I remember an electrician our company used was working on live circuits in our data center and I asked him if he was worried about getting shocked and he said that never happens to a good electrician. I followed up with "so you've never been shocked?" and he replied "no I get shocked all the time."

As an IT guy, something that I've learned along the years applies to many other fields and it's funny to find the same here: When you build something, keep in mind someone will have to maintain it for years and years, long after you're gone. Make it easier on them.

When you mentioned laying down the blanket and catching any dust, etc... I call that "giving a shit". I use a drywall guy who "gives a shit" and puts up plastic sheeting and cleans up everything when he's done. You know what? He gets ALL of my business. And I don't care that he charges a premium for it. Good job man.

As an applieance repair technician, I remember one time going out on a service call pertaining to a domestic house-hold Drier. The customer stated that she had just bought the drier new approximaely 2 months prior, and the sales store delivery/set up crew had performed the installlation. However, the customer complained that even though everything on the drier functioned properly she would invariably get a moderately mild tingling sensation of an electrical shock throughout her body every time she set the timer and hit the start button (especially if she was either leaning up against or touching the washing machine located right next to the drier), but yet she stated that she would never get an electrical shock when the drier was in the normal shut-down/ off mode. When I arrived and checked it out - yes, I would also get the same type of electrical shock when it was operating but not when it was off. After performing several checks and tests where everything checked out I partially dismantled the drier and checked everything and all internal wiring and components for any possible electrical short. I even partially dismantaled the timer assembly to see if it had shorted out internally. Nope, Nadda, not a thing wrong. Everything was checking out factory new and normal. So Even though I had previously checked out the drier electrical outlet behind the drier, the drier pigtail, and the electrical wiring setup inside the house's main circuit breaker panel I decided to investigate deeper into the wiring circuit for the drier. Here is what I found. Originally the house never had a laundry room (area), built or installed when the house was built. The owner (or who-ever), later on down the road installed a Romex ( 12/3 with ground) , wiring circuit from the house main electrical circuit breaker panel box (on the west end of the house), out to the garage (on the far east end of the house), where they had installed all the necessary features and components for a laundry room. The total distance was approximately 75 to 100 feet. They ran that Romex in the crawl space under the house. Every so often they had installed large staples (non-insulated), for a farm fence under every 4th floor joist just to hold the romex wire up off the ground (each staple was basicallly every 4 feet). (other than not meeting national electrical code basically really not a problem). Well, here's the kicker. When they installed the wiring they ran out of wire approximately half way across the house flooring. It was not one continous Romex wire from point A to point B. Basicaly still not a problem. They strung the Romex wire from the main circuit panel box halfway across the floor to where it ran out and ended. They then strung the 2nd Romex wire from the drier outlet in the garage back to where the first Romex wire ended. Here is the real kicker....... But they "did not" mount and install a J-box at the point of where the first Romex wire ended, and where the 2nd Romex wire met the first. Their connection method between the two wires created the problem. They had just bent each wire into a J-hook and then crimped each wire to the other wire with a set of pliers. They then wrapped each set of main power wires and the neutral return wires up with black plastic electrical tape, leaving the ground wire bare, and then overall wrapped all wires together into a sort of harness with more black plastic electrical tape. Well,not codeworthy overall, but it worked, (at least for a while). Over time, the wires eventually incased themselves in a lot of corrosion from moisture. After spending considerable time trying to unwrap that mess in order to get down to nothing but bare wire, I eventually found that the 2 main 120 volt power supplying wires were still intact, as well as the ground wire still being intact too. However, the Neutral return wire had corroded itself in two and had seperated into two seperate wires (with a space approximately 1/4 inch between the two neutral return wires), at the splice point. This created a different method for the return of the electrical power back to the main circuit breaker panel. Rather than the current traveling along the neutral wire back to the main circuit breaker panel, the current traveled through the frame of the drier and then through the ground wire atached to the drier frame back to the main circuit breaker panel box. This set up the problem that when the human body touched the drier anywhere on the frame (and especially if the human body was leaning up against or touching the Washing machine right next to the drier), the electrical power also took a short cut through that human body as well. Needless to say, when that occurred, that human definately was getting a shocking experience about how electrical current flowed. After a J-Box was installed, and the wires were properly re-connected together to meet the proper electrical code standard that cured that little shocking problem. - True story.

I never thought a 30min story about a hidden junctuon box would be so exciting. Honestly this was more entertaining than most things I see on Netflix. 👏👏👏

I love it when a customer says the last electrician could not solve his problem. Then it's game time !

I'm not an electrician, but I found this video to be informative, enjoyable, and relevant. When a 30-minute video about diagnosing residential electrical issues has nearly a million views within six months of its posting, I think it says a lot about the quality of said video's content. At least IMHO, anyway. Liked and subbed!

As a fellow electrician , I enjoyed your story. I too enjoyed troubleshooting on jobs. It’s kinda like being a detective, as you go through the mind of the previous electrician , or handyman who did some of these things, and map out exactly how that circuit makes its way throughout the home or building. I’ve found my share of buried boxes, splices with no wire nuts , etc. keep doing what your doing. Good video .

It’s so encouraging to know there r like minded craftsmen out there who really care about quality honesty and integrity.Thank you!

Upon seeing the roasted wire nut, I exclaimed "DOH!" Years back I was helping a relative do an interior remodel. Upon removing some cheap wood paneling, I was greeted by a hidden wire splice. It was done with an automotive crimp-type butt splice! I told the relative that we needed to open EVERY wall in search of horror stories. Thanx for bringing the canless fixtures to my attention; they will be perfect in a spot in my kitchen that has minimal clearance.

Great job. I have my own business doing drywall repairs. I find myself repairing ceilings and walls behind these situations. You would be surprised how many electricians and plumbers throw their trash in the walls and leave their messes on the floor. I commend you on your professionalism. Thank you and I hope you are well rewarded for your efforts.

everything this guy does or says is stuff we deal with on the daily exactly. great videos, great advice, great electrician.

30 years trade experience. Asking questions is critical for troubleshooting. I always ask age of the house and work that has been done. Great video!

It's funny, just today I was troubleshooting a house with weird voltages on random plugs but some plugs working, 4 hours going through junction boxes and taking out receps and switches looking for a loose neutral. Finally I found it was the main power coming in, reading 5.6 volts on 1 leg. We called the local electricity provider and it turns out a tree limb wore through the jacket on the power line lol

As a software engineer this was a lot of fun to watch. Your thought process and approach to the problem very much resembles the approach I take to tracking down and fixing bugs.

Towards the end of the video, it is a sign of a professional to leave the home as clean as you started. I wish more electricians were as thoughtful as you!

Electrical engineer here. Have to give electricians credit because all the circuits they need to troubleshoot are buried behind walls. I'll stick to my circuit boards lol

This guy knows how to conduct himself properly when working in someone’s home. Any electricians or contractors out there watching this video. I beg you to please take this video’s advise and follow his examples when working in a customer’s home/ personal space. You should always cover up anything and everything that will potentially get dusty or have debris fall on it. The biggest takeaway from this is to always ask the homeowner for permission before you decide to start making modifications to their wall/ ceiling. That is a huge “pet peeve” of mine as well as every other homeowner’s. Having a contractor assume it’s okay to make modifications to something without asking before hand is just simply unacceptable! Thanks for sharing this great video I learned a lot from watching this!

Also good job with the logic. I remember as an apprentice having moment of panic not knowing how to trouble shoot. At least a guy gains confidence the more things you run into. Just last month I ran into two homeowner sub panels that had the bonding screw still in the sub panel (with a mainbreaker). In one case a kid got lifted pretty bade as he became a portion of the neutral.

Just stumbled upon this video but your presentation drew me in and I had to watch to the end. You are much more real and relatable than a lot of youtube instructors. I certainly agree with your attitude towards making sure you do it right, from testing every outlet to making sure you leave no mess behind. Class act.

My dad was an electrician and taught me a great deal. I upgraded my service to 200A and followed the code as my Dad taught me (of course I pulled a home-owner's permit). The inspector came out and looked at the service panel, saw my bending requirements were correct and everything was wired correctly. He asked, "How did you learn to do this?" I informed him my dad taught me. One of the things he taught (and I read in the code) was that junction boxes always need to be accessible. Also know that you can have a maximum of 3 120V circuits in a junction box, or one 240V. I am one of those weirdos that enjoys thumbing through the NEC. I really wish I would have gone into the trade because I enjoy doing my own electrical work at home. My hat is off to all of your professional electricians!!! And thanks for the video!

Thank you for speaking out about cleanup! A few years ago I stopped using a certain plumber, in large part because he left stainless steel drilling shavings everywhere after installing an on-sink water filter.

I had something very similar to this back in 2006. I had weird voltages and I eventually found a junction box in the ceiling of the garage which had been converted into a den, laundry room, and storage room. I ended up finding 3 or 4 "junctions"...without boxes...lying in blown-in insulation! ‎‍🔥 There was one junction box, but it didn't have a cover!

I have been electrician for the last 35 years and have seen all kinds of situation as well but i especially like your solution of putting a pot light for getting to the octogonal box, well done 👍

I love my borescope for these things. makes looking down inside walls, above ceilings, where ever so much easier.

Who'd a thought electrical forensics could be so exciting? Compelling, I watched right to the end, haha. Well done!

Great content man! I enjoyed watching this. As an IT professional I understand the need to follow procedures and code. This was awesome to watch and the troubleshooting part is so much like my field it is really crazy. 90-98% of the difficulty is USUALLY finding the issue.

you are awesome. i love the personal pride in your work you have. i had a 24 hr emergency residential plumbing/pump business for about 30 years and the two most important parts of my service calls was to respect the homeowners home as if it were my own and do thourough work. as you said, you were already there so take a bit of extra time to totally verify your finished service work. i never had to advertise past the first year or two and had plenty of repeat clientele and word of mouth to earn a proper living to raise my family. i really appreciate your knowledge and expertise to be able to troubleshoot instead of just tearing in willy-nilly and also your explanation of the entire process. great video.

These service call videos are insights into how you troubleshoot, your thought process, your tools used, like that fancy toner. The crazy part is how full of energy about your work you are! Like me, except i'm not an electrician (YET!).

Pro tip: When cutting holes for recessed lights, you can use a circular hole saw on a cordless drill to get you a clean hole, but run the drill backwards so that the teeth on the circular saw doesn't catch the drywall and 'crawl' over the drywall, cutting it up. Also, you can use a hole saw accessory dust bowl that catches virtually all of the drywall powder/debris. Quick, easy, clean.

Dude!!! This is the best "Electrical" video I have seen in life!! This totally validated what I do to solve problems, myself being a service electrician for the company I work for and especially my sidework in homes! Everything from gathering as much info as possible from the customer to coming with that smart idea of installing that recessed light where that hidden j box was to make it accessible. I truly enjoyed this video. I noticed you used a keyhole saw to cut the 6 inch hole...have you thought about investing in the adjustable drill attachment that comes with a bowl to cover the cutting area to get the dust? I personally use Milwaukee but they're made by other companies as well. Fast,efficient and clean; that's my only suggestion. 👍🏼

Hey Dustin! Just wanted to say your videos are a god send ! I just got my helpers license in Puerto Rico and I am a highly functional Spanish speaker but learning electricity in your second language comes with its difficulties around translation! Glad to have your videos help reassure any missing info I could have lost in translation! You’re the best ! Thank you!

Tool tip: Get an endoscope. They're cheap and can get way in to tight places and connect right up to your cell phone. One of the best tool i have for these types of issues. Btw, your solution was really great. Win both ways customer and you.

This video is most golden. Professional work, clean work, reliable work, repairs meet code, and professional production of video and audio. Also includes expert tips for the diy person.

The way you analyze and explain things is what set you apart. Blessings!

As a retired fire marshal,...I have come across a myriad of electrical nightmares. One of my favorites was a junction box fashioned from an old coffee can, nailed to joist, above drywall ceiling. Had nothing to do with the cause of the fire, but we came across it. I wish I had gone through the trouble of saving all of these cool photos to a thumb drive.

Real life scenarios like this really help people think through electricity. Keep up on these videos because they do make a difference! Speaking from an industrial context, troubleshooting is a lost art.

Great video. I have minor experience running cables as a network tech, but no experience as an electrician. What I found most fascinating were the similarities between what YOU described and what I have done in -multiple-different professions. Bottom line: be knowledgeable, be professional, be straightforward, be considerate. Kudos to you for representing all those qualities 100%, and also, thanks very much for sharing your experience and insights. Respect!!

Good video. i have been doing low voltage work for nearly 40 years and over that time i applied some of my troubleshooting skills for diagnosing 110 volt circuits issues. So I was able to follow your methodology easily. I have used my low voltage toner to track Romex just as you did (not live circuits), and because one of the leads is on the neutral wire, (and they are all common,) the toner will "bleed" everywhere. I recently picked up a 110 volt toner made by Klein that works well, but the circuit must be energized for the toner to work. Great for tracking down which breaker is operating a circuit. Thanks for an entertaining video.

I'm a GC and have been in the construction industry for the last 40 years. I will say, "You are one of the most professional electricians I've run across". I generally sub out to two different electricians depending on the size and scope of the job and they've been good to me over the years. I especially appreciated the clean-up part!

I did low voltage for many years. You are spot on with the way you do your diagnosis. Those toners can bleed and give you false signals though. However, if you are having problems finding tone, one trick is to ground the one toner lead and connect the other to the black. This causes an imbalance and forces the tone to bleed more. This can help you find wires that are really shielded, twisted pair, or just blocked by walls.

YOU ARE AWESOME! I'm not a electrician. I'm a homeowner that occasionally changed out a plug or a switch. I just stumbled onto your video and got hooked in it because of your animated and enthusiastic presentation. What an amazing job of troubleshooting. I'll keep in mind the tips and tools you used, but if I encountered a problem like yours, I think I'd just burn the house down and start over.

Pro tip : Use a battery operated smoke alarm to cover up to a 4" hole you cut. Add a Old work, cut in round box and smoke detector after you are done using hole. Good for hiding junction boxes and pull points as well on long wire pulls in finished houses.

Like you, I am also an electrician but I’m a Canadian electrician and you are right there are far to many poor tradesmen out there. Number 1 rule always take pride in your work and leave the job in a far better state then what you found it. I have even cleaned up after other so called electricians that couldn’t solve the problem and it does go a long way with owners or property managers. Stay safe young man, I know your parents are very proud of you and the job you do.

Been there done that. It's been illegal to hide a box for a long time, and it kind of pissed me off the couple of times that I've run into problems from idiots doing it. Installing the fixture was a nice solution. I will definitely add that to my toolbag.

Thank you for your honesty and speaking like a normal guy on any one of these job sites out there now. I have a wood flooring business and I wish I could find employee’s like you. Keep up the good work it is a huge help. It’s also super interesting.

It is nice to watch a professional at work. I started off as an Electrical Officer in the Navy. Great experience. I know what I can fix, what I shouldn't try to fix, and when to call a proper electrician. It is a real experience to get bit by 440v shore power.

I don’t know a thing about installing electrics but I gotta say I respect his attitude and ethics. I wish everybody was as professional and thoughtful as he is.

The moment you actually diagnose a problem like this, up to the point you first flick the lights and everything works properly... that's like a drug

i'm sorry but. this video is by far the best most well rounded video i've ever seen, not just for j boxes but basic electric information Electricians should be watching this as a learning video. straight up 100%

I was a troubleshooting technical analyst at an ISP for years before becoming an electrician (apprentice still) and service work is something I really enjoy. I get to use that old 'muscle' before. I like you question and answer approach with the homeowner. Skipping that process or skimming it could result in a lot of wasted time.

love your commentary on keeping the space your working in clean - whether you're working in residential or even commercial environments. It was an early lesson I learned when I was an apprentice.

Been an electrician for quite a few years at this point. The way you go about doing stuff and the out of the box problem solving skills you displayed here are fantastic. Every time I show someone new (or even old) the trick with videoing in a hole with your phone to get better views blows peoples minds. Good shit man new sub here!

Can't believe that I watched the whole video - but well done! I'm in a similar situation with my "job" in that diagnosing and finding the "true" cause of client's problem(s) is 80%+ of the work/challenge. You help us remind ourselves that due-diligence will always pay off. You found the issue that others could not - SOLELY because of your perseverance.

LOVE the troubleshooting, I think it really separates not that there's anything bad about them, the installers, assemblers from the fixers. I'm barely an installer so i can say that.

Called open neutral at 3:00 based on description and plug tester, I was right :D edit: Weird voltage is the voltage Its traveling back thru lights and appliances down the line on the neutral trying to find a path to ground. That voltage changes depending on how many light and appliances its going thru to come back.

Best hack I ever heard for when you know you absolutely have to cut the drywall to fix the electrical problem that is otherwise inaccessible -- install another light! Great stuff!

The problem found at 22:28 in the video. Overall, great video, super diagnostic and troubleshooting process. Must have been very frustrating to have to hunt down someone else's problem.

Great video. "Old houses built in the 1970's or 80's" LOL. I bought my house in 1980, but it was built in 1923 with knob and tube wiring, with taped splices in the ceilings all over the place! And, of course, no grounds. The service panel was new, thank god, but each run of cloth covered wire ended in a junction box near the panel. I helped my handyman brother do some remodeling, and read extensively about home rewiring and taught myself. Over the next decade I rewired every room, one at a time. Got good with plaster and lath box retrofitting. (Removed ll the outside walls to insulate where I could). Also installed a new subpanel and ran two lines underground for the remote garage, so I could have 220 in the future. There was no internet back then, only instruction books and the NEC code book. I wish I had access to your vast knowledge at the time. Thanks again.

I've seen a fully lit led exit sign buried in a ceiling, they did not intend to remove it because there was another one a foot away at the proper height you would never know that thing was up there once they ceil it

I wish there were more trades people like you. Not necessarily because you solves the problem (that's really the difference between skill and experience), but more so because of how you work to ensure a proper environment, investment in the proper tools, and ensuring you use best practices for safety. I've recently moved into a "new" home and had to do some basic electrical work to relocate a switch, what I found was cables were stripped (about 4mm) and not even looped around the conductor screws. My concern now is every switch, and outlet needs to be checked. Keep up the good work. Nuff' respect.

Well done! I’m a retired electrician from Lynn, MA. Great video…keep them coming.😊 Sometime between 1975 and 1980 I had a similar situation in Chelsea, MA on the second floor of a three family, 3 decker, no attic above. The problem was the kitchen light was flickering and at the moment not working. When I walked by the bathroom heading to the kitchen I noticed the bathroom had been recently renovated. I asked the occupant if their use to be a ceiling light in the bathroom where their currently wasn’t one. They replied yes…. I then asked if she had a broom… got a funny look with that request. I tapped the center of the ceiling in the bathroom with the broom and the kitchen light came back on. I then explained to her that the electrician who worked on the renovation buried the old ceiling light box and that I’d need to cut a hole in the new ceiling in order to repair the problem. We’ll she said, I’ll need to wait for my husband to get home and explain the problem him before I can give you permission to proceed. We left and I never got called back and I’m hoping she called the company that did I the renovation back to fix the problem. These older buildings were wired with BX running ceiling light to ceiling light and the fixture had only pull chain switches. The BX was installed using shallow ceiling plates secured onto the bottom of the floor joist, horse hair plaster and wood laths style construction. When you remove the fixtures the old cloth covered conductors we’re crispy and the insulation would fall off caused by age and high wattage lamps being used. Electricians nightmare to say the least.

"What if we just add another recess can right there?".... I don't know exactly why I found that so damn funny, but I did. Lmao!

Dude. Just stumbled onto your channel from the abyss of the UKposts algorithm, and now you have a new sub haha. You’re the definition of a what electrician should be. Keep it up man.

I am an apprentice and I enjoy watching how you explain things. Thank you for doing these videos. Keep it up.

I worked for a carpenter back in the 80’s and he was very strict with making sure we left the place cleaner than we found it. I got chewed out for being careless with a ladder by the shrubs while painting. Since then I’ve seen so many tradesmen who just have the attitude that leaving dust and debris all over is just part of the deal. Nice to see the pride you take in your work. That’s how you get loyal repeat customers who will refer you to others.

Great methodical approach. Asking questions then interpreting the answers is so important in troubleshooting. Equally important is working efficiently so clean up is quick and easy so you're left with a job you can be proud of and the homeowner is happy to pay for. Bonus points for installing a new light in your access hole.

Thank you for that final note on keeping everything clean. It really makes such a difference.

Too many home professionals don’t give the first thought to cleanliness and how they’re leaving the environment afterward. Kudos to you for making it such a point and for doing an awesome job tracking down this problem and coming up with a nice solution.

Nice job, You're the only electrician I've came across that laid a drop cloth on the floor and cared about cleaning up after himself.

As an IT guy I really appreciate the breakdown here. I had a similar experience with a Wireless Access Point that my predecessor installed with no documentation. I was labeling everything and got to one access point that I have no idea where TF it was. I had rebooted and labelled every AP with it's room number and wire drop. Eventually I just waited until after hours and said "f*** it I'm going to find this thing". I shut off every other AP in the whole building and started walking around with my WiFi analyzer trying to determine where the signal was strongest. When I narrowed in on it it was a poor, sad looking AP that was covered in an inch of dust laying in a ceiling tile. No mount or anything. Just sitting there with a random Ethernet wire running to it next to a metal roof joist. Some people are a**hats and just do stuff without caring about the next guy.

Drop cloth was a good "Pro Tip".

Love you bro! Giving me a better understanding while I’m in school, I’m excited, nervous, but trying to learn to respect electricity and not fear it especially on 240.

Thank you for bringing us along on this weird symptoms job. Your skills and trouble shooting abilities are super.

As a fellow electrician I can confirm the “fuckery” is an actual technical term😂

Great breakdown of the steps to find the problem. Have a similar situation in a commercial setting and will have to return to cut into a restaurant bar to find a possible(probable) junction box hidden inside.

Love what you said in regards to being aware of your work environment! I've seen guys standing on peoples counter tops without a thought about it.

Even though the video seemed a bit long, it was super helpful to listen to the thought process as you went through the trouble shooting process. Thank you. Do more of these types of videos.

I went on a call one time to some apartments that were built in the 70's, tennant said all the receps on one wall didn't work. After checking every and anything electrical in the apartment, me and the J-man were stumped. It was then the tennant told us this problem started happening after the people in the apartment next door moved out. Uh oh. So we checked out that apartment, and surely enough, the power was off in that apartment, and we found out the receps were being fed from the panel next door.

I really appreciate the format of your video. From tips to safety to codes to "cleanup" recommendations, this was really well thought out. Side note, "disposable" drop cloths with a felt like material on one side and plastic on the other are available at most hardware/farm supply stores for less than $20. They work great for protecting surfaces and also stop liquids to include paints and lacquers. Reusable as many times as you'd like, but cheap enough to toss if they end up catching a really incredible mess. You're absolutely right about people appreciating that extra step and it doesn't have to be expensive.

this video has given me the desire to look into becoming an electrician. this type of problem solving is so satisfying to me

I really like how this presenter works. Makes sure he understands what is going on, isolates faults, talks to the homeowner about implications, avoids mess. One thing you can do when cutting into drywall to avoid the dust going everywhere is to have a vacuum cleaner nozzle near the saw blade. You can even go so far as to use a vacuum designed to catch very fine dust. I would avoid pulling on wires in a home that has issues from bad previous work as that can create new problems. I would use a stick and grippers or something to jiggle the wires going into that junction box and jiggle the junction box ,but keep the stresses local to the box which I know I am going to fix anyway to bring it up to code. The fact that the signal died the way it did meant that there was a high impedance connection (i.e. barely touching wires) in that junction box, as evidenced by the melted insulators when it was opened up.

i had one recently homeowner said "i went to bed woke up to no power in several parts of my house" (mostly lights) chased this circuit had both a circuit tracer and toner i also had the same problem it sent me on a wild goose chase finally found 3 j boxes in the attic under a floor that had a second floor over over it and the third box (last 1 i had) opened it and found a neutral with the screw in type wire nut with 1 wire not even stripped burnt and as you showed melted white wires together. and as a P.S. to your great video you could mention how neutral (l2) can kill

As someone who lives in a really old apartment building that's been converted and built up over and over again like some sort of lovecraftian horror show both with plumbing and electrical...I loved this.

I really enjoyed your video as you explained the troubleshooting, fix, housekeeping - consideration for client, etc. This is the way to train people how to do a job properly!

I install and sevice fireplaces and i practice the same type of work conduct in customers home that you spoke of. It makes a world of difference and having happy customers is well worth it!

Great video, very thorough and clearly explained. 2 jobs in a row, buried junction boxes and a ground wire being used as a hot wire. Both jobs resulted in expensive labor costs that the client obviously did not anticipate. They aren’t very happy but end up cussing whoever did the dirty unsafe deed in the past. BOTH jobs were flips at one time. I often find these blatant code violations, both in new and old homes. In new homes I often question the building inspector’s competence and diligence. Inspections are sometimes done AFTER the drywall goes up! I rarely get called out to correct a code violation, I usually find then as bonus charges as I’m installing or repairing something else.

Main reason, I got out of "Commercial", work, was "Fast food" restaurant, trouble calls, Manager would complain, when I found, "Hack Job" Installations, undersize wire to cooking equipment, ECT. I explained fix, run new wire, They would blow a "GASKET". Like It was my fault, they had a "HACK", do the work. I went to "Industrial", same thing, followed me. You just can't "WIN" as a conscience driven, ethical Electrician. I retired.

I'm finding this channel incredibly valuable to myself, I'm preparing to start an electrician certification in the spring, thank you for the great content and useful knowledge

Weird voltages are almost always caused by loose neutrals. All the other items in the circuit are dropping the voltage and then it comes back to the broken wire. Also the loose neutral is a resistor itself. Sometimes induction causes voltages to appear when there is actually no powered circuit, but usually that is on long runs that share the same pipe.

In the Chicagoland area- I've found weird boxes buried behind plaster...crazy old school wiring (not knob and tube) but just black and white covered in cloth insulation inside EMT that's serving as the ground. Apartment building, 2 levels plus a basement garden apt: replaced all the receptacles and light fixtures. On the 2nd floor there are still problems. Moved the bed and notice the plaster and drywall looking odd and weird smell coming from it- low and behold, a buried box behind half plaster and half drywall and joint compound (no tape or mesh) a box w/ a broken receptacle shoved inside of it, that someone decided to bury... 🤬

In my 54yrs. of work I have discovered thousands of "opportunities" !! Good job thanks Jim

"Ghost Voltage" love that quote. In Australia we call that a Back Feed. If you lose a grounded neutral thru a bad connection or disconnection all neutrals back from the fault become live or "hot" for my American friends. Love learning about the centre tapped system as aposed to the multiple earth neutral system we use.

I enjoyed your illustrative lecture on this subject. I think you demonstrate such enthusiasm that many youngsters will consider a career as an electrician. And you provide a good role model. Also the "carpenter's helper did such and such..." yeah a recipe for disaster. I was aware of J-boxes have to be accessible, I learned what the specifics NEC says about it and also that new style of J-box. Speaking of J-box accessibility, a recent remodel of an older house I noticed they placed a large J-box in attic but it is on the far side from attic access, close to wear roof and ceiling come together (a tight squeeze), and someone would have to negotiate climbing over A/C ducts. Questionable access but it was approved by inspector.

Love the floor plan display. Very cool!

I know of 3 men who were killed by 120v. One cut the ground pin off of his metal reflectored trouble light He crawled into a crawl space and was lying on damp soil when the hot contacted the reflector he was holding. Number 2 was working on a lighting, I do not know any details. Number 3 was working in a decorative pond with a submersible pump, again I do not know details.

Man I can totally relate to so much of what you said. I'm in IT and when addressing a problem I always ask so many questions. I also do a lot of my own electric work and I'm not so great at fixing some of it, but I've found a good electrician so when I'm just boggled and can't figure it out I call a pro. New subscriber for you here.

I just finished roughly 30 years as a GC doing remodeling and service work in some fine homes in the Boston area and I will assure you ( as this gentleman explained) that when you treat a persons most valuable spaces with consideration they will call you back every time just for that one reason. A clean drop cloth and one of the Minnie vacuums will win you more clients than anything else you may try. Just say’in…..

I've been redoing the electrical in my house as I do the renovations, aside from the standard cloth wire sketchiness, there is a junction box for every socket and light fixture and a few thrown in for no reason I can divine, as well as an old screw type fuse panel for the garage, but I've found 2 bare live hanging wires encased in the walls so far, I now turn off the power to rooms I'm demoing otherwise known as fun with sheetrock over plaster and lath so thick it takes minutes just to get a tiny hole though it so I have to use a magnet to locate the screws holding the drywall on so I can get it off the wall and go at the rest with a sledgehammer, about the only thing I haven't seen is knob and tube that's in use thankfully although there is a few remnants of it in the house. In just the attic I pulled 30 junction boxes out, I think whoever wired it was getting a discount on junction boxes and screws/nails but the screws/nails is another matter all together, just imagine if you will a piece of plywood on the floor that you have pull up which is nailed down to the tongue and groove subfloor with 1.75in ring shank nails which are precisely spaced 1 inch apart from the others over the entire area of the plywood. I spent a week pulling up one 4x8 sheet of plywood.

yah you start asking questions, and the home owner starts himin, and hawin, and lookin at the ground, or giving you that innocent look about a recent re model. you know theres going to be buried box.