Pulaski

Sounds about right. I seem to recall switching out about 75-80 in 2,000 sqft of living space when I replaced the almond coloured sockets () for white ones. By the time I was done I could replace a socket and face plate, start to finish, in two minutes!

GeoffM

Almond, yeah, in our previous house I'd assumed they had just faded. Got a bit of a surprise in Home Depot when I went to get a replacement and found you can actually buy, by personal choice, without being pushed into choosing that "colour".

Is a reset GFCI a suitable substitute for switching off the breaker? Probably ought not to be but...?

Apparently in many locales one is supposed to have any electrical works signed off by an inspector. Anybody actually done that for what I would consider to be very minor works (substitute/replacements, single extensions)?

Pulaski

No. And my licensed electrician, who I use for major tasks, such as rewiring, or when I needed the street-house connection upgraded, helped me find and trace a GFCI once, then said "you know how to replace a GFCI, don't you?" charged me $30 cash, and left! ..... In fairness he knows me well enough to know that I know a good bit about wiring and that safety is always at the top of my agenda.

I theory a tripped GFCI isolates the downstream socket(s), like a light switch isolates the light fitting. Good safety protocol is always to isolate the line at the breaker, AND THEN, as my father taught me when I was still a boy, check that the wires aren't live. .... After my previous experience in the UK with a 13A socket wired to a lighting circuit, that last step is always a necessary step.

GeoffM

Checking it isn't live almost goes without saying the lick test?

Never electrocuted myself in the UK but have done here. I'd already wired a wireless (!) lightswitch, tested it worked, and was pushing it back into the box, and forgot the live terminals were on the side of the module instead of the back.

Michael

A light switch only breaks the hot side but I've seen circuits wired with the switch on the neutral side.

S Folinsky

When re remodeled one of the bathrooms, the subsequently added wall tile had covered over the box for an electric wall heater which had been removed. The wires into the box were capped with paper masking tape. In the interest of safety I used a circuit tester on the two wires. They were live!! Go figure.

BTW, we took the opportunity to put in a fan wall heater.

Pulaski

Exactly, that is certainly possible, and why I usually disconnect at the breaker, always, always check for live wires.

Pulaski

I found a complete socket behind plywood paneling in my in-laws house, which had apparently been concealed since the house was built in 1966 - the builders had written a date on the studwork which we found when we removed the rest of that cheap paneling that had been installed just in that one room. Drilling into a wall always has an element of risk.

Michael

I built and installed a custom cabinet and countertop for a cubby hole in my townhouse and ran wires from a wall socket to a switch on the wall to overhead spot lights as well as a wall socket in the cabinet. I also put in another wall socket above the countertop.

GeoffM

Doesn't surprise me, and of course it happens in the UK too.

An example of where not capping wires properly at work is Not a Good Idea.

Pulaski

Whenever possible they should be disconnected at the fuse/ breaker box, or where connected to a junction box, and then removed. When I had a complete rewiring job done I told my electrician that I wanted all unused wiring to be removed. Not only did he remove the bad/botched partial rewire job that he was replacing, but as he worked around the house he also removed most of the old "knob and tube" wiring from when the house was first wired.

When I rewired my house in London, and replaced the floor boards in the main bedroom, I not only removed a lot of obsolete wiring, but I also cut out the gas pipes that had been used for gas lights.

GeoffM

Removing wiring involves removing walls. That's not really on my budget or agenda! Ideally yes they should be removed but safely terminating both ends in some foolproof way ought to be sufficient. Seems wirenutting the wires together in a box is the common way (obviously only when both ends are known and not connected to anything else!).

Anyway, 16 outlets down, 98 to go. Master bedroom sockets, master bedroom light, and family bathroom light (but not socket) on "Lites 2". Seems 8-10 on a 15A connection is the general rule but I think that is pairs of outlets?

Pulaski

I agree I wouldn't advocate tearing walls apart just to remove wires.

Generally I wire-nut the cores separately if I find unknown wires or remove a socket or other connection.

S Folinsky

This is particularly true when the wiring is non-metallic sheathed cable. For the longest time LA City did not allow the use of such cable. But then the Feds said no low income housing subsidies if such cable not allowed. But then, the use of electrical shield plates is now common.

BTW, the plug locations help locate where the studs are and indicate somewhat where the wiring might be.

When we did our kitchen, we fired the electrical contractor 2/3 the way through the job. [You do NOT leave a job site in a home unsecured while the entire crew goes to lunch. They had to remove the rear door for working on the main box. When they went to lunch, they secured THEIR tools and truck, but left our house unattended and open.] On the rough inspection, the city inspector found a deficiency in that the wire in the boxes was not 3"long. Inasmuch as it wire was in flex conduit, a tug on each wire got us to 3".