q: I have about a 50 or so year old house and I was wondering how I or my husband can change a 3 ... A: Valerie, Most dryers come with out cords and plugs and operate on a 30 amp line. They can be hooked ... | |
| Need help with electrical hookup on remote control ceiling fan | 1/30/2008 |
| Q: A number of years ago an electrician installed a Minka-Aire Ceiling Fame with remote control in my ... A: Charles, It seems that you just need to locate the "Hot" wire(s) in the box, connect the black wire ... | |
| HVAC Compressor Spike - dimming lights | 1/29/2008 |
| Q: Bob - We recently finished the construction of our new home. We took, what we thought were, all the ... A: Jim, This is a common problem with compressors and motors in general when used in a residence. ... | |
| Electrical wiring | 1/28/2008 |
| Q: I want to run a 75AMP subpanel for my kitchen. the run from the main is approx. 80'. Is 8ga. enough ... A: Richard, # 8 copper at the 75C rating is good for 50 amps so thats not even close. Now what you ... | |
| putting a plug on a new dishwasher | 1/27/2008 |
| Q: we have the installation kit, the wires coming from the dishwasher are marked, black, white and ... A: Cindy, If you look at the male plug you will notice that one prong is slightly larger than the ... | |
| panel codes | 1/26/2008 |
| Q: I am finishing the room in the basement where my main panel and sub panel are located, can build a ... A: Joe, If you are saying that these panels will be in this closet then technically you can't use it ... | |
| Wiring Problem with Ceiling Fan Installion | 1/23/2008 |
| Q: I’m trying to replace my bedroom light with a ceiling fan with inbuilt light. The fan and light are ... A: Dan, You only need one additional wire to make this work so you don't really need the white wire in ... | |
| T-8 florescent fixture light | 1/22/2008 |
| Q: I install a new 2x4 T-8 3 lamp florescent fixture. It worked for about 3 days then quit. I thought ... A: Chuck, You could easily have a defective ballast and its my guess thats what it is. The new ... | |
| Bedroom light switches; 45 yr old house | 1/21/2008 |
| Q: Bob: First I will freely admit to electricity (outside of fixture installation) being well outside ... A: Rob, Ok based on the information you have provided me do this: Get 2 single pole switches (2 ... | |
| GFCI Kicking out | 1/21/2008 |
| Q: I am trying to run a block heater on a Bobcat or truck. There is around 150' from the house GFCI ... A: Steve, It doesn't take much to trip a GFI especially when you have multiple extension cords outside ... | |
| trouble instralling lighting fixture | 1/20/2008 |
| Q: I am installing a lighting fixture in my entryway. The new fixture has three wires: black, white ... A: It sounds like you have a foreign made fixture there with that yellow wire. A yellow wire in these ... | |
| garbage disposal wiring issues | 1/20/2008 |
| Q: I have installed a disposal where there was not one prior. I was going to tie into an outlet that ... A: Rees, If your cable has no separate ground wire you probably have BX cable which utilizes the ... | |
| sub panel | 1/19/2008 |
| Q: I am wanting to add a subpanel to my workshop (about 75 feet from my main panel) I want the sub to ... A: No ground rod is needed, the neutral wire (white) will go to the neutral block in the sub panel and ... | |
| sub panel | 1/19/2008 |
| Q: I am wanting to add a subpanel to my workshop (about 75 feet from my main panel) I want the sub to ... A: Richie, Even if copper were not as expensive as it is today I would still tell you to use 100 amp ... | |
| Installing new circuits in finished basements | 1/18/2008 |
| Q: I am refinishing my basement and I am changing out all of the old wiring. First, does the 6/12 rule ... A: Jim, No problem, OK you can put 12 duplex receptacles on a 20 amp line (12-2) so your more than OK ... | |
| Installing new circuits in finished basements | 1/17/2008 |
| Q: I am refinishing my basement and I am changing out all of the old wiring. First, does the 6/12 rule ... A: Jim, The 6/12 rule is the National Electrical Code minimum which applies to all states. By the way ... | |
| Cold air coming down from high hats | 1/17/2008 |
| Q: I recently moved into a new home in IL which seems like a sieve for the cold air from outside. ... A: Sharon, If its a new home you may have "IC" rated recessed lights. What that means is you can ... | |
| lost power to 1 "grid" of my house | 1/15/2008 |
| Q: I came inside tonight & due to wind/storm outside had to slam the door closed. I went to turn on an ... A: Frank, My pleasure. Check the receptacle where you heard the fizzing and popping and where the ... | |
| pendant light installation | 1/15/2008 |
| Q: Background: I want to replace an existing chandelier in the dining room with three mini pendant ... A: Robert, The box for the chandelier could be attached directly to a stud but most likely it is ... | |
| Running wire above drywall and below joist in an old house | 1/14/2008 |
| Q: I live in an 130 year old house that was renovate in the 60's. As a result there are several layers ... A: Bob, Its not bad form as much as that is what you sometimes have to resort to in order to get ... | |
| replacing bathroom light with fan/light combo | 1/12/2008 |
| Q: I am trying to replace an existing bathroom light with a fan/light combo. Their is one wall switch ... A: Greg, Yes use the same two wires that were used for the light, and connect them to the two white ... | |
| wiring a broan light,heat,exhaust fan combo | 1/12/2008 |
| Q: Bob, I am wiring up a new construction bathroom in my basement, I have purchased a broan model 665 ... A: Ted, No its not, you are in fact a wire short so one of the three funtions of the unit would not ... | |
| Custom switch plate? | 1/11/2008 |
| Q: Bob. I need help finding a custom switch plate. I installed a simple light to a box that was wired ... A: Steve, The easiest way for you to do this is to get a 3 gang white "Decora" style plate which ... | |
| Switch and Lights | 1/10/2008 |
| Q: I believe that my need is simple, but I am just not familiar with this. I have had the power cut ... A: Adam, You'll need a volt/ohm meter to do this and make sure the main breaker, or fuses are off. ... | |
| ceiling fan lighting | 1/10/2008 |
| Q: I am having some difficulties with my ceiling fan. I took the fan down to paint the fixture and ... A: Stacey, There should be a blue wire that comes down from the ceiling canopy directly to where the ... | |
| Problem installing ceiling light fixture | 1/9/2008 |
| Q: I am having a problem when installing a ceiling light fixture. I removed the old fixture and ... A: Tim, Check your connections. You should have 2 white wires and 2 black wires in the fixture. Both ... | |
| adding light to garage | 1/9/2008 |
| Q: I'd like to tap into that receptacle to add a security spot light on the garage. Anything special I ... A: Patrick, What ever size the existing wires are thats what you want to stick with for the new ... | |
| spa | 1/8/2008 |
| Q: I have a Coleman Spa that requires a 50 amp GFCI protected circuit. I've tryed to install a G.E. ... A: Gary, You don't need to run any new wires or move the GFI breaker, here's what to look for. Check ... | |
| bonding | 1/7/2008 |
| Q: I bought a new square d main service panel(attachment). Came with green box bonding screw says "to ... A: Mike, The green bonding screw is not used in a sub panel how ever it is "required" in the main ... | |
| tanning bed | 1/6/2008 |
| Q: hello i seen the other question about hooking the tanning bed to the stove im gad i read it but my ... A: Dallas, I didn't see the other question but as long as the tanning bed has the same voltage and amp ... | |
| Flickering lights when new water heater in use | 1/5/2008 |
| Q: Our house is total electric. We are doing renovations and part of this project was to go to an on ... A: Kay, Its a great concept but your turning on a minimum of 40 amps just to wash your hands, then if ... | |
| Flickering lights when new water heater in use | 1/5/2008 |
| Q: Our house is total electric. We are doing renovations and part of this project was to go to an on ... A: Kay, This type of heater by its very nature draws so much current instantly that its dropping the ... | |
| Suitable wire for Steam Generator | 1/4/2008 |
| Q: I am looking for some assistance. I am finishing my lower level bathroom and putting in a Kohler ... A: Greg, How about this. Use 3/4 " PVC as a sleeve and run your 8-2 Romex through it instead of the ... | |
| GFCI application | 1/3/2008 |
| Q: I would like to have two separate 120 volt receptacles in the basement for an air hockey table and ... A: Don, No problem at all. When you open the box and replace the existing receptacle that will take ... | |
| Ikea light fixture | 1/3/2008 |
| Q: I am replacing a fixture that works off of one switch with an IKEA light fixture. The IKEA fixture ... A: Dwight, I'm assuming you lost track of what wires went where in the ceiling box so with the power ... | |
| waterproof electric light switch | 1/2/2008 |
| Q: Do they make a light switch that is waterproof and where can I get one. The switch is just outside ... A: Mary, Yes , Lowes or HD will have that. Get one thats made of plastic so there's no rust problem ... | |
| light bulbs | 1/1/2008 |
| Q: why do my light bulbs burn out so quickly in my old house. A: Travis, If your light fixtures are old like your house then the sockets in those fixtures are worn ... | |
| Voltage change - main panel rails | 1/1/2008 |
| Q: Bob, 200amp,1ph.30 breaker res. panel. Had one circuit of outlets go out w/out tripping breaker and ... A: Dave, You most likely have an "open neutral" on your utiltys end outside some where. When the ... | |
| Continuity with cuircuit breaker open? | 12/31/2007 |
| Q: I recently installed a fan motor with a rheostat speed controller. My house is only 6 years old and ... A: Roger, its not unusual at all because the white wires are connected to ground in your panel so no ... | |
| Circuit Breaker Trips | 12/30/2007 |
| Q: One portion of our basement did not have light. On inspecting the circuit breaker panel, I found ... A: Ravi, If the breaker will not reset and its sparking and making a noise when you try to reset it ... | |
| How to hard wire a 220v Air Compressor | 12/29/2007 |
| Q: I have a 100 Amp box in my detached garage. I need to hard wire a 220v Air Compressor using 110v ... A: Dave, I need to know what the current draw is on the compressor at 240 volts and if the motor is ... | |
| Taking out a Knockout | 12/28/2007 |
| Q: I can't seem to punch out a knockout on an existing outlet box. I've used a hammer and large ... A: Dick, Most Ko's you hit towards the inside of the box so I'm sure thats your situation and yes its ... | |
| Taking out a Knockout | 12/28/2007 |
| Q: I can't seem to punch out a knockout on an existing outlet box. I've used a hammer and large ... A: Dick, There are some KO's that don't get punched right when they are made and I have literally ... | |
| bathroom ceiling fan won't turn off | 12/27/2007 |
| Q: our bathroom fan all of the sudden, could not be turned off at the switch. I figured it was a switch ... A: Eric, If the fan is staying on with those two wires separated then the fan is getting power from ... | |
| rain&GFI | 12/27/2007 |
| Q: I have multiple distribution of holiday lights and animal figures on the yard bushes and trees this ... A: David, It takes only a minute amount of water to trip a GFI so you need to check all your points of ... | |
| Buzzing breaker | 12/26/2007 |
| Q: Recently I've noticed that I sometimes hear a buzzing/crackling noise coming from my 200 amp Square ... A: Joseph, Yes find out which breaker is doing this because it indicates a bad connection that either ... | |
| Lighting problem | 12/25/2007 |
| Q: I have a problem with lightning in the upstairs of my home. The upstairs has 6 lights 4-bedrooms, 1 ... A: Paul, You have a loose connection some where along that circuit. Open the switch boxes of the ... | |
| Repeated GFI failures | 12/24/2007 |
| Q: An outside receptacle installed on the front of my house a few years ago has recently started to ... A: Larry, Yes if water is getting in there it can ruin a GFI pretty quickly. Take good care to seal ... | |
| Faulty out let? | 12/23/2007 |
| Q: Have an electrical outlet on my covered front porch that I have most of my Christmas lights attached ... A: Brian, First of all double check those breakers again and make sure none are tripped. OK unless its ... | |
| HI-Rise condo | 12/23/2007 |
| Q: I moved into a new hi-rise condo in NYC with concrete ceilings. Every electrician that has ... A: Susan, Unfortunately digging into the ceiling just isn't an option as it would compromise the ... | |
| GFCI | 12/22/2007 |
| Q: We have a coffee pot and a soup warmer which keep tripping our GFCI receptacle in the kitchen. We ... A: Roger, Anything can trip a GFI but the cause is key. There could be something wrong with either or ... | |
| Outlets have no power | 12/20/2007 |
| Q: 4 Outlets in one room and the main light/fan are not working in my 10 yr old house in Texas. I am ... A: Sunny, Check those breakers again to be sure each one is putting out power since that panel is ... | |
| Light fixtures have no power... | 12/19/2007 |
| Q: I recently purchased a condo which was built in 1969. The first day that we walked into the house ... A: Dan, Take a closer look at the circuit breakers, a breaker thats tripped can easily look like its ... | |
| Wiring for Central AC | 12/18/2007 |
| Q: My husband and I are planning to have a company install central ac. But we are trying to do the ... A: Joan, You need to consult your HVAC contractor as to the proper wire size for the compressor. The ... | |
| electrical | 12/18/2007 |
| Q: i have an older house , in the dinning there is a double switch , one goes to the fan and the other ... A: Rich, It does matter and I'm assuming your asking because your changing this switch or your doing ... | |
| ELECTRIC BROILER | 12/17/2007 |
| Q: Bob, I recently had a new electric stove to replace an old electric stove. I noticed that the ... A: Paul, If you live in a single family home or even a two family the incoming voltage should be 120 ... | |
| Faulty Outlet | 12/15/2007 |
| Q: We have two strings of outdoor Christmas lights and a flood light plugged into two outdoor ... A: Scott, Being this is an outside outlet and should be GFI protected, look at all your GFI ... | |
| breaker tripped? | 12/15/2007 |
| Q: I hope you can help me with this one,I just resently replaced my 100amp fuse panel with a 100amp ... A: Jim, Unless there are other things on that circuit your not aware of the breaker should be holding. ... | |
| cooktop stove & wall oven | 12/14/2007 |
| Q: I am running new wire to cooktop stove & Wall oven. Both units are tied into individual juncture ... A: Michael, White to white, black to black, red to red, and your 4th wire the bare one will be ... | |
| 220 to 110 | 12/14/2007 |
| Q: I have a 2 hot 1 bare wire ground 220 feed for my electric furnace. I want to pull a 110 receptacle ... A: Robert, You can't do that but what you might be able to do is change the connections on the motor ... | |
| update to power outage... | 12/13/2007 |
| Q: I went to look at the electric box(200amp) and as I got to within 3 feet I smelled a burning type ... A: Mike, You've located the problem, apparntly when the electrician terminated the wires he didn't ... | |
| Bad Circuit Breaker? | 12/12/2007 |
| Q: I had some guys come in and clean our rugs and floor. I was not home at the time, my wife ... A: Edward, If the breaker did trip it may not be resetting, to properly reset a CB you must first turn ... | |
| Electric baseboard heater stuck on | 12/12/2007 |
| Q: I have electric baseboard heat in my home. The baseboard heater in the master bedroom seems to be ... A: Jon, It all depends on how comfortable and confident you are inside a panel with exposed live parts ... | |
| adding a ceiling light | 12/11/2007 |
| Q: Currently in my bedroom I have no ceiling light but I do have a switch that controls the plug ... A: Dan, The problem is you only have half of what you need in the switch box so here's what you need ... | |
| Battery Preservation | 12/10/2007 |
| Q: Since one usually has to buy batteries at a store in packs, how can I store the batteries I don't ... A: Mike, A lot of people do that , I don't know how effective it is but there is a shelf life of ... | |
| Overload protectors in recessed lighting | 12/9/2007 |
| Q: I have several can type recessed lights in my home. They are the type where the junction box is ... A: Michael, You do need those thermal cut outs and they are required to protect against higher wattage ... | |
| Wall Timer Switch | 12/9/2007 |
| Q: I purchased an Intermatic EJ500 wall timer switch to replace a single switch that controls 3 outside ... A: William, It depends upon what kind of lights you have, this timer may not control flourescent or ... | |
| garbage disposal wiring | 12/7/2007 |
| Q: is it code acceptable to install a garbage disposal under a kitchen sink, in an enclosed cabinet ... A: Gary, Yes, however the GFI is not necessary in that situation and a single receptacle could be used ... | |
| Connecting a chandelier | 12/6/2007 |
| Q: There are 2 black wire and 2 white wires. The 2 black were connected together the 2 white were not. ... A: Wayne, Use the two free white wires and you should be fine, you see who ever made the connections ... | |
| Wiring a chandelier off existing switch | 12/6/2007 |
| Q: I presently have a switch controlled outlet in my room. The switch is a single pole with only one ... A: Yes but you will lose control of the outlet by the switch which shouldn't be a problem since you ... | |
| Electrical Buzz | 12/5/2007 |
| Q: Some info before I get to my question. Residential home built in 1978. Probably original fixtures. ... A: Albert, A light bulb wouldn't cause something like this though when controlled by a dimmer they can ... | |
| 6 wire outlet | 12/3/2007 |
| Q: I was replacing an old outlet in a bathroom. when i removed the old one, i found it had 6 wires ... A: Jim, Yes if its in the bathroom it should be a GFI, now try wire nutting all the white wires ... | |
| Using the wiring from a three prong outlet lamp to connect as a chandelier | 12/2/2007 |
| Q: My wife bought a hanging lamp that plugs into the wall with a three-prong plug. We want to hang the ... A: Sean, Yes and you may need a canopy kit which is available from HD or Lowes which besides the ... | |
| Studying Faulty Wiring | 11/28/2007 |
| Q: my name is Ryan. I am a student living in Hong Kong. Currently as part of a DT project, I am ... A: Ryan, Basically wiring can overheat due to a poor connection where a wire is terminated. You can ... | |
| Wiring to aa Sub Panel | 11/27/2007 |
| Q: I am wiring a 220 volt 20 amp plug for a table saw in my garage off of my sub panel. I used a 12/2 ... A: John, The ground wire goes to the ground bar which should be physically attached to the metal of ... | |
| Problem replacing old entry way light | 11/26/2007 |
| Q: I took down the old pendant light in the entry way (late 1920's home) to find that the electrical ... A: Jenny, It sounds like you have an old flat pancake box that has almost no room in it for the wire's ... | |
| 2-wire ceiling box & new 4-wire ceiling light fixture | 11/26/2007 |
| Q: I just bought a new 2-bulb ceiling light fixture to replace the 2-bulb ceiling fixture in my ... A: Laurie, The reason you see no ground in the box is because you either have BX cable which has the ... | |
| power surges | 11/26/2007 |
| Q: I have a question about some weird power surges, declines, in my house. The power in my house ... A: Ray, Do your lights get unusually bright then dull when certain items are used like your dish ... | |
| Secondary Electric Panel for Garage | 11/25/2007 |
| Q: We are running electric service from the house main panel (200A) to the garage. The distance from ... A: Tony, 4/3 copper would be adequate and I highly recomend that you use 2" PVC for a nice easy pull ... | |
| Wiring double poll baseboard tsat w/feed to next room | 11/24/2007 |
| Q: I recently replaced a single pole 220 tstat with a new double pole LUX and the junction box has 3 ... A: Joe, Start from scratch and separate all the wires. Identify the incoming pair that is the feed ... | |
| Main breaker location? | 11/23/2007 |
| Q: I am trying to replace a breaker within the electrical panel in the basement of my townhome. ... A: Bhishma, That main breaker is probably where the meter is located. Ask the superintendant and I'm ... | |
| Outlet question | 11/22/2007 |
| Q: In my master bedroom is an outlet that has the test button type outlet. It controls the lights in ... A: Deb, Don't worry you won't burn the house down its just an inconvenience that you can continue to ... | |
| Can Lighting | 11/21/2007 |
| Q: I installed five can lights in a kitchen remodeling project five years ago. Recently, one of the ... A: Jay, When bulbs start burning out quickly its usually an older fixture and the socket is shot from ... | |
| Low power to switch | 11/19/2007 |
| Q: We want to install a new chandelier in our dining room. We haven't had one in that room for years, ... A: Diane, The cable going down instead of up just means that when the wiring was originally installed ... | |
| Adding ceiling fan in bedrooms | 11/12/2007 |
| Q: Just bought a house built in 1981 and there are no ceiling light fixtures in the 3 bedrooms. I want ... A: Lance, Your best bet is to run a new the line from the panel. You could simplify this installation ... | |
| When To Rewire A Home | 11/10/2007 |
| Q: I am about to purchase a 51 year old home. It is a tri--level,basement. It is in pretty good shape. ... A: Tim, There is usually no need to do that, as long as the insulation on the wires is not falling off ... | |
| Electric Baseboard Heater Stopped Working | 11/9/2007 |
| Q: I just moved into this house a little over a month ago and the previous owners replaced some if not ... A: Kristen, If the home owners replaced them it could be a number of things but I would check the ... | |
| bad vibrations | 11/9/2007 |
| Q: There is a buzzing sound (vibration noise, not steady but cycle like.) coming in my bedroom wall (it ... A: Lily, The winds could be making something vibrate like a loose piece of siding or something but ... | |
| 60 amp to 100 amp? | 11/7/2007 |
| Q: I have a 60 amp service coming into the house. Is it possible to take out the 60 amp fuse main panel ... A: Keith, Unfortunately you can't squeeze 100 amps out of 60 so the answer is no you can't but if ... | |
| eletrical plugs | 11/6/2007 |
| Q: the problem started with the inlaws in town they noticed one of the light switches in the up stairs ... A: lh, Check the easy stuff first if you haven't done so already, which is the panel for a blown fuse ... | |
| warm light switch | 11/5/2007 |
| Q: I installed a light switch with a dimmer on the side. When the dimmer is all the way up and lights ... A: Jane, Warm is OK, hot is not, if you have a 600 watt dimmer which is typical, just count up the ... | |
| Ceiling Fan Wiring | 11/5/2007 |
| Q: I bought a ceiling fan to replace the old one installed in one of the bedrooms. I removed the old ... A: Aaron, The group of black wires with the single white wire SHOULD be the "hot" ones, the single ... | |
| converting 220v halogen lamps w/ dimmer to 110v | 11/4/2007 |
| Q: Good evening. I have a few 220v halogen lamps, some with dimmer switch, that were purchased from ... A: yhc, Check out "travel converters" , these are plug in adapters where you could plug a 110 to 220 ... | |
| wiring | 11/3/2007 |
| Q: I put a drill bit through wall into a live wire. (NO harm done to self, thank god for circit ... A: Don, The easiest and best thing is to to try to get some slack in both directions if thats ... | |
| 2 WIRE PLUG | 11/2/2007 |
| Q: I BOUGHT A LANDSCAPING ROCK TYPE 20V SPOT LIGHT FOR MY BACKYARD. WHEN I OPENED THE BOX I FOUND OUT ... A: Brian, It sounds like you may have mistakenly bought a 12 volt landscape light and are trying to ... | |
| Outdoor flood light will not turn off | 11/2/2007 |
| Q: Our outdoor flood light will not turn off. It is controlled by a switch inside the house and/or one ... A: Thelma, What your describing is a 3 way switch setup to control this light fixture. It sounds like ... | |
| wiring a switch | 11/1/2007 |
| Q: OK, so this should have been very easy, however...I have opened up my switch and removed a defective ... A: Liz, From what you have described here's what I think you should do. First make sure the power to ... | |
| Wiring a bathroom exhaust fan from a Single Pole switch | 11/1/2007 |
| Q: I have recently installed two bathroom exhaust fans in two seperate bathrooms. I have ran wiring to ... A: Steve, It depends upon the wiring you have in those existing switch boxes. You may or may not have ... | |
| tripped breaker | 10/30/2007 |
| Q: have a breaker thats keeps tripping even after i disconnected every outlet and switch along that ... A: Robert, Yes, you could have pulled every single splice in that circuit out and not found the ... | |
| GFCI breaker trips when high-drain devices on other branch circuits activate | 10/29/2007 |
| Q: The circuit breaker in my house has me rather confused. There's only one 15-amp GFCI breaker in the ... A: Scott, This is not unusual, for instance in my own home when I run my water pik it inexplicably ... | |
| Circut Breaker | 10/29/2007 |
| Q: I have a 15 amp circuit breaker that will not stay on. The circut is in a loft area with minimal ... A: Your on the right track Jim, you have a "dead" short some where which means where ever the short is ... | |
| Power flickering | 10/28/2007 |
| Q: My power on one branch of my service flickers and goes out quite ofter. was wondering if problems ... A: Robert, Bad connections outside on the utiltys end are quite common and most likely what you are ... | |
| stove wiring | 10/27/2007 |
| Q: I live in country Western Ausrtalia where electricians are quite rare and VERY expensive. I bought a ... A: Rob, Since I'm not there to see I can only speculate as to whats going on. This is my take. It ... | |
| Turn switch on, breaker tripped | 10/26/2007 |
| Q: When I turned on the switch in my master bath, it trips the breaker. I moved in to this house 4 ... A: ......it could be a loose wire in the box or the fixture, it could be a wire thats pinched so that ... | |
| Turn switch on, breaker tripped | 10/26/2007 |
| Q: When I turned on the switch in my master bath, it trips the breaker. I moved in to this house 4 ... A: Nesha, The problem is most likely with the light so it looks like a tall ladder is in order to see ... | |
| Removing Recessed Lighting | 10/25/2007 |
| Q: We just moved into a 1950's home where the previous owner went crazy with the recessed lighting. ... A: Dionna, Yes the cans and their associated wiring can either be pulled down out of the ceiling where ... | |
| Radiant floor heating and GFI issues | 10/24/2007 |
| Q: Our Suntouch radiant floor pad has worked great for 6 months. Now the GFI has tripped according to ... A: Peter, I assume there is some sort of switch or timer that controls the heat in the floor. If you ... | |
| New bath fan trips GFC circuit | 10/24/2007 |
| Q: I currently have a cheap, low power bath fan installed. I am replacing it with a Panasonic ... A: Jeff, That is quite possible. If this fan is like many other fans I've installed , there is a plug ... | |
| base board heaters | 10/23/2007 |
| Q: i am thinking of putting space board heaters in each room of my house. the wiring is 12/2. do i ... A: Lisa, I don't know what kind of electric service you have coming into the house but you would need ... | |
| Power in a Bessa Brick Wall | 10/21/2007 |
| Q: Don't know if this is possible, however I won't know if I don't ask. I live in a three story town ... A: Adrian, Didn't appreciate the 4 my friend , the "duct" or whatever you call it down there is your ... | |
| wiring dishwasher with plug rather than hard wired | 10/20/2007 |
| Q: My dishwasher has a white & black wire, but since I am connecting to a plug (all grey) I don't which ... A: Frank, You must use a 3 wire cable and a "grounding" type plug to connect the dishwasher, it sounds ... | |
| Leviton 6560M timers | 10/20/2007 |
| Q: My house was originally wired w/ 14/2 Romex down to simple mechanical timers for the single fan that ... A: Tony, I'm assuming the exhaust fan is located in an unfinished area such as an attic or crawl space ... | |
| Hardwire converison to Plug | 10/19/2007 |
| Q: (Converted from electric heat & water talk about savings) The installers picked up the electric from ... A: Bob, I would recommend that you use a single pole double throw switch as your means for switching ... | |
| dimming lights | 10/19/2007 |
| Q: We recently moved into a villa. about five days ago,our lights started to go dim and then bright ... A: James, You may have an "open neutral" condition which cause's extreme voltage fluctuations or it ... | |
| Wiring a garbage disposal | 10/17/2007 |
| Q: I feel stupid, but have an existing garbage disposal and am replacing it. When I went to connect ... A: Matt, There should be a small wiring compartment on the bottom of the disposal that has a small ... | |
| Honeywell RTH6300B thermostat | 10/15/2007 |
| Q: Ugh. In wall I have O,R,Y,G,C,W. Counted number of wires (per instructions) not including C. Have ... A: OK thats good, if you look at the back of the existing thermostat where the wires are screwed to the ... | |
| 240 volt power | 10/14/2007 |
| Q: We have just moved to the US from Australia and we had some appliances shipped over including our ... A: Sally, You can't safely do that because the power strip will then be fused higher than it should ... | |
| intermittent drilling/buzzing sound in wall | 10/13/2007 |
| Q: Help! Before we start breaking down the walls we need to get idea what this noise can be! This ... A: May, It sounds like you've covered all the bases but still have no answer and I must say I'm ... | |
| Dead circuit - no power in 2 rooms | 10/12/2007 |
| Q: I live in an older house that uses fuses (not breakers). Much of the house has very old wire but I ... A: Roger, The rats are usually just interested in the insulation and not the wire so I doubt there's a ... | |
| Quad receptacle wiring | 10/11/2007 |
| Q: I have installed a plastic QUAD electrical box which is in the middle of a run. I therefore have 2 ... A: Philip, While there is nothing wrong with doing it the Building inspectors way, there is nothing ... | |
| hot tub | 10/7/2007 |
| Q: My problem is that when I go to test the gfci 50amp breaker out by the hot tub it will not cut the ... A: Jim, Since I can't assume anything I have to ask you if the breaker has power applied to it when ... | |
| dog fence | 10/5/2007 |
| Q: i have cut the buried wire of my dog's invisible dog fence with an aerator doing yard work. i don't ... A: Joel, There is specialized equipment to find a problem like this quickly and you have to know how ... | |
| GFCI Wiring | 10/4/2007 |
| Q: I am having trouble installing a GFCI recepticle in our bathroom. The load after the GFCI are 2 - 3 ... A: Tom, Just keep things as they were before installing the GFI and don't use the "load" terminals on ... | |
| Light switch | 10/3/2007 |
| Q: I have a wall with a light switch currently installed (and working). I would like to place a light ... A: Jeremy, Measure so that the new switch box will be next to the existing and leave an inch between ... | |
| Wiring with two on/off switches | 10/1/2007 |
| Q: I have a light at the bottom of the stairs to the basement that is controlled by a switch at the top ... A: Bill, If I'm reading you right your trying to install an additional light fixture that you want ... | |
| New kitchen lights | 9/20/2006 |
| Q: I recently removed an early 80s recessed flood light with 3 smaller, lower voltage recessed lights ... A: Ryan.....this typically can be caused by the refrigerator when it first comes on or an air ... | |
| GFI Wiring | 9/19/2006 |
| Q: I recenty moved into a 15 year old home in KC that has GFI protection in all bathrooms and outdoor ... A: John, Yes you can do that but if there is no GFI breaker or GFI receptacles on the counter as you ... | |
| light switch not working properly | 9/18/2006 |
| Q: Light switch have two wires, one red and one black. When tested with a wire tester, there seems to ... A: Bob......if you are putting the leads of the tester across the two terminals on the switch when it ... | |
| Garage Secondary Panel Mounting | 9/17/2006 |
| Q: I am planning to mount a secondary panel in my new-construction garage. I've seen some conflicting ... A: .... I know of no "new construction" situation where you can not recess the panel into a framed ... | |
| wiring garage | 11/6/2005 |
| Q: Hey Bob, I'm wiring a garage. No major equipment will be used in the garage. Can I run a no.8 wire ... A: Matt, Yes you can and you want to run 4 wire cable. I also recomend you get an acessory ground ... | |
| switch replacement | 11/5/2005 |
| Q: I have a timer switch that controls my front outside light fixtures (three). The switch is ... A: Roger, Yes you can replace the timer with a regular 1 pole switch (two terminals). Switches have ... | |
| flickering lights | 6/2/2005 |
| Q: Since I'm originally from the old East Paterson in Bergen County, I'm hopeful you'll bring me luck ... A: I think we can bring you a little luck ;> By the way I'm originally from Tenafly which has changed ... | |
| WIRING CEILING FAN/LIGHT | 5/31/2005 |
| Q: I am in the process of replacing a ceiling fan/light in my kitchen. I took the old one down already ... A: John, Sorry about the lapse in getting back to you but All Experts doesn't always notify me when I ... | |
| wiring | 5/23/2005 |
| Q: In Baltimore City, Md most homes are 100 years old and I was wondering what can happen to the wiring ... A: Al, Basically the things that wear out in an electrical system are the devices such as switches, ... | |
| Wiring bathroom exhaust fan | 5/16/2005 |
| Q: I am from Monroe, Ohio and here is my dilemna. I just installed an exhaust fan in the bathroom of my ... A: Jennifer, If there is one cable going to the light over the tub then it should work and it may ... | |
| junction box | 5/15/2005 |
| Q: This is my last question-honest! I spoke to my electrician. apparently i didn't describe the problem ... A: Josh, No problem.....and I don't put limitations on honest questions . Ok I would go with the ... | |
| junction box | 5/13/2005 |
| Q: I hope you can help me. I just purchased a house and have since discovered that the wiring is messed ... A: Josh, If your house is wired with Armored (metal outer covering) cable , there is no tester that ... | |
| Exhaust Fan | 5/12/2005 |
| Q: Bob, I am running power in my attic from an outlet to the bathroom ehaust fan. Where do the black ... A: John, Here's the simplest way to approasch this: You can run a two wire cable from the receptacle ... | |
| electrical switches | 4/30/2005 |
| Q: I have a new combination single pole double switch, that has one black connection and two white ... A: Mark, If both devices are single pole "double switch's", then yes. You will notice on the new one ... | |
| sawdust on recessed lights | 4/22/2005 |
| Q: I installed twelve 4" IC Halo lights and needed to cut a piece of non-structural wood in the attic ... A: Rollie, Until such time as pigs fly or Hell freezes over its not a concern. IC rated cans are ... | |
| motion detector light | 4/21/2005 |
| Q: Outdoor light -Texas- works periodically. Why would the photocell only work part of the time? 2lamp ... A: Bill, I don't know how old this unit is but its been my experience with Heath Zenith that it isn't ... | |
| Fluorescent lighting | 4/20/2005 |
| Q: Mr. Mossman, I have fluorescent lighting in the kitchen. There are 5 receptacles located under the ... A: Ajay, Florescent lights are a pain in the neck when it come's to trouble shooting them. Basically ... | |
| Renovation Questions | 4/19/2005 |
| Q: I'm located in Lebanon, Missouri. I own my home and it is in great need of renovation. My home ... A: Tim, Basically you have to drill your way into them from either the basement or the attic. The ... | |
| Radiant Heat | 4/18/2005 |
| Q: I am considering an electrical radiant heating system in my bathroom. The product is claiming to be ... A: Howard, Yes, radiant heat in the floor is more efficent in the sense that it distributes the heat ... | |
| Renovation Questions | 4/15/2005 |
| Q: I'm located in Lebanon, Missouri. I own my home and it is in great need of renovation. My home ... A: Tim, Sorry this is getting to you rather late by my standards but every once in a while I'm not ... | |
| recessed lighting | 4/14/2005 |
| Q: Recessed lighting- 15 can lights with 60 watt flood lamps on a 20 amp circuit. The problem is the ... A: Tom, Check the "rated" hours these lamps have. In other words how many hours these lamps should ... | |
| recessed lighting | 4/12/2005 |
| Q: Recessed lighting- 15 can lights with 60 watt flood lamps on a 20 amp circuit. The problem is the ... A: Tom, If these recessed lights are approx 10 years old or older the sockets are most likely worn out ... | |
| French Chandelier | 4/11/2005 |
| Q: I am from Orlando Florida. I have recently purchased 3 French Chandeliers from a friend. She bought ... A: Raul, Its not clear why the chandeliers were tripping the breakers. Maybe they were hooked up ... | |
| Business | 4/7/2005 |
| Q: I'm starting my own Electrical business what is the best thing for getting started like advertising? ... A: Wally, Basically 3 things: Eye catching business cards to hand out or post anywhere and everywhere. ... | |
| 200amp sub/100amp main | 4/6/2005 |
| Q: I would like to take avantage of your experience once more, if you don't mind. I am out of space for ... A: Jim, No problem. Yes you could do it that way and still be safe. Obviously the new panel can only ... | |
| 100amp servive/pool heater | 4/5/2005 |
| Q: I have a 100 amp service in my home an am concidering adding a heat pump for the pool ( 40 amps) my ... A: Jim, Given the numbers you gave me you will be flirting with the total capacity your service can ... | |
| Electric wiring 3 way switch in old home | 4/3/2005 |
| Q: From Eastern PA near New Hope. I want to replace an old 3 way switch with a new one. 1. The wires ... A: The key to changing a 3 way switch and not screw it up is by determining which wire on the existing ... | |
| fire hazard? | 4/2/2005 |
| Q: Don't know if you're up @ this hour, but I sure could use your help! (I'm in Dallas, by the way.) ... A: No you don't have to worry about a fire plus I'm sure the plumber in addition to turning the water ... | |
| Dimming lights | 4/1/2005 |
| Q: When the washing machine starts up, all the house lights dim and blink ever so slightly. When the ... A: James, The main neutral connection has most likely been compromised in the main panel or the meter ... | |
| Oven controlling power to circuit | 3/28/2005 |
| Q: Strange? Everything was working okay, Wife cooking dinner. Main breaker trips. I go to box and flip ... A: Kelvin, Half of your main breaker has most likely gone bad which kills half your panel except when ... | |
| Outside Electric Wires | 3/23/2005 |
| Q: We purchased an older home 5 years ago and have been running unusaly high power bills.We have ... A: Terry, Every so often I don't get notification from All Experts that I have a question to answer ... | |
| Atmospheric Dinnning | 3/22/2005 |
| Q: I'm from Montvale, New Jersey...where are you from? It is my understanding that we have a "home ... A: I'm from a place called Edgewood. I spend a lot of my time there. Maybe you've heard of it. Ok, ... | |
| Recessed lighting | 3/21/2005 |
| Q: I've got some old ('60's) recessed lights that now have newer smaller and *shorter* bulbs in them ... A: David, Yes and its called a "socket extender". You might find them at HD or Lowes but if not a good ... | |
| 220 Vs 110 | 3/20/2005 |
| Q: I am in Milwaukee Wisconsin. (Cold winters). I am going to add some electric baseboard heaters in ... A: Rick, There will be no appreciable savings. Wattage is wattage no matter how you slice it with ... | |
| Wiring Upgrade Follow Up | 3/17/2005 |
| Q: Bob, You helped me earlier with a question regarding the upgrade of some old wiring in my ... A: Phil, If what your saying is you have "metal armored cable" in that box which does not have a ... | |
| Ceiling Light | 3/11/2005 |
| Q: Bob, I have a pull chain celling light that no longer works in my laundry room. There is no switch ... A: Lisa, The wiring for your pull chain is either 14 gauge or 12 gauge. Most likely it is 14 gauge. If ... | |
| remote controlled ceiling fans | 3/10/2005 |
| Q: Most of the ceiling fans with light kits that I like have a remote control included. I do not like ... A: Bill, All the major manufacturers of paddle fans such as Casa Blanca, Hampton Bay, and Hunter offer ... | |
| Florescent light add-on | 3/8/2005 |
| Q: I will try that configuration when I get up there this weekend. However, another electrician told me ... A: Kevin, You can if your tapping into the box in the 3 way system where the "feed" is. You see a 3 ... | |
| Florescent light add-on | 3/7/2005 |
| Q: Here is the situation: 3-year-old house Basement location 3-way switch controlling 4 incandescent ... A: Kevin, If you ran a 2 wire cable (black and white wire)to the new switch you may have connected the ... | |
| Electrical pool lighting | 3/5/2005 |
| Q: Phoenix, AZ Hi Bob, I have a unique question. I am replastering a swimming pool very soon, the pool ... A: Bob, I don't know how old your pool is but the conduit that runs from the "shell" the light sits ... | |
| A dimmer switch | 3/2/2005 |
| Q: You must be really good with electrical currents. My question is, "How do I add/apply/install...I'm ... A: Your quite welcome and its my pleasure. "Install" would be the most correct term here. You would ... | |
| switch wall plate is hot. | 3/2/2005 |
| Q: I installed 7 cans into my basement ceiling. I have 85 watt bulbs in each. They are hooked into a ... A: Patrick, You need to do one of two things: Either cut back on the wattage in your lamps to 75 watts ... | |
| open netrual wire | 3/2/2005 |
| Q: Receptacle in washrrom not working, plued in a tester and it said it had a open netrual wire. What ... A: John, Open the box and check all the connections there. Make sure they are all tight with no signs ... | |
| BAseboard heater wiring | 3/1/2005 |
| Q: Would this set up be acceptable to install two 8 foot baseboard heaters (2000 watts each)on the same ... A: Jerry, Its fine except for the 20 amp breaker. You would use a 30 amp 2 pole breaker for # 10. A 20 ... | |
| Basement Wiring | 2/28/2005 |
| Q: Bob, I am in the beginning stages of partially finishing my basement. I will be adding one new ... A: Phil, You can, just make sure your matching the size of the existing circuits with your new lines. ... | |
| neutral bar bridge | 2/26/2005 |
| Q: when i had the 100amp svc installed the neutral bar bridge was missing from one side of panel to ... A: Mike, Absolutely. With out getting overly technical with AC theory basically what happens in this ... | |
| Adding socket and rerouting kitchen lines | 2/24/2005 |
| Q: We just bought our first townhouse, and we can't afford to hire a contractor right now. I'm pretty ... A: Aja, We know you can get what you need from the panel so I think thats your best bet. You could tie ... | |
| sub panel in barn | 2/23/2005 |
| Q: I'm in the planning stage of running electric to a barn behind my house. The distance from panel to ... A: Mark, It all looks good but I have a couple recomendations. Use 2" PVC with at least 24" radius ... | |
| Home Telephone Wiring | 2/22/2005 |
| Q: I just wanted to ask you a question about home telphone wiring. Last year the man that cut my grass ... A: Angela, Yes you can do that and you should be fine. Just splice them back color for color. Believe ... | |
| electrical service in the garage | 2/18/2005 |
| Q: I am living in Houston Texas in a home that is 2.5 years old. We have a three car detached garage ... A: Paul, I understand that you'd like to add a few receptacles to your garage but beyond that I don't ... | |
| Installing a ceiling Fan | 2/16/2005 |
| Q: I have a mobile home and I want to replace the old ceiling fan with a new one. I know I need to make ... A: I'm glad to hear you know enough to turn off the "juice" and be safe. Thats good. What I see being ... | |
| Installing a subpanel | 2/15/2005 |
| Q: The house I just moved into has a dedicated 30 amp line for a dryer. I don't need it because I have ... A: Jim, Yes you can do it but you will be short 1 wire (hot)and there fore not be able to operate any ... | |
| recessed light | 2/13/2005 |
| Q: I have a recessed light over my kitchen sink. I would like to replace it with a hanging fixture. ... A: Mark, I just saw this thing recently on E-Bay. I've never used one myself but its designed to ... | |
| Fuses | 2/12/2005 |
| Q: Why do kitchen circuits have double fuse protection and is it really necessary? A: Joe, I'm assuming your refering to GFI receptacles in the kitchen. Yes they are necessary and ... | |
| Home Electrical Problem | 2/11/2005 |
| Q: The lights in some of the rooms in my house are flickering. Then my oil burner shut down. I ... A: George, I just got a notification from All Experts that said there was a question for me over 3 ... | |
| ADDING AN OUTLET | 2/8/2005 |
| Q: I'LD LIKE TO ADD AN OUTLET.I'M ABOUT 3 FEET FROM A 3WAY SWITCH THAT I'LD LIKE TO TIE INTO.I WANT THE ... A: Randy , It is possible but the "feed" must be in this particular box to do what you want. Depending ... | |
| Fish tank heater | 2/7/2005 |
| Q: AR area. At our previous house we had a fish tank set up and the heater (in the tank) worked fine. ... A: It doesn't sound like its the heaters to me. Try plugging them into another receptacle that you know ... | |
| backfeed on neutral? | 2/5/2005 |
| Q: Got my self a head scratcher here Bob ,Maybe you can help. I have a c-10 but the reason I have any ... A: Kevin, If what you are doing is opening the neutrals while still having your hot wires connected, ... | |
| lights dim when laser heat circuit comes on | 2/4/2005 |
| Q: my son has two bedrooms and a bathroom on one 15 amp breaker. One bedroom is an office and has two ... A: Jeff, It doesn't surprise me that the lights are dimming. You've got a lot on that circuit and its ... | |
| Lights Flickering | 2/3/2005 |
| Q: This just started happening this week. Has never done this before. Our household lights flicker ... A: Tina, When you say strongly I'm assuming you mean that the lights alternately get very bright then ... | |
| Recessed Light Keeps Burning Out | 2/2/2005 |
| Q: I have a switch that is connected to a wall socket, I had a handyman tie into that wiring and ... A: Carol, The majority of the time when lamps start burning out prematurly its due to an aging fixture ... | |
| Quick Question | 2/1/2005 |
| Q: I'm starting to take HVAC in school and we're working with ele. schematics, and i'm to embarrased to ... A: Skyler, Don't be embarrased to ask your teacher a legitimate question. Your in school to learn and ... | |
| electrical specs | 1/31/2005 |
| Q: how many electrical outlets and lights can u run off of one breaker and what size? A: Kirk, Here's how I do it. As a rule (my rule) I don't mix receptacles with lighting. The Code says ... | |
| 220 garage outlet | 1/30/2005 |
| Q: I have just moved into a rental property that has a detached garage. The garage has about 6 lights ... A: Richard, If there is no sub panel in the garage I doubt it but you may have a shot. It also depends ... | |
| make an extention cord | 1/29/2005 |
| Q: First of all I am from Ivor Virginia. My question is how can I make an extention cord for my lincoln ... A: Mike, If I understand you correctly your welder has a 3 wire male plug on the end of the cord ... | |
| Flickering lights | 1/28/2005 |
| Q: I have and 85 year old home in florida that was rewired two years ago. The two new boxes do not ... A: Dan, When you say "very rapidly" would it be more accurate to say the lights get alternately ... | |
| toe kick heater | 1/26/2005 |
| Q: I would like to know what would be the best way to hook up the electric to this unit they offer,a ... A: Charlie, If you want the most heat ( highest wattage out put = most heat) you have to hook it up ... | |
| Main Service Panel | 1/24/2005 |
| Q: Bob, Thank you for your quick and informative answers to my questions. I tried to write back ... A: .......No problem Marie, if you need to do another follow up write me @ my personal address ... | |
| Dimming Fluorescent light bank | 1/23/2005 |
| Q: I am thinking about installing some cove fluorescent lighting on each side of my new house addition. ... A: Brian, Like incandescent lighting there are different size dimmers given the number of lights to be ... | |
| Outdoor Security Lighting | 1/23/2005 |
| Q: I'm from Warren, In. My wife and I own a home in the country and we would like to install an ... A: Barry, Any one of the 3 will be cost effective when it comes to efficiency. The one best suited to ... | |
| Main Service Panel | 1/22/2005 |
| Q: We are building a single floor house in the state of Delaware. We are going to purchase a main ... A: The general consensus of opinion among electricians I know is that Square D makes the best breaker. ... | |
| Ceiling Fan | 1/21/2005 |
| Q: I have a ceiling fan that won't turn off by pulling the chain or the wall switch, I have to shut it ... A: Sean, Most likely the pull switch is bad that controls the speed of the fan and turns it on and ... | |
| Wiring of 2-pole Lutron Grafik Eye | 1/20/2005 |
| Q: I want to run dedicated service for a multizone dimmer that I recently purchased and I'm a little ... A: John, No its not, its the same animal. 12-3 is what you want to use if thats what your existing ... | |
| Home Rewiring | 1/19/2005 |
| Q: Bob - I am 78 yr old female and have lived in my 50 yr. old group home for 40 yrs. I have ... A: I'm sure you don't need to rewire the house don't worry. The wires may be a bit frayed up there but ... | |
| Wiring new addition to the house | 1/18/2005 |
| Q: Hope you had a happy holiday season. I am constructing an addition to the back of the house which ... A: The holidays were great as always with family and good friends. Hope they were the same for you. ... | |
| Panel | 1/17/2005 |
| Q: I am adding a 220 line for a hot tub I've done this type of wiring before with no problem. The ... A: First let me know what size service you have now, 60 , 100, 150 or 200 amps ? and how many circuits. ... | |
| Chandelier install problems | 1/15/2005 |
| Q: I'm from Seattle, WA. My husband and I installed a replacement chandelier and found when we removed ... A: Nothing like those Senior moments.......anyway connect white to white and red to the black wire ... | |
| Confusing light fixture | 1/11/2005 |
| Q: Installing track lightning with 3 black and 3 white wires(1 for each bulb).The existing box in the ... A: Jo, What your describing as being track light heads is apparrantly something else. Track light ... | |
| Confusing light fixture | 1/10/2005 |
| Q: Installing track lightning with 3 black and 3 white wires(1 for each bulb).The existing box in the ... A: Jo, You need to clarify a couple things for me. Please explain in detail what you mean when you ... | |
| Dead Outlets | 1/8/2005 |
| Q: I have several outlets in my house that are dead. I have checked all the breakers in the panel. I ... A: Ralph, Unfortunately there is no easy way to tell where the wires go. What I'd like you to do is ... | |
| How to reset the outlet power connection? | 1/6/2005 |
| Q: Two days ago, the outlets of one portion of my home(in kichen) cut off the power supply. One of the ... A: Vijay, Try pushing in the button that says reset and you SHOULD get your receptacles working again. ... | |
| 220 Breaker | 1/2/2005 |
| Q: I have a Cutler-Hammer CH8125SP panel in my garage and I believe it is 100 amps. Currently it has 2 ... A: Mark, At 240 volts you can run a total of 4 thousand watts or less on a 12-2 (20 amps) circuit. As ... | |
| Wall switch not controlling lights on ceiling fan | 1/1/2005 |
| Q: Greetings from Bremerton, WA! I recently inherited my childhood house and have been performing some ... A: Wolf man, Greetings to you from New Jersey. Make sure the lamps are good in the fixture and also ... | |
| Wiring in a home power generator | 12/31/2004 |
| Q: I live in Santa Cruz mountains of California. My 24 year old Generator died last week. We have lots ... A: Ron, The reason the new plug has 4 prongs VS 3 on your old setup is the neutral and ground wire ... | |
| dryer recepticle | 12/29/2004 |
| Q: I live in an apartment and the dryer receptacle is right in the middle of the kitchen, to increase ... A: Cheryl, You can certainly do what you want. Dryer circuits almost always utilize 10 AWG wire or to ... | |
| 110V lamps in 220V country | 12/28/2004 |
| Q: We just moved to India and I brought my lamps with me. I know I need to adapt the plug to fit here ... A: Cheryl, If you do what you did while living in Europe the lamps will indeed work but what you have ... | |
| Add fluorescent light to existing wall outlet | 12/27/2004 |
| Q: I want to add a 24" undercabinet GE fluorescent light in my kitchen, and I want to run the wire to ... A: Joe, You can do one of two things legally and safely: Run the wire as it is on the surface and ... | |
| wiring for a spa/hot tub | 12/26/2004 |
| Q: I am from central Florida. For Christmas, we have purchased a portable spa/hot tub to be placed in ... A: Rick, You also need to find out how many amps this unit takes at 240 volts which I assume is the ... | |
| main panel | 12/23/2004 |
| Q: How can I tell how many amps my main panel is ? it has 12 spaces in total and one really big main ... A: Paul, Your panel and main breaker are actually two separate items with their own ratings. When they ... | |
| Wiring with Steel Studs | 12/22/2004 |
| Q: From Ontario Canada - I am wiring my basement and have used steel studs to frame. I am looking for ... A: Richard, I don't know if Home Depot has found its way into Canada or not but you will find them in ... | |
| Bathroom fan and lighting | 12/21/2004 |
| Q: Bob -- I purchased an exhaust fan and a light fixture to go into a bathroom over where a medicine ... A: Frank, The reason the fan worked was because it was picking up the neutral through the light ... | |
| Killing Appliances | 12/20/2004 |
| Q: I just moved into a house that was built in 1964. It has the original fuse box. So far in three ... A: Derek, It sounds like you may have an "open neutral" condition where the voltage at your outlets ... | |
| Cook top with 3 wires instead of 4 | 12/18/2004 |
| Q: I am in Vancouver, BC. We just a new cooktop to replace the old ones. When we opened the cooktop ... A: Liu, Apparantly this cook top only requires 240 volts to operate thus only the red, black, and ... | |
| Fan / Light bathroom circuit | 12/16/2004 |
| Q: Good day Mr. Mossman! Hi, I will first say I have zero experience in home wiring, but should be able ... A: Good day to you Ben, I'm not doubting your willingness to dive into this but getting the new cable ... | |
| power usage | 12/15/2004 |
| Q: I live in port angeles wa. I have a tennant living in my older two bdrm. rental he is complaining ... A: Mike, Your theories are most likely whats going on. Even name brand bulbs today burn out quickly ... | |
| house with no grounding wire | 12/14/2004 |
| Q: I live in Pleasanton CA. My house was built in 1972. I am replacing a ceiling light and have found ... A: Yes your correct the metal tube is the "grounding" means and you can prove it by using a tester and ... | |
| 3-way switches with ceiling fans. | 12/11/2004 |
| Q: I am working on some new construction in my home and my ceiling fans have me baffled. I have two ... A: Kevin, No problem your going to put this together like a champ. For now you need to get either ... | |
| Recessed light can-stud interference | 12/10/2004 |
| Q: I would like to install a recessed light fixture right where a ceiling stud is. Unlucky! What do you ... A: Marshall, Reframing the ceiling to accomadate a recessed light is insanity to me but if you have ... | |
| 230V wiring | 12/9/2004 |
| Q: Mossman, I bought an air compressor that works with 230 volts. I already have a 230v outlet for my ... A: Alfredo, Saving money when you can is always a good thing. Tell me what the "name plate" ... | |
| Replacement Outlet with Aluminum Wiring | 12/8/2004 |
| Q: My house was built about 35 years ago and has all aluminum wiring (!). I need to replace a duplex ... A: Larry, Yea I'd be a little excited knowing I had aluminum wiring in my house but you can make it ... | |
| Tripping Circuit Breaker | 12/7/2004 |
| Q: First, the breaker has now gone 1 1/2 weeks without tripping. Second, I've isolated everything on ... A: Jim, At this point I would say this circuit has a lot on it either known or unknown and its more ... | |
| christmas lights | 12/6/2004 |
| Q: A string of my mini christmas lights are not working. I have a bulb tester and every bulb seems to ... A: Jeffery, Assuming there is nothing wrong with the bulbs the only thing left is a connection problem ... | |
| Electrical circuit problem | 12/5/2004 |
| Q: Noticed smoke coming from the stereo receiver. Quickly unplugged. Lights on the same circuit as ... A: Peter, You have a potentially dangerous "open neutral" which is most likely on your utilitys end. ... | |
| 3 speed fan installation | 12/4/2004 |
| Q: G'day Bob, I'm having trouble wiring up the controller switch for my 3 speed fan/light. To help ... A: Bob, Greetings and G'day to you "down under". I must say you get high marks for presentation of ... | |
| pvc conduit in long island new york | 12/3/2004 |
| Q: Im an electrician in nyc doing work on my buddys house in nassau county which is covered by the nec. ... A: Mike, Sched 40 is fine though PVC especially 1/2" and 3/4" will probably not stay very straight on ... | |
| Tripping Circuit Breaker | 12/2/2004 |
| Q: I live in Southeastern Michigan, and have been having a problem in my home with a 15AMP circuit ... A: Jim, I tried answering this last night but for some reason it wouldn't go through. Anyway since ... | |
| Installing a used electric range | 12/1/2004 |
| Q: I'm in San Diego and seem to have the reverse problem/question from anyone else with a similar ... A: Aaron, If you switched to a 4 wire plug on the stove you would have needed it but since your ... | |
| outdoor lighting problem | 11/30/2004 |
| Q: I had a double outlet box run out to my back yard with an electric eye or light sensor on it. I ... A: Sandy, If the photo cell is controlling both duplex receptacles in the "double box" the power to ... | |
| old outlets | 11/29/2004 |
| Q: My son is thinking about buying a house built in 1965. The panel is fuses. All the outlets in the ... A: Gene, You should be fine just check to make sure these boxes are grounded. To do that Pull out any ... | |
| Outdoor receptacle problem | 11/26/2004 |
| Q: I have an outdoor receptacle on a circuit with 2 basement lights. With a multitester I am getting ... A: John, The neutral connection (white wire) has been lost or compromised some where along the ... | |
| Electric Heating | 11/25/2004 |
| Q: I live in Palmyra, PA. I have overhead electric heating and no ceiling lights. I would like to ... A: Melvin, There is an instument that detects voltage without making physical contact. Its a voltage ... | |
| amps/wattage | 11/24/2004 |
| Q: Bob, what was the website for the 12 v heat pads? Larry B A: Larry. Please excuse my alzheimers, I meant to include the below address. If you "paste" it into ... | |
| amps/wattage | 11/23/2004 |
| Q: I have been considering using a 12 v DC voltage converter on my lawn tractor, to operate an AC ... A: Mr. Burns, Keeping your ass warm while plowing in the middle of a snow storm sounds like a great ... | |
| Bob: Our bathroom light... | 11/21/2004 |
| Q: Bob: Our bathroom light flickered then came on over a period of about a week and a half. Then, ... A: Mike, Just make doubly sure you don't have a tripped breaker. Sometimes a breaker can be tripped ... | |
| running 220 volt for baseboard heat | 11/20/2004 |
| Q: i,m from yonkers n.y.I am running a romex 12/2 w/ground wire for baseboard heat,my question is: The ... A: Mike, If you only have one panel and the main breaker is in that panel and there is no main breaker ... | |
| wiring amps and changes | 11/17/2004 |
| Q: I recently bought a house in Montana. I've discovered that most the circuits are 20 amp and 12/2 ... A: Kurt, The 15 amp switches and receptacle's are fine and legal. There is no danger what so ever. As ... | |
| New Light | 11/15/2004 |
| Q: I have a dark hallway that I would like to light up. There is a smoke detedtor in the ceiling(it is ... A: John, I don't recomend messing with the smoke detector if you don't have to. You have to cut a ... | |
| changed switch-power didn't return | 11/14/2004 |
| Q: I replaced a single-pole double switch (upgraded to Decora rocker-panel) that controls 2 separate ... A: DB Always good to help out a fellow Garden Stater. OK we have to start from scratch here. Take all ... | |
| ceiling lights go off and on | 11/11/2004 |
| Q: College Station, Texas Our recessed ceiling lights sometimes go off and on a few times before ... A: Rita, It SHOULD only be a coincidence with those two lights burning out. I'm assuming that you've ... | |
| electrcal circuit problems | 11/8/2004 |
| Q: A friend is having trouble which just seemed to erupt. He can't point to any incident which caused ... A: Dick, Your friend has an "open neutral" condition which is quite common and not safe either. What ... | |
| 220 volt extension cord | 11/7/2004 |
| Q: I have a 220 volt welder and would like to run a 15 foot extension cord from my three prong dryer ... A: Gary, You have to get a duplicate male plug like the one on the welder and also its female ... | |
| I have an 80 year old house... | 11/5/2004 |
| Q: I have an 80 year old house with the old type wiring that is held to the posts in the walls with ... A: Mike, Given the age of the insulation on the wires I wouldn't tape them together. Running them both ... | |
| romex support | 11/4/2004 |
| Q: I am from Roxbury Connecticut. Recently I built a barn. What started out to be a workshop with ... A: Nate, You can't bundle those Romex "home runs" together, you have to staple them individually to ... | |
| Wiring Panasonic-Vent,light,heat,nightlight | 11/3/2004 |
| Q: I have a wiring scenario that isn't working properly. I've installed a Panasonic Bathroom ... A: Ernie, This is a particularly hairy situation wiring one of these things for a home owner, ... | |
| wiring 2 way switch | 10/31/2004 |
| Q: St Charles, MO. I'm trying to install a switch to turn lights off and on from different locations. ... A: Ken, Let me explain something. I've been answering questions here at All Experts for almost 2 and a ... | |
| Combination Receptacle | 10/27/2004 |
| Q: I am a maintenance engineer in Charleston, SC and I was wondering if it would be possible to replace ... A: Whats up Charlie, Its definitely possible but you need to be able to access the neutral (white ... | |
| Electrical Conversion | 10/25/2004 |
| Q: I live in NJ My home uses a fuse box What would be the cost to convert to a circuit breaker and ... A: Glenn, You can upgrade to 150 amps 30 circuit capacity or 200 amp 40 circuit capacity. If your ... | |
| Sconce Lighting | 10/21/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I am building a home theater in my basement and I wanted to put sconces on the walls. What is ... A: Mike, The 6'-6" mark is based on an 8'+ ceiling height, so even at 7'-9" your only 3 inches off ... | |
| residential wiring/remodeling | 10/19/2004 |
| Q: My son (inMaryland) is having some extensive remodelingwork done. The contractor keeps doing things ... A: Alan, Section 210.5(B) requires two or MORE 20 ampere circuits for all receptacle outlets for the ... | |
| electrical | 10/16/2004 |
| Q: We recently bought rental property and have done some remodeling. The property had a stove that came ... A: Dan, By any chance did someone turn the stove on while it was unplugged. If so when you plugged it ... | |
| Phase tripping in 3 phase circuit | 10/15/2004 |
| Q: Sir, I've now understood about rotary Phase changer.What we have is a static one,having three ... A: Ashok, Without actually seeing what you have its very difficult for me to say whats really going ... | |
| Phase tripping in 3 phase circuit | 10/14/2004 |
| Q: Sir, Thanks for your reply.I didn't understand what do you mean by 'static' or 'Rotary'type in ... A: Ashok, A rotary phase converter involves a 3 phase motor as part of the conversion unit. A static ... | |
| Phase tripping in 3 phase circuit | 10/13/2004 |
| Q: Sir, We have a Phase Changer circuit(three phase) in our house,where the three phases been ... A: Ashok, They make "rotary" phase converters and "static" phase converters. You didn't say which one ... | |
| my switch isnt working | 10/12/2004 |
| Q: " I had a plug that did not work to well you had to wigle the wire in order for it to work rite so I ... A: Mike, Tell your wife for me to give you credit for at least trying, you only missed getting this ... | |
| home wiring | 10/11/2004 |
| Q: From Vienna, VA. Pulled outlet from wall, black wire slipped out, touching metal casing, causing, I ... A: Gary, Check your breakers again. They can all appear to be on but there may be one that is tripped ... | |
| odor in the house | 10/7/2004 |
| Q: I had my kitchen remodeled and ever since then, I notice an odor from time to time in different ... A: Sara, I seriously doubt it especially if your noticing it in different parts of your house. If it ... | |
| Extremely bright lights | 10/6/2004 |
| Q: Recently my refrigerator went out. A friend of mine is an electrician and he said that momentarily ... A: Christina, Your symptoms definitely reflect an "open neutral" condition and this must be addressed ... | |
| One Circuit out | 10/5/2004 |
| Q: I have one circuit that went out in my home. The circuit involved is the garage outlets(110V), and ... A: Dave, Double check the breakers by turning each one firmly off, then back on again firmly. ... | |
| GFI Switches? | 10/2/2004 |
| Q: Bob, Perhaps I wasn't clear. The box in question contains TWO switches and NO outlets. I have ... A: Jim, There is no duplex GFI protected switch that I am aware of. What you would have to do is ... | |
| Outdoor lighting fixtures | 9/30/2004 |
| Q: Bob. Glad I read your comments before jumping in here, or I probably wouldn't have thought to say ... A: Good morning David, You may have BX or armored cable in which case there is no separate ground ... | |
| ceiling fan wiring | 9/29/2004 |
| Q: I am installing a bedroom ceiling fan and the instructions show 3 wires coming from the ceiling box, ... A: Steven, It depends. You might have 2 switches that control this ceiling box. Since you didn't say I ... | |
| Need to update? | 9/28/2004 |
| Q: I live in Texas. My question is do we need to update the electrical in this house? We retired and ... A: Billie, That all depends upon the overall condition of your entire electrical system and what your ... | |
| ceiling fan | 9/26/2004 |
| Q: I had a ceiling fan installed. It is controlled by a rotary wall switch like a dimmer. Two problems ... A: Paul, The rotary wall switch must be of the type for controlling paddle fans. If its a dimmer for ... | |
| Weird Shower Light Problem | 9/25/2004 |
| Q: I'm from La Crosse, WI, and I'm having a very odd problem. I hired an electrician to install a ... A: Tim, Yes it is possible but you have to be careful with those cheap neon testers. They don't always ... | |
| wiring new wall oven to old oven connection | 9/24/2004 |
| Q: Bob- I have a new wall oven to install that is four wire, but my old wall oven is only three wire. ... A: John, Ok, you can use this cable even though it only has 3 wires. The braided bare wires you will ... | |
| 300A service? | 9/23/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I am about to wire my own house and have done a load calculation that produced a 217 amp ... A: Bryan, I don't know about your utility but here in NJ Public Service offers a 300 amp meter pan for ... | |
| wiring new wall oven to old oven connection | 9/22/2004 |
| Q: Bob- I have a new wall oven to install that is four wire, but my old wall oven is only three wire. ... A: John, Please describe the cable thats coming out of the wall. Does it have a metal outer covering ... | |
| Counter Attack halogen light fixtures | 9/21/2004 |
| Q: In your answer to Melanie on 5/2/04 regarding "Installing under cabinet halogen lights," you ... A: Liz, The only place I know of where you can get these lights is where I get them. Krell Lighting in ... | |
| troubleshooting circuits | 9/20/2004 |
| Q: What is the best way to find out where the wiring to dead outlets come from? I have several dead ... A: Ralph, The best thing you can do is give me the whole picture. What preceeded these outlets going ... | |
| 3-Way Switch Problem | 9/19/2004 |
| Q: I'm from Massachusetts. I recently re-wired two three way switches that were controlling an outlet, ... A: Eric, It's not exactly clear to me what you mean when you say the whole circuit went "banana's". ... | |
| three way switched outlets | 9/16/2004 |
| Q: I'm looking for a diagram/explanation of how to wire my barn (I'm in IL) so that I have a switch at ... A: Its not clear to me as to exactly how you want all this to work. I know you want 2 switches but you ... | |
| 3way to 2 way switch | 9/13/2004 |
| Q: I have a bathroom light that is controlled by two 3-Way switches (one in the bathroom and one in the ... A: Henry, What you want to do is far more complicated and difficult to do than just doing it the right ... | |
| Electrical | 9/12/2004 |
| Q: From Detroit MI area... Sometime today, about 1/4 of the lighting/outlets in our house stopped ... A: Pam, Check the circuit breakers again. It is possible you have a tripped breaker but it doesn't ... | |
| Wall Oven--Plug or Junction Box' | 9/11/2004 |
| Q: I am replacing my old wall oven with a new one. The old one had a heavy duty 3 prong plug that ... A: Robert, A wall oven is an installed appliance. In other words it is screwed in place to stay unlike ... | |
| 240v line to 120v | 9/10/2004 |
| Q: Bob I've run a (3) wire cable (red/black/white/ground)from the main panel to the new sub panel. I ... A: Will, You didn't say what size wire you ran to the sub panel so I don't know what size circuit ... | |
| electric dimmer installation | 9/9/2004 |
| Q: My name is Bob Meyer and I am from Virginia. I recently moved into a new house and would like to ... A: Follow up: Bob, I got an amazingly prompt answer from Lutron : Mr. Mossman, Yes, a Maestro ... | |
| ceiling fixture installtion | 9/8/2004 |
| Q: 4ft away, yes there is a bathroom above the kitchenIs there a way to install a standard ceiling ... A: Dale, If you can determine the direction the beams in your ceiling are running , you may or may not ... | |
| Residential wiring/connect question | 9/3/2004 |
| Q: ------------------------- Bob, Thanks much for your valued assistance! I am originally from ... A: Chris, No problem, my pleasure. I may have assumed too much thinking you'd know what a ... | |
| Residential wiring/connect question | 9/2/2004 |
| Q: Bob, Thanks for your help! My issue is driving me nuts! I am trying to replace an old kitchen ... A: Chris, No problem we'll get you going again. What I need you to do is get your hands on a ... | |
| electric boiler | 8/30/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question - from motherwell scotland my boiler has recently stopped working after ... A: Richard, OK thats good, now I have a better idea of what you should have. Your problem should ... | |
| GFI RECEPTICLE TRIPS FOR UNKNOWN REASON | 8/29/2004 |
| Q: I have a 4 year old, slab house in Florida. I have a circuit in my work shop that is protected with ... A: Harry, GFI's are especially prone to tripping when they are located outside exposed to rain and ... | |
| circuit dilemma | 8/28/2004 |
| Q: I have a major dilemma with the wiring throughout the house. Many switches and outlets are somehow ... A: Jim, Let me get this straight. All the SAME switches and receptacles go on and off with these two ... | |
| Electrical blackout in one room only | 8/23/2004 |
| Q: Mr. Mossman, My house is 30 years old and in the master bedroom all of the power just recently went ... A: Gary, You most likely have a connection issue. Pull out the closest outlet in the guest bed room ... | |
| MULTIMETER | 8/22/2004 |
| Q: I have two questions. One is not really your specialty but maybe you can answer it. First, I know ... A: Joe, As long as the LED is being supplied with the correct voltage it operates at, in this case 3 ... | |
| Wiring 6-8 new Recessed lights | 8/21/2004 |
| Q: I am in the process of finishing my living room and will be installing recessed light housing ... A: Mariano, Use 14 gauge wire which takes a 15 amp breaker. It will more than carry what your planning ... | |
| electrical outlets | 8/19/2004 |
| Q: Bob, Yesterday my outlets worked fine; today I have three dead in the same room and one working ... A: Jan, Check the one outlet that is working and pull it out. Look over the connections. If they ... | |
| Wiring light fixtures | 8/18/2004 |
| Q: I am in an older apartment and I am replacing ugly light fixtures. Joined the idiot club by not ... A: Jason, Try this: On the wall outlet that has the 4 whites, 3 blacks and one red, connect the white ... | |
| Wiring light fixtures | 8/17/2004 |
| Q: I am in an older apartment and I am replacing ugly light fixtures. Joined the idiot club by not ... A: Jason, Welcome to the club, you have plenty of company including professional electricians. You ... | |
| GFI tripping | 8/15/2004 |
| Q: The hurricane just came thru here in FL. I have my pool pump hooked up with a GFI inline between the ... A: Dave, Given the severity of the hurricane that blew thru there I'm sure that water has found its ... | |
| Kids room lost power, breaker is fine | 8/13/2004 |
| Q: I live in an old house in Jersey City, NJ. Somehow the kids managed to overload the power outlet in ... A: Alan, Yes it is possible and probable. You said there were two outlets. Did you pull out the other ... | |
| Help installing ceiling fan without ceiling fixture... | 8/13/2004 |
| Q: First, please excuse my ignorance, since I am a newly first time home-owner, and have very little ... A: Nathan, You are excused under the "first time home owner clause" at a All Experts. Your easiest ... | |
| instellation of new recepticle | 8/12/2004 |
| Q: I had a man over to install a 30 amp outlet for my Rv. From my power box to the recepticle mounted ... A: Don, From what you've described the 30 amp outlet for the RV is hooked up for 120 volts and the ... | |
| switch plate getting hot (dimmer) | 8/11/2004 |
| Q: ------------------------- Followup To Karen, Let me know how you make out Karen.......... ... A: As far as the "gang" thing goes, what they are refering to is the number of device's (switches or ... | |
| switch plate getting hot (dimmer) | 8/8/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question - . HOW MANY DIFFERENT WATTAGE DIMMERS ARE AVAIL? CHEAP? IS IT SOMETHING MY ... A: I see your in charge of the electrical dept at home. Ok, a 1000 watt dimmer is definitly in order ... | |
| switch plate getting hot (dimmer) | 8/7/2004 |
| Q: We just got our basement finished and had recessed lights put in. We had dimmer switches put in for ... A: Karen, The minimum is 600 , then 1000 then 1500. Just add up the wattage of the lamps that ... | |
| switch plate getting hot (dimmer) | 8/6/2004 |
| Q: We just got our basement finished and had recessed lights put in. We had dimmer switches put in for ... A: Well hello Karen ! Enjoy your new finished basement, its definitely a plus. As far as the dimmer ... | |
| LED | 8/5/2004 |
| Q: A LED light says min. and max. voltage of 1.7 and 2.4. If I give it 3 volts will it burn out much ... A: Al, Yes but I don;t know how long that might take with an LED. You can either alter the output ... | |
| Ceiling Fan Installation | 8/4/2004 |
| Q: I have installed a new remote controlled ceiling fan in my living room, with no pre-existing outlets ... A: Mike, No you have to know what your tapping into. A friend of mine once did what your doing and he ... | |
| Recessed Recepticles | 8/2/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I just bought a house in NJ that needed a little work. One of the projects that I had done for ... A: Andrew, First of all I'm sorry this response is getting to you rather late by my standards but All ... | |
| Ceiling Fan | 8/1/2004 |
| Q: We live in Elgin, IL. We had a leak from an upstairs bathroom yesterday, it came through to the ... A: Shalah, You did the right thing removing the fan and letting things dry out. If you didn't have any ... | |
| 240v line to 120v | 7/28/2004 |
| Q: ------------------------- I've decided to run another line from the main panel to the sub panel to ... A: Will, If your going to run a new cable it needs to be a 4 wire cable. If you plan on using the ... | |
| 240v line to 120v | 7/27/2004 |
| Q: There is a 240 volt line running from the main panel of my home to a sub panel in the garage. How ... A: Will, The way the circuit to the sub panel is currently configured you can't get 120 volts out of ... | |
| Dryer receptacles | 7/26/2004 |
| Q: I recently moved and my dryer has a 3 prong cord, and the wall has 4. I was wondering if I could ... A: Mike, You have to change something here wether it be the receptacle or the plug on the dryer. It ... | |
| Power to spa blower | 7/25/2004 |
| Q: Pool has spa extension with separate blower system which is controlled by a light switch. Blower ... A: Joan, Assuming its not the blower motor since two have been tried, I would look at the switch that ... | |
| RECESSED LIGHTING | 7/20/2004 |
| Q: IF MY RECESSED LIGHTS ARE ON FOR ABOUT 15 MINUTES, THE LIGHTS TURN OFF AND COMES BACK ON IN A FEW ... A: Ok, Most likely whats causing this is a small thermal device located in the recessed light. If you ... | |
| wiring a light, switch, and plug | 7/18/2004 |
| Q: I am finishing a basement and want to install a light switch and plug in an enclosure around a ... A: H, Run your feed (hot) cable to the receptacle box first, then run from there to the switch box and ... | |
| Faulty wiring? | 7/15/2004 |
| Q: Our problem is that the lights in our bathroom have been flickering, but an even stranger problem is ... A: David, I don't think the thumping is faulty wiring but rather some sort of device. Do you have an ... | |
| Electrical Wiring | 7/14/2004 |
| Q: My house was built in 1962. I was wondering when should I think about replacing the electrical ... A: Jason, The only parts of your electrical system that really wear out are your switche's, and ... | |
| Electrical dimmer switch on pump | 7/12/2004 |
| Q: I recently had a pond installed in my back yard which includes a submersible pump that feeds a ... A: John, A dimmer definitely won't do what you want without damaging the dimmer and or the motor but ... | |
| basement wiring | 7/10/2004 |
| Q: I am from blaine mn. a subburb of minneapolis. I am finishing off my basement and in the bedroom I ... A: Brent, Yes use the Arc fault breakers. You can have up to 12 duplex receptacles on a single 20 amp ... | |
| bath outlet confusion | 7/6/2004 |
| Q: What I indicated in the orginal question is still correct (please look at it below because it ... A: Marc, Voltage meters don't tell the whole story when it comes to indicating power so I want you to ... | |
| bath outlet confusion | 7/4/2004 |
| Q: I thought i was tackling a simple outlet replacement, but I've managed to screw it up and am hoping ... A: Marc, Theres a piece to this puzzle thats missing. If your GFI was ON all the time regardless of ... | |
| bath outlet confusion | 7/2/2004 |
| Q: I thought i was tackling a simple outlet replacement, but I've managed to screw it up and am hoping ... A: Marc, Your GFI SHOULD have two sets of terminals on it corresponding to the words "LINE" and "LOAD" ... | |
| Ceiling Fan installation | 6/29/2004 |
| Q: I'm installing a new ceiling fan. I removed the old lighting fixture, and replaced the electrical ... A: Dennis, Since your getting voltage from the red to ground even though its white, certainly seems to ... | |
| ceiling fan upgrade (Long Island NY) | 6/26/2004 |
| Q: I have installed a ceiling fan, relacing a light fixture. I would like to upgrade the switch to a ... A: Damian, You can handle this a couple different ways. Hunter brand fans and Hampton Bay (Home Depot) ... | |
| Ceiling Fan | 6/21/2004 |
| Q: I am trying to replace my ceiling fan switch. The chain broke off of the fan. And of course it broke ... A: Try this. The round part of the switch that the chain used to hang out from on the outside of the ... | |
| grounding and switches | 6/21/2004 |
| Q: Texas. I am remodeling a lake house. 1. Wiring to plugs and switches have no ground wire (14-2. I ... A: Mark, Your old 14-2 may have a ground wire but its just not visisble in the box. I've seen many ... | |
| ceiling fan | 6/21/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question -I have a ceiling/light fan unit and I have been having problems getting the ... A: Ron, Ahhh !.....the mystery is finally solved. Thank God. Well as I said the reason that part was ... | |
| Wall switch | 6/20/2004 |
| Q: Bob: Many thanks for your very very quick response and interest. The programmable wall switch is: ... A: Nick, I've used this particular timer with pretty good success over the years. I don't know what ... | |
| Smoke detector | 6/20/2004 |
| Q: ------------------- Hello again, I ran new wire (14-3), how do the 3 wires hook into the circuit ... A: Randy, Here's a little twist. You don't have to run 14-3 back to the panel from the first smoke ... | |
| ceiling fan | 6/9/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question - I have a ceiling/light fan unit and I have been having problems getting the ... A: Ron, The part you've described sounds like it was an accessory and not an original part of the ... | |
| Splicing stranded wire | 6/8/2004 |
| Q: Is there another name for 'mechanical bugs'? The 'electrical guy' at the store didn't know what ... A: Raymond, If you go to an electrical supply house they will know what a mechanical bug is. If you go ... | |
| What to do with the old wire | 6/8/2004 |
| Q: I am installing 'heavier' oven: replacing 10 gauge wire with 8 gauge wire. What to do with the old ... A: Raymond, The easiest thing to do would be to "box" the end of the cable where it is and make sure ... | |
| ceiling fan | 6/8/2004 |
| Q: I have a ceiling/light fan unit and I have been having problems getting the fan and lights to work. ... A: Ron, This part must work with one or both of your wall switches or there was some sort of remote ... | |
| Splicing stranded wire | 6/8/2004 |
| Q: Marietta, Ga. I'm about to hook up stranded 8 gauge 3-wire to stranded wire of wall oven. Should I ... A: Raymond, Using mechanical bugs is the best. Its a solid connection after you crank them down and ... | |
| Electrical troubleshooting | 6/7/2004 |
| Q: Indiana My outside post light has stopped working. Checking the actual wire from the house to the ... A: Kevin, Its possible a lighting strike could have severed your line. I've repaired lines to lamp ... | |
| GFI Electrical Outlet and Fan | 6/7/2004 |
| Q: FirstI have a GFI outlet in the garage that trips intermittently. There is nothing new within the ... A: Jose', A GFI receptacle can trip intermittently for a number of reasons: It could be a faulty ... | |
| basement wiring | 6/7/2004 |
| Q: I'm finishing my basement in minnesota! I have a 200 amp service to the house and the panel is ... A: Tony, 1.) # 6 2.) Don't load up the circuit to more than .80% of its rated capacity. For example: ... | |
| Ceiling fan stopping & starting | 6/6/2004 |
| Q: I'm from Atlanta Ga. I have a problem with a ceiling fan in master bedroom going on & off. The ... A: Jerry, Its time to get a new control switch for the fan and when you get the new one don't get ... | |
| Electrical troubleshooting | 6/6/2004 |
| Q: Indiana My outside post light has stopped working. Checking the actual wire from the house to the ... A: Kevin, There is an instrument that will pin point where the problem is but its expensive and many ... | |
| Electrical wiring | 6/6/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question -Followup To Question - Hi Bob-Curt from LaPorte, IN I currently have a 3 ... A: Curt, No problem you just have one end of the jumper in the wrong spot. Move it to the other brass ... | |
| No electricity to Masterbathroom | 6/4/2004 |
| Q: Aol Search I am trying to find out why my lights in my master bathroom and upstairs bathroom are ... A: Paul, Try this first and see what happens. Check all your GFI receptacles in all the bathrooms ... | |
| Electrical wiring | 6/3/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question -Hi Bob-Curt from LaPorte, IN I currently have a 3 switch bank in my kitchen ... A: Curt, You'll have to get another piece of white wire to connect to the existing white wires that ... | |
| ceiling fan | 6/2/2004 |
| Q: I have a ceiling/light fan unit and I have been having problems getting the fan and lights to work. ... A: Ron, Sorry but I've never come across something like this in my travels. Casablanca fans are the ... | |
| Electrical wiring | 5/31/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question - Hi Bob-Curt from LaPorte, IN I currently have a 3 switch bank in my ... A: Curt, Then your basically set. You'll just need the new combination switch over GFI receptacle ... | |
| Square D Breakers. | 5/30/2004 |
| Q: I am having a guy install Central Air in my home and he told me that if I plumb a drain and run a ... A: Dan, Yes you can. Both the white and black wires will connect to the breaker. I'm assuming he has ... | |
| Electrical wiring | 5/29/2004 |
| Q: IN I currently have a 3 switch bank in my kitchen that controls three seperate lighting fixtures. I ... A: Curt, Ok thats a good sign but just to be 100% certain take a volt meter and test from that group ... | |
| Outside Garage Door light | 5/27/2004 |
| Q: I just purchased my home and I was wondering where should the switch for the outside garage door ... A: Angela, The interior and exterior garage lights should not be on the same switch. There has to be ... | |
| bathroom fan | 5/25/2004 |
| Q: putting in a new fan and wanting the light and fan on seperate controls have a new combination ... A: Jeff, You have to get a new 14-2 Romex from the fan to the existing switch. Once in the switch box ... | |
| Bathroom exhaust fan wiring | 5/24/2004 |
| Q: I have a exhaust fan in the bathroom already which plugs into an outlet in the fan. when I turn the ... A: Dave, Drop another 14-2 Romex from the fan to the switch. Remove the old cable first of course and ... | |
| workshop wiring | 5/24/2004 |
| Q: I am building a workshop that is built on the side of my house it will have sheetrock walls but I ... A: Steven, Yes thats what I'm saying. Pvc would be easier for you VS EMT (metal) because you wouldn't ... | |
| Our lights no workie. | 5/23/2004 |
| Q: It is a whole house fan. So, you suggest we return the lighting switches to orginal and add a new ... A: Patrick, From a professional point of view, unless there are compelling reason's to do otherwise I ... | |
| i was using lots of power... | 5/23/2004 |
| Q: i was using lots of power and then everything shut down all of a sudden tried to reset the ... A: Yom, It sounds like you blew the main fuse or fuses. It also sounds like you have the pill shaped ... | |
| workshop wiring | 5/23/2004 |
| Q: I am building a workshop that is built on the side of my house it will have sheetrock walls but I ... A: Steven, If you want to run on the surface you may as well reap the benefits of using conduit ... | |
| 240v Electrical wiring | 5/23/2004 |
| Q: How do I install a 240v clothes dryer outlet from breaker box? Basiclly, there i an existing 120v ... A: Joseph, Material wise you'll need some 10-3 Romex, a 30 amp 4 wire surface mount receptacle, a 30 ... | |
| fluorescents | 5/22/2004 |
| Q: I sent this question last summer, and you told me to check ballasts, etc.: My basement has four 4' ... A: Mike, You could have "ballast issues". Ballasts produce heat and in the cooler weather they will ... | |
| Our lights no workie. | 5/22/2004 |
| Q: To clarify we seem to have 3 sets of 3 way switches and 1 single-pole on a circuit. My wife was ... A: Patrick, It would be MUCH better if you left the existing switches alone and wired the new ceiling ... | |
| outdoor floodlight with motion sensor | 5/22/2004 |
| Q: Bob, for your quick response. I checked RAB online and took a look at a basic Luminator (LS300). I ... A: Bob, for your quick response. I checked RAB online and took a look at a basic Luminator (LS300). I ... | |
| lighting | 5/22/2004 |
| Q: In a new home with a great room 16 by 20 with 16 ft.high ceilings how many recessed lights do I ... A: Bob, You could get good light level's and coverage using 6 recessed lights that will handle the PAR ... | |
| outdoor floodlight with motion sensor | 5/21/2004 |
| Q: I live on Long Island and am troubled by an flood light mounted on the side of my house which works ... A: Check to see if maybe the spot lights have moved out of position and are shining too close into the ... | |
| Circuit Breaker | 5/20/2004 |
| Q: I have a 10amp circuit breaker that trips when both the window air conditioner and something like a ... A: Larry, Take a closer look at this breaker because I don't believe you have a 10 amp breaker. Maybe ... | |
| Change 2 prong to 3 prong | 5/19/2004 |
| Q: How do I re-wire or change a 2 prong outlet in my home to a 3 prong outlet? Thanks for your ... A: Jeff, Its real easy as long as you have steel boxes which I'm sure you have given the presence of 2 ... | |
| electrical wiring | 5/19/2004 |
| Q: I am retired and live in north carolina. I am renovating my daughters house.I opened the ceiling ... A: Charlie, From 1985 on or there abouts the insulation in cables changed to a better higher ... | |
| 30 amp GFCI breaker | 5/17/2004 |
| Q: I cannot find a 30 amp, 1 pole, GFCI breaker for my home. Are they just not made? Instead, could I ... A: John, I just called one of my suppliers and he told me they not only make them but he actually has ... | |
| 30 amp GFCI breaker | 5/17/2004 |
| Q: I cannot find a 30 amp, 1 pole, GFCI breaker for my home. Are they just not made? Instead, could I ... A: John, What brand panel do you have ? Square D, GE, Cutler Hammer, ITE, Crouse Hinds, Federal, ITE ... | |
| 2 way switch wiring | 5/17/2004 |
| Q: Followup To Question - We have a plug in the middle of our living room that we have two end table ... A: J, Sorry for the delay in getting back with you but my work load has been heavy this week, my day ... | |
| home lighting | 5/17/2004 |
| Q: Matt from San Francisco here. Here's my question. I have two lights running to a single switch and ... A: You did your home work well Matt and explained it well too. You can fix the problem very easily by ... | |
| Old Knob and Tube | 5/17/2004 |
| Q: I actually have 3 Questions for you. To set the scene let me start by saying that I I am restoring ... A: Adrian, You can tell the difference between the "hot" and neutral because you will see in places ... | |
| 240 wiring | 5/16/2004 |
| Q: i am installing a pool chlorinator that i bought from australia. it has 3 wires: brown(active), ... A: Mike, You didn;t say what voltage the new Chlorinator is but I've wired enough foreign stuff to ... | |
| home lighting | 5/15/2004 |
| Q: Matt from San Francisco here. Here's my question. I have two lights running to a single switch and ... A: Matt, Ok I need you to do some home work. Remove both fixture's and tell me the following: How many ... | |
| Lengthening of Wire Runs | 5/15/2004 |
| Q: I want to install a generator panel (manual transfer switch panel, 100/60 amp util/gen breaker, with ... A: Mark, Scotch locks are fine just make sure you twist the wires together tightly before you screw the ... | |
| Bathroom Exhaust Fan | 5/14/2004 |
| Q: I live in Anchorage, Alaska. My bathroom exhause fan ceased working. Some pointers of what to look ... A: Patrick, If you take the grill off you'll see most fans are plugged into a small receptacle inside ... | |
| shop lighting | 5/13/2004 |
| Q: I am an auto shop mechanic in Wasilla Alaska. Thankyou for your expertice. My shop is a metal pole ... A: Doug, For about the same money or less you could get Metal Halide 400 watt "Hi Bay" fixtures and ... | |
| height of 3 hanging lights | 5/11/2004 |
| Q: Having 3 hanging lights installed over island in kitchen, ceiling approx 8 ft, bar approx 36" from ... A: jmb, There is a "general" rule of thumb for this but what I always tell my customers first is: "Its ... | |
| Ceiling Fan Installation | 5/9/2004 |
| Q: Have a single family home with attic access. Need to install ceiling fans in 2 bedrooms. Can I (and ... A: Bill, You can make this a lot easier on yourself if you use fans that have remote controls which ... | |
| 2 way switch wiring | 5/6/2004 |
| Q: We have a plug in the middle of our living room that we have two end table lamps attached to. This ... A: J, Ok here's what we need to do: Pull the switch out that he replaced. The "key" wire you have to ... | |
| lights and receptacles not working | 5/5/2004 |
| Q: I need some help desperately with an electrical problem I am having. I had to change all the ... A: Wayne, You almost broke the All experts record for longest question. Anyway I believe all or at ... | |
| Hi Bob, The pool filter/pump... | 5/4/2004 |
| Q: The pool filter/pump is on its own. The pool house will be seperate from the filter/pump system. the ... A: Tony, Given the distance (140'), the loads, possible future loads and you only want to do this ... | |
| Adapting 220 to 110 for lamps | 5/4/2004 |
| Q: ! I evidently wasn't entirely clear: I'm not concerned about the bulbs -- only the wiring. IOW, if ... A: Ruth, The only thing you should have to be concerned with is having the correct plug on the end of ... | |
| Adapting 220 to 110 for lamps | 5/4/2004 |
| Q: When I moved to where I currently live from the US, I brought my table lamps along. Just as I was ... A: That is indeed true, the 220 volt bulbs won't get very bright at all on 120 volts over here and you ... | |
| air conditioner installation | 5/3/2004 |
| Q: From Maine---Would like to install my window mounted air conditioner in the wall. Have no problem ... A: Ed, It will you just have to be carefull you don't cover or obstruct the vent openings on the sides ... | |
| ceiling fan | 5/3/2004 |
| Q: I live in Livonia MI. I was trying to install a ceiling fan last night and there are 2 black wires ... A: Tricia, I need you to give me some insight into the ceiling box with all the wires. You said there ... | |
| installing under cabinet halogen lights | 5/2/2004 |
| Q: Per your instructions, I'll tell you that I'm from London, a small city near Toronto, Ontario. I ... A: greetings from the US....... Yes you do need to be concerned about the heat build up not only from ... | |
| dead outlets | 5/2/2004 |
| Q: I am in the Rochester NY area. In the garage there is a single romex (black, white, ground) in the ... A: Don, Ok this is good information. It tells me its possible these could be separate circuits totally ... | |
| outlet/breaker wiring | 5/2/2004 |
| Q: I am from Illinois. I have been changing the wiring in my home to utilize more of the unused ... A: Mark, If you've been changing the wiring around you could have easily reversed something and or ... | |
| going from stationary to rotating power | 5/1/2004 |
| Q: SIR: I am in the process of making a hand extension reel. What i need to know, is where or what i ... A: Bill, I'm not certain what you mean by "rotating power" though I think you may be refering to the ... | |
| 240 to 110 | 5/1/2004 |
| Q: Can you tell me how I can get 110 from a 220 cicut? Thanks,Gil A: Gil, Tell me more about your situation. I get questions from people in Europe where all they have ... | |
| Microwave | 5/1/2004 |
| Q: We are remodelling our kitchen, with new cupboards and all, and are putting in a microwave above the ... A: Brad, Microwaves come in all different sizes and draw different amounts of current. If you have a ... | |
| help | 5/1/2004 |
| Q: I have a homework question, and i need help to understand just how to do it, i hope you can hel with ... A: m&m, The closer these 2 bends are to one another the tighter they have to be. In other words the ... | |
| dead outlets | 4/29/2004 |
| Q: My father asked you the following question on my behalf and I wanted to give you some more info to ... A: Don, I think its more likely you've got a connection issue here VS they didn't finish the wiring, ... | |
| receptcle wiring problem | 4/29/2004 |
| Q: bob, I found enough slack to pull the receptacle over to new opening, at the time it worked ... A: Ed, Is this AC recpetacle a direct line back to the panel ?....if so check the connections in the ... | |
| chicago | 4/28/2004 |
| Q: I want to install my Electric dryer and question is do I have to install three wires or four to the ... A: David, You want to run a 4 wire line to your dryer which would be Romex (plastic outer covering) ... | |
| 2 questions | 4/28/2004 |
| Q: if you have a motor that must remain adaptable to several sizes of belts, what is the max length of ... A: Hassouna, You seem to be saying that this motor is adjusted to different positions thus requiring ... | |
| receptcle wiring problem | 4/27/2004 |
| Q: I have two ac plug-in receptacles that have me baffled. one: I moved the receptacle which worked ... A: Ed, What do you mean when you say you moved this receptacle ? Did you have to splice it out or were ... | |
| dead outlets | 4/26/2004 |
| Q: I recently bought a newer home I have 2 outlets that are dead 1 in the bathroom and 1 in the garage ... A: Don, Check the nearest working receptacles to the ones that are not working. If you happen to know ... | |
| converting elctric cooktop to gas | 4/25/2004 |
| Q: We are replacing our electric cooktop with a gas unit. the gas unit requires only a 110 outlet to ... A: TJ, Absoulely tap into the outlet on the island for the electronic ignition in your new gas cook ... | |
| outlets | 4/25/2004 |
| Q: KS I was wondering why 3 outlets in my house would quit working? It seems that they all run off a ... A: Jon, If your certain that 3 different circuits are involved the problem is other than the circuits ... | |
| lights | 4/25/2004 |
| Q: Regarding those tiny LED lights it says" typical voltage is 2.8v, max. volts is 3.8V at 20mA". My ... A: Al, Max operating voltage is important. You must adhere to the max voltage ratings or you'll burn ... | |
| electric panel | 4/23/2004 |
| Q: my nane is paul i am from massachusetts. my question is. i moved in a condo 18 months ago with ... A: Paul, Unfortunately the problem isn't the elements in your heater but at least you have new one's ... | |
| Bathroom Circuits | 4/22/2004 |
| Q: I am adding a bathroom to my house. I want to wire it with three switched circuits off one circuit ... A: Herb, Its really very simple. Run your 14-2 Romex from the panel into the 3 gang switch box. Then ... | |
| Regarding fuses | 4/21/2004 |
| Q: The other night we had a power outtage in certain areas of our home. No one had turned anything ... A: Kim, It sounds like you have a short circuit somewhere in the affected areas. It could be any ... | |
| Switch Install wiring confusion | 4/19/2004 |
| Q: OK. I'll try it when I go back to the house this weekend. However, it seems to be working the way I ... A: Kevin, Yes definitely change it. It should not be ticking and may be ticking because of the way its ... | |
| installing circuit breakers | 4/19/2004 |
| Q: Two parter here, I'm getting a new curcuit breaker installed to replace a fuse box in my home built ... A: Blair, The breakers will not only be fine with the existing wiring but once installed and properly ... | |
| Switch Install wiring confusion | 4/18/2004 |
| Q: No, both the black and the white wire enter the box unspliced, directly out of the 12/2 or 14/2 ... A: Kevin, Ok, I believe you have the Intermatic brand timer which does require a neutral connection ... | |
| Switch Install wiring confusion | 4/17/2004 |
| Q: In a 2-year-old home, I am attempting to install a fan timer switch for a bathroom application and I ... A: Kevin, Do the black and white wires that control the fan go to a single cable coming into the box ... | |
| Overhead Light | 4/16/2004 |
| Q: First, let me say thanks for taking my question. My question is as follows: I have an overhead ... A: John, You've got a poor connection there some where and it could be in one of the near by light ... | |
| 3 and 4 way switches | 4/15/2004 |
| Q: i recently bought a house that is approx. four and a half years old, and i have three switches that ... A: KC, Get yourself a "pig tail" (socket with black and white leads) available at HD or Lowes and ... | |
| lights come on by themselves | 4/13/2004 |
| Q: We have a 50 yr old farmhouse about 40 miles N. of Austin Texas.For about a month now the touch ... A: Jake, It sounds like you have a loose main connection given the number of circuits involved and it ... | |
| wring a 240V outlet from existing a 240 line to oven | 4/13/2004 |
| Q: I like the idea of having a subpanel. As you guessed, I do need another 240 circuit for a band saw ... A: George, Ok, sorry for the delay I've been battling a stomach virus. Anyway the sub panel is still ... | |
| wring a 240V outlet from existing a 240 line to oven | 4/12/2004 |
| Q: Bob. I really appreciate your prompt response. I got home and gathered the following information: ... A: George, Since your making this a work shop area then it makes sense for you to do what I'm about to ... | |
| wring a 240V outlet from existing a 240 line to oven | 4/12/2004 |
| Q: Bob. The saw is 3 HP and for 230 v only (I just ordered it) and I'm not sure the Amps (could be 25 ... A: George, A 3 HP motor operating at 240 volts will pull about 9.7 amps so you only need a 20 amp ... | |
| wring a 240V outlet from existing a 240 line to oven | 4/12/2004 |
| Q: Is difficult or possible to install a 240 v outlet from a existing 240 v line to an oven which I no ... A: George, It is certainly possible but tell me your circumstances there. What size is this line to ... | |
| Bathroom outlet question | 4/12/2004 |
| Q: .any other suggestions? Thanks CraigFrom CT - Hi - wondering why a GFCI outlet in the bathroom ... A: Craig, Yes check any other working receptacles that are in the vicinity. If your absolutely ... | |
| Flickering lights and CD player | 4/11/2004 |
| Q: About a month ago a lamp started flickering and dimming, think it was a bad bulb we replaced it to ... A: Paul, The problem most likely lies with the fact that these receptacles are back wired and not to ... | |
| sudden isolated loss of power | 4/10/2004 |
| Q: I have an office/study that I call "Guytown"- technically that's supposed to mean it's the only room ... A: Bruce, Check the wall switch that controls the hall light. Pull the switch out and examine all the ... | |
| Locating a break in residential wiring | 4/9/2004 |
| Q: Located in Grass Valley CA. I do volunteer work for a local organisation that helps disabled people ... A: Good show Roger..........by the way you can have two separate 2 wire circuits share a common ... | |
| Three-way switches - 2 fixtures - one light is dim | 4/9/2004 |
| Q: I have just wired a three-way switch lighting circuit, with two fixtures. Circuit layout: ... A: Drew, In order for this to work you need a 14-2 cable from fix #2 to fix #1. Its not clear to me ... | |
| basement wiring | 4/8/2004 |
| Q: i live in rdg. pa.i'm fixing up my basement and i will have a bbathroom with a shower, sink and ... A: Bob, Here's what I would do: Run a 12-2 from your panel just for the GFI receptacle. Then run a ... | |
| Bathroom outlet question | 4/8/2004 |
| Q: From CT - Hi - wondering why a GFCI outlet in the bathroom works sometimes and not others - ... A: Craig, You have a connection issue some where along this circuit. Pull out the closest working ... | |
| Ground Connection arc | 4/7/2004 |
| Q: The braided wire from the service panel connecte to a water pipe is arcing at the clamp. The arc is ... A: Peter, You have a potentially dangerous situation there. The neutral connection (white wire) has ... | |
| Locating a break in residential wiring | 4/6/2004 |
| Q: Located in Grass Valley CA. I do volunteer work for a local organisation that helps disabled people ... A: Roger, Especially since this is aluminum wire you probably have a bad connection somewhere along ... | |
| soffit lights | 4/5/2004 |
| Q: hey, i was looking to install some recessed lighting in the soffits outside my home. however, the ... A: Eric, Check this ... | |
| wiring can lights in serial with 3 switches | 4/3/2004 |
| Q: I have 3 15 amp 120 Volt switches, 2 are 3 way and 1 is a 4 way. The circuit is a 20 amp circuit. ... A: Blake, Here's what you should have: In the first 3 way outlet connect the red and black wires from ... | |
| Outlet instalation | 4/2/2004 |
| Q: Bob I found this web site via a search for home electrical wiring questions. I have an existing ... A: Chris, You can very easily get the best of both worlds by doing what you've suggested. You can ... | |
| "slow" lights | 4/1/2004 |
| Q: This question is coming to you from Alexandria Virginia. We live in a 1923 bungalow. Most of the ... A: John, You have a connection issue brewing. Since the switches are the easiest things to check first ... | |
| house wiring/panel | 3/30/2004 |
| Q: I am an owner of a 2 yr old house in Ontario Canada. I am familiar with the way lights dim ... A: Chris, What your describing is classic "open neutral" symptoms. When the connection to the neutral ... | |
| Wire gauges | 3/29/2004 |
| Q: I'm running 3 recessed lights (60W each) off a 15 amp breaker. I've used 14 gauge wire from the ... A: Allan, Practically speaking no, but technically speaking if you start out from the panel with 14 ... | |
| Extending wires | 3/28/2004 |
| Q: I am a PA homeowner. I am running some 12/2 wire in my unfinished basement from the panel to put in ... A: Izzy, There's nothing wrong with what you want to do as long as you adhere to the following: Use a ... | |
| Bob, maybe you can solve my... | 3/24/2004 |
| Q: Bob, maybe you can solve my problem. I have 2 sets of rapid start flourescent lights in kitchen (2 ... A: Ted, You could have a connection issue that has nothing to do with the fixture itself. In other ... | |
| no power | 3/23/2004 |
| Q: I had a table saw pluged in to a faulty extesion cord and lost power to other outlets in garage. ... A: Ross, Lets check the easy stuff first. If you know which breaker feeds this circuit I want you to ... | |
| Powder room light & seperate fan | 3/23/2004 |
| Q: How do I wire the light and the seperate exhaust fan I want to install so each has its own switch? ... A: Bob, You can only get power from the switch if you have 2 cables in that box. In other words 2 ... | |
| circuit breaker/wiring issue | 3/23/2004 |
| Q: My name is Patrick, and I live in St Paul, MN. My wife and I live in a bungalow that was built in ... A: Patrick, If you put the voltage tester on the breaker while you were having this problem and the ... | |
| circuit breaker/wiring issue | 3/22/2004 |
| Q: My name is Patrick, and I live in St Paul, MN. My wife and I live in a bungalow that was built in ... A: Patrick, Yes it could very well be the breaker. You could try taking the wire thats connected to ... | |
| home wiring | 3/21/2004 |
| Q: We are experiencing periods of time when n electrical circuit shuts off. The breaker does not trip. ... A: Ann, In order for this problem to involve several different circuits it sounds to me like your ... | |
| Melted coating on hot wire | 3/21/2004 |
| Q: We had a Delonghi oil filled "radiator" heater (manufactured in 92 I think) in our basement bathroom ... A: Larry, Its a combination of 2 things: The high draw of current and a poor conection to the GFI. ... | |
| 220 volt switch | 3/18/2004 |
| Q: I am helping a friend set up a new workshop and we ran 220 for the table saw which is an old Sears ... A: Todd, The motor starter is a totally separate item and comes in its own enclosure measuring approx ... | |
| 220 volt switch | 3/18/2004 |
| Q: I am helping a friend set up a new workshop and we ran 220 for the table saw which is an old Sears ... A: Todd, The type of switching arrangement you have described is used to control what is called a ... | |
| lighting | 3/18/2004 |
| Q: I have an overhead light fixture in which bulbs burn out very quickly (less than a minute). There ... A: David, How old is the fixture........if its 10 to 20 years old the socket is most likly worn out or ... | |
| Electrical Problem?? | 3/18/2004 |
| Q: I've noticed over the past several months that we seem to be using more light bulbs than previously, ... A: Debby, If you still have a lot of the original fixtures from 1980 the sockets are just worn out ... | |
| WIRING STEAMER | 3/17/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I have a steamer in a restaurant that is 240 volt with #10 wires coming out. It calls for a ... A: Cliff, Technically the # 6 wires from the panel to the steamer should be protected by a 50 or 60 ... | |
| outlet | 3/15/2004 |
| Q: I want to install a live outlet by jumping from a wall recepticle which consists of three switches. ... A: Scott, OK thats good enough. You want to put the white wire from the new receptacle with all the ... | |
| outlet | 3/14/2004 |
| Q: I want to install a live outlet by jumping from a wall recepticle which consists of three switches. ... A: Scott, Pull all 3 switches out of the box and tell me the following: How many individual cables ... | |
| Wiring a Wall Oven | 3/11/2004 |
| Q: From New Jersey Bob - First I'd like to say thanks for the help with my basement lights - I did it ... A: Bill, Glad to hear the lighting job came out well, you obviously followed the directions to the ... | |
| service panels | 3/10/2004 |
| Q: If I want two 200 amp 40 circuit panels in my home what size service do I need, do I want a 400amp ... A: Bob, First of all your potential KW (Kilowatt) load should determine what size service you "need". ... | |
| gfi breaker | 3/10/2004 |
| Q: I have an older home and all of the outlets were (are) 2 prong. We had some work done to the house ... A: Paul, Whoaaaa Nelli ! Don't rewire the house just yet ! Even though you have 2 prong recpetacle's ... | |
| dryer wiring | 3/9/2004 |
| Q: What is the recommedend cabling for a clothes dryer circuit? Most references I have seen suggest NM ... A: Tom, Armor clad cable like Romex has its pluses and minus's. On the plus side it has the metal ... | |
| exsisting basement wiring | 3/8/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I am from middle Tennessee, twenty miles from Nashville. I have a basement with about eight ... A: Try to find the last keyless fixture with only one cable in it if there is one and there may not be ... | |
| electrical outlet and light switch | 3/7/2004 |
| Q: I am from Lake wales Florida. I have an oulet and a light switch side by side in my bathroom. There ... A: Bill, There should be screws on the side of your new receptacle to attach the wires to. You would ... | |
| electric range wiring | 3/7/2004 |
| Q: I live on the coast of north carolina,am asenior citizen. my daughter and i are redoing a house she ... A: Charlie, The line for your stove doesn't have to be aluminum and it doesn't have to be copper. ... | |
| short in ground wire | 3/6/2004 |
| Q: What can cause a short in a ground wire. I am from the midwest A: Debbie, Ground wire's don't cause shorts themselves but provide a low impedance (little resistance) ... | |
| lights | 3/3/2004 |
| Q: I want to wire up some new lights in my basement. I ran a 14/2 wire from the panel to light # 1. ... A: Peter, Because "All Experts" only sporadically notifies me of new questions VIA e-mail I didn;t get ... | |
| Dead Circuit | 3/1/2004 |
| Q: Houston, Tx. All of the outlets and ceiling light are dead in one of my bedrooms and one outlet in ... A: Claude, Here's what I want you to do: I suspect that the problem is in the den, either in the ... | |
| gfci wiring | 2/29/2004 |
| Q: How do I wire up an gfci recepticle in a kitchen that has two 15 amps feeds from a split feed ... A: Dave, The easiest thing you can do is just install a GFI receptacle at each kitchen counter ... | |
| Desktop Lamp (Electrical) | 2/26/2004 |
| Q: Need wiring diagram for a two bulb floresant light it has two F15T8 bulbs, one switch, two ... A: David, My advice to you would be: Return the 2 transformers you got that requires "starters" those ... | |
| underground electrical wire | 2/24/2004 |
| Q: I want to run electrical service to a new exterior brick wall. I had plastic conduit installed in ... A: Ed, You can use what is called "UF" cable which is designed for direct burial however it must be ... | |
| Plastic filters for light fixture | 2/24/2004 |
| Q: I wasn't sure who to ask this question of. We have those upper wooden cabinets that surround ... A: Dave, You were on the right track. Scoring the plastic lens with a razor knife not a box cutter is ... | |
| wiring rqmts for shop (outbuilding) | 2/21/2004 |
| Q: I'm in the process of building a woodworking shop, (Biloxi, MS) and need to know several answers ... A: Jameson, We need to clarify just what your 300 amp service panel on the outside of your house ... | |
| Wiring cooktop appliance | 2/21/2004 |
| Q: Bob, Thanks for the reply. I did some research and yes you are correct. I am having an electrician ... A: Tom, If you look at the cables coming out of your panel and can determine which one goes to the ... | |
| Wiring cooktop appliance | 2/21/2004 |
| Q: Bob, Thanks for the reply. I am from Westchester NY. I have another question. The feed wire to the ... A: Tom, I'm glad you mentioned this because you do need to be very concerned. Copper and aluminum wire ... | |
| Wiring cooktop appliance | 2/20/2004 |
| Q: I am replacing a GE cooktop with another new GE cooktop. My question is- When I disconnected the old ... A: Tom, From what you've described that is the correct way to wire up the new cook top. The red stripe ... | |
| two way light switch | 2/19/2004 |
| Q: i have a light switch at each entry to kitchen.one will turn light on and off. the other will only ... A: Bill, You could be looking at a bad switch or it was never installed right from the begining. So ... | |
| two way light switch | 2/19/2004 |
| Q: i have a light switch at each entry to kitchen.one will turn light on and off. the other will only ... A: Bill, 3 way systems can be tricky to fix depending upon the circumstances in other words were these ... | |
| 240 v line to 120 v line? | 2/16/2004 |
| Q: I have a 240v line which once serviced a couple of ovens. There are three wires in the circuit, ... A: Ken, The best and easiest thing you can do is install a 12 circuit sub panel to connect this 50 ... | |
| Open Ground Reading At Outlet | 2/16/2004 |
| Q: I recently had a home inspection done and the inspector noticed when he tested one outlet by my ... A: Steve, An "open ground" means you have lost "ground" continuity up to that particular box and maybe ... | |
| Wiring new light and receptacle.... | 2/14/2004 |
| Q: I'm currently remodeling our bathroom, and am having trouble installing a new light and switch, plus ... A: David, You just made a rookie mistake. The cable that you ran from the receptacle to the switch for ... | |
| Floor lamp switch repair??? | 2/14/2004 |
| Q: I am new to this. Here's my problem: I have one of those floor lamps that most homes seem to have, ... A: Rasu, I hate to tell you this but your most likely going to have to disassemble the lamp in order ... | |
| Open Ground | 2/14/2004 |
| Q: I'm Originally from Cuba but I've been living in the US since I was nine, I now live in New Jersey ... A: No problem, I can be asked the same basic questions over and over again but they're always put ... | |
| Fixtures blowing light bulbs | 2/14/2004 |
| Q: I replaced a light fixture in a bathroom. It had two fixtures with two bulbs each. Each bulb rating ... A: John, Usually when light bulbs start burning out quickly its an indication that the socket(s) are ... | |
| REWIRING | 2/14/2004 |
| Q: BOB, THANXS FOR YOUR INFO. I NOW IT WILL BE A CHALLANGE FOR SURE, BUT THE END RESULT OF UPDATING ... A: Kevin, You can get yourself a copy of the 2002 National Electrical Code Handbook at the "Electrical ... | |
| Fixtures blowing light bulbs | 2/13/2004 |
| Q: I replaced a light fixture in a bathroom. It had two fixtures with two bulbs each. Each bulb rating ... A: John, How many lamps have you gone through so far and did you buy the replacements from the same ... | |
| Wiring a new outlet | 2/13/2004 |
| Q: Bob, Thanks for the quick response. I tested the switch and it has the steady feed. I just need ... A: Daniel, OK, you want to make your opening for the new receptacle in between the same 2 studs the ... | |
| REWIRING | 2/13/2004 |
| Q: BOB, THIS IS RATHER A LARGEHAVE YOU EVER HAD TO REWIRE A WHOLE HOME? THE BUILD DATE ON THIS HOME ... A: Kevin, Yes I have. Just bringing the receptacles in the house up to code will be a good sized ... | |
| Wiring a new outlet | 2/12/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I just bought a new phone for the kitchen that requires power. Need to install an outlet near ... A: Daniel, Its quite possible you don't have what you need in that 3 way switch outlet for the new ... | |
| electric dryer connections | 2/11/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I live outside of Dallas, Texas and decided to see if you or one of the others could give me a ... A: George, I'm assuming your current receptacle is a 30 amp 240 volt receptacle where if you test ... | |
| Lights turn off and on by itself | 2/10/2004 |
| Q: No, it's a hanging ceiling fixture. I checked it out and the transformer on it becomes incredibly ... A: HJ, It sounds like you had a halogen lamp in there that exceeded the wattage output of the ... | |
| Lost power to ceiling lights | 2/10/2004 |
| Q: In our basement, here in Michigan, is a finished room with two recessed lights. When they were ... A: Randall, Check the switch again, if you put the prods of the volt meter on both screws of the ... | |
| heat tapes for gutters | 2/10/2004 |
| Q: a friend sent me this , thought i would share it with you, any thoughts? ... A: Stan, The "Easy heat SR tape" at this website is the same type of cable you saw at the other web ... | |
| Moving breaker panel to laundry | 2/10/2004 |
| Q: I'd like to move the breaker panel from the kitchen to the laundry adjacent as this would ... A: John, I take it that you just want to flip the panel so its facing the other way into the laundry ... | |
| heat tapes for gutters | 2/9/2004 |
| Q: I live in Wi and have a couple of older properties with low pitch roofs, and gutters jamb if snow ... A: Stan, Heat tape is very effective and I've installed plenty of it. There are different grades such ... | |
| lights blowing in motorhome | 2/8/2004 |
| Q: Bob, I am changing out the old receptacles in my 1966 retro motorhome to new ones. When I replaced ... A: Charles, Did the circuit blow before you put the new switch back in the box or after ? In other ... | |
| feeds from single source | 2/5/2004 |
| Q: Is it alright for me to pull two feeds from a single power source 12/3 wire. The line now has 2 ... A: Mike, 12-3 IS a cable that you can use for 2 circuits , so I'm a little puzzeled by your question ... | |
| bathroom vanity light | 2/4/2004 |
| Q: I am looking for a vanity light that has an electrical outlet included. I used to see a lot of ... A: I don't believe that type of fixture is made any more, I haven't seen one of those in a store or ... | |
| Ceiling light wiring | 1/28/2004 |
| Q: I am from PA and I moved into a house that had a vacant ceiling light fixture removed. I think they ... A: IT, Very simply , just use the white and red wire in the ceiling box and cap the black wire. So the ... | |
About Electrical Wiring in the Home
This site answers questions related to home electrical wiring, home wiring, general electrical help,and other electrical questions related to aleternating current (AC). You can find help on the National Electical Code, home electrical issues, wiring electrical outlets, installing lighting, electrical grounding, and general electrical help for do-it-yourself projects not require an electrician. If you do not see your home electrical wiring question answered in this area then please ask your electrical wiring question here
This site answers questions related to home electrical wiring, home wiring, general electrical help,and other electrical questions related to aleternating current (AC). You can find help on the National Electical Code, home electrical issues, wiring electrical outlets, installing lighting, electrical grounding, and general electrical help for do-it-yourself projects not require an electrician. If you do not see your home electrical wiring question answered in this area then please ask your electrical wiring question here
Electrical Wiring in the Home
Answers by Expert:
PASCACK VALLEY ELECTRIC Bob Mossman
Top Expert on this page
Expertise
Licensed Master Electrician (30 years) 6165B Contractor in Closter New Jersey with 38 years total experience in Residential - Commercial - Industrial work. Emergency Service - General trouble shooting and repair work - Paddle fans - Kitchen & Bath exhaust fans - AC lines - Smoke detectors - Telephone lines - Cable TV lines - Computer network cabling - Exterior lighting - Recessed lighting - Security lighting - (200 - 150 - 100 amp service up grades) - Electric Heat - New circuits - New appliance hook ups - Back up generators - and more ! FREE ESTIMATES 201-358-1552 www.pascackvalleyelectric.com Fully Insured
Experience
Licensed contractor in Closter New Jersey.
Education/Credentials
"The Frank Williams School of Electrical Construction". My dear old boss is 97 and still going God Bless him. I started working for "Tenafly Electric" right out of high school at 19. He was tough but I learned more working for him in 8 and half years than most guys. We did mostly industrial work while doing some commercial and residential so I was fortunate to be exposed to all 3 areas of electrical construction. The guys I worked with were all good guys and I stay in touch with some of them still. Most of us went into our own buisness's which says something about the caliber of the guys I worked with. We had some interesting clients : Wella Corp. of shampoo fame, Farah Fawcett etc, I didn't buy shampoo for 10 years, it was a great place to work. Pan Am the X airline just before they went under, another great place to work, nice clean environment. C&C Metals, the largest button manufacturer in the US at that time, a not so clean environment but a very interesting place to work, lots of machine's cranking out buttons of all kinds but you had to be on your toes, it was a potentially dangerous place to be . All kinds of action going on around you.
©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.