ECN Forum Forums Photo Discussion Forums Photos for General Discussion Destroy-It-Yourself Book

I borrowed this Wiring Step-By-Step book from my aunt after seeing what type of work it had led her to install. In defense of DIY books, I've seen some that weren't bad. This one isn't one of those books. Literally every page of general instruction or theory had errors in it, a lot were pretty mild, but I picked out a few of the ones that seemed like they might get someone into trouble:


Picture 1: Not once does this even suggest that 120 volts is capable of killing you, even if you happen to have a *heart condition*, are *standing in water*, or on a metal ladder, you'll simply get hurt if shocked. Only 240 volts presents a danger, never mind that the odds are ridiculously small of a person simultaneously touching both 120 volt lines and actually getting hit by 240 volts. Also, what the heck is "240 volt current"? Is that like 240 volt-amps?

Picture 2: If you follow the instructions exactly (as any novice might) and only check continuity between the common and just one of the traveler screws, the DIY-er will have just successfully confirmed that their 3-way is acting like a single-pole switch.

Picture 3: I can't believe the advice here is anything other than "call a licensed electrician experienced with aluminum wiring." I would say I trust those purple wire-nuts about as far as I can throw them, but I imagine I could throw one pretty far, and I don't trust them nearly that much.

Picture 4: The vast majority of non-contact sensors detect electric fields and won't work on any shielded wire, which includes AC, MC, and BX. So, the DIY-er holds their hot-stick next to the energized BX and it doesn't light up, but they sure will when they cut through it thinking it's dead.

Picture 5: I can't say it's really hazardous to run around installing GFCIs thinking they're surge protectors, but it darn sure would be hazardous to fail to install GFCIs where necessary because you think they're actually surge protectors.

From the text we also learn such fantastic things as:

• "Both 120 volt lines make the 240 volt circuit, though only one neutral is needed for the circuit."
It'll really get confusing when they find a straight 240 volt appliance.

• "Grounding diverts current harmlessly to earth in case of a circuit fault."
My favorite, repeated multiple times through-out the book.

• "White wires for every circuit, and sometimes bare or green wires, connect to the neutral bus bar."
It would've been nice to clarify this beyond "sometimes"; I hope they don't have sub-panels.

• "The 240 volt circuit has one neutral, and possibly a ground wire, connected to the neutral bus bar."
Again, this could use some serious clarification. Where does that mysterious ground wire connect? Maybe it doesn't...

• "…That tiny bit of current would pass through you on it’s way to earth.
As little as 1/5 of an amp can be dangerous."
Can be? If you're passing 200 milliamps through your body, you are dead.

• "Old armored cable, called BX, has a thin bonding wire but no actual ground wire."
BX has no bonding wire and no grounding means. AC does, but it isn't old; it's still being produced.

• "Often a stranded wire has to be spliced to a solid wire. Wrap the stranded wire around the solid wire. Bend the solid wire so it clamps down on the stranded wire. Screw a wire nut onto the two wires and wrap the connection in electrical tape."
In their defense, maybe a lot of electricians use this method of connection; I've never seen it or heard of it. But it sounds like it would really poorly secure that stranded wire.

• "Kitchen receptacles within six feet of the sink need GFCI protection."
Book was printed in 2006. They're a couple of years behind code.

• "Older, ungrounded circuits are usually polarized, which is less effective than grounding, but better than nothing."
Since when are *circuits* polarized? What does polarization have to do with grounding? This sentence should simply have been deleted by the editors.

• "[When wiring more than one switch] connect all the white wires together."
All the wires are white, so it must be right? Hope there aren't multiple circuits in that box.

• "Test the [ungrounded] receptacle with a receptacle analyzer. If it is grounded, replace it with a grounding-type."
Because if there's enough of a ground path to light that little neon-lamp in a receptacle tester, there must be a safe ground path with a low-enough impedance to trip a breaker. This error is repeated throughout the book whereby they claim every cable with a metal sheath has an effective equipment ground, including BX and Greenfield.

After reading through a book packed with stuff like this (you should see their instructions for conduit bending), I'm not surprised that my aunt got in over her head. You would like to think that your family would know better, though.

-BigJohn