ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Tricks of the Trade

Heres a good one I learned off another website a long time ago: If you use split bolts or splice blocks to tie in a service and you get them back to re use, wrap them in a piece of plastic or saran wrap before taping them up. Makes them very easy to unwrap for re use. I just use my sandwich wrappers from lunch.

I knew a guy who did a similar thing. He wrapped the tape, sticky side up, for a few turns and then twisted it and finished wrapping. Same deal, when you unwind the tape it comes off the sticky side up part clean. It is a bit of a dexterity trick to keep it going until you get it sticky side down.

Big B & G: The way I learned to handle that possibility is to wrap the Kearney with aluminum foil, several thicknesses, then do the tape thing.

The recently marketed connector blocks that are pre-insulated are obsoleting us old guys who carefully wrap with half a roll of rubber tape, then the pvc. I really like those insulation piercing taps but they are getting hard to find.

I agree there are some real nice looking splicing devices out there these days.

"The recently marketed connector blocks that are pre-insulated are obsoleting us old guys"

hey, who you callin old??? oh yeah I guess I am.

I first noticed I was old when I started looking at older women then realized they were my age.

I was working on my cable today and I used another one. If you do a lot of fishing QuadShield coax in the wall try to score some cable drop from the cable company guys. This stuff has a hard wire messenger molded in the jacket. Uauslly it is a PITA but if you are trying to "shoot" a wire down a skinny wall that stiff wire in there really helps. The best stuff is the stuff they pull down off a pole (it's free) but it is also straight since the coil memory from the box is gone. I have a few hundred feet in my shed loosely coiled in a ~4' loop. You can shoot it straight for the 6'- 8' in a wall cavity.

Almost Fried, some of your suggestions would get some fired...

Aluminum foil on a kearny is dissimlar metal contact. And a screw in a finish floor is a back-charge from the GC, or just plain un nessesary damage, sub-floor I do it all the time too, but not finish. And if nessesary to fish with a panel live - try a fiberglass fish and pull into the panel.

Over the years I have learned some interesting ways to work alone nobody on site pulling wire, and this is one way for pulling in pipe on short light runs: Take some nylon fish line, or building string and pull it through first, then take it back with you to where you are fishing from, so now you have both ends. Then attach your well lubed smooth head to the string where you are pulling from, then pull the string from where you are pulling to until you have some high tension. (the string stretches...) As you push the wire in, the tension will let off, you just give it more. You would be surprised at how far you can do this from.... You can even do it walls too. Just beware of sharp edges ar the box you are pulling to. You can also use any number of things as pulleys just make sure they are metal so the string doesnt burn through. Toll box handles, paint can handles, a staple on the wall or the floor or cieling, furnature legs, ladders if it needs to go up, etc. It just has to be heavy enough not to move when you apply tension to the string. For example pulling through pipe in a slab floor from the other side of the room. Pulled into an outlet box by having the string go up over the rung of a ladder, then down on to the floor through the handles of a saw-all and drill case, then over to me. Put tension on the string, feed wire in, put tension on the string, feed wire in, etc. When your done with string just ball it up and toss it, the stuff is cheap.

One more string item for setting cans or boxes in a line: Set the farthes two away from eachother first, then place the string under high tension on simular edges of each. Like the top of the boxes, or sides of the cans. Then you can set all the rest right to that same simular edge that to string is on for the first two. If the string is tight, it will only deflect and 1/8" over 100', thats better than most lasers for acurracy...

Hang cans with carpenters "quick-grips" clamps, then screw them in. Saves fumbing around with a can sitting on your head while you try to screw it at the same time. (For metal framing or those cans with no nail-ups)

One more quick one, lock cans in place by putting a self tapper right through the brackets and into the can frame. Helps if you clamp the whole bracket and can with vise grips while putting the screw in. But that thing aint moving after that.

Silly rabbit, tricks are for kids!!

Quote:If the string is tight, it will only deflect and 1/8" over 100', thats better than most lasers for acurracy...

I've always thought that lazers were 100% acurrate?

Here is another one I just saw yesterday. Usually when I need to space a device out to fush it with the wall (when the opening is cut too big) I will make little springs by curling some scrap wire around the end of my needle nose. Late yesterday on a service call I pulled a receptacle and the previous electrician had used a bit of small diameter rubber hose (like automotive fuel line) and just cut off the proper length and slid it over the screw.

Can't wait to try that one.

Most lazers will shoot a beam that will spread more over distance, you end up with a beam that you need to measure to find the center of. And line lazers you will have trouble seeing the beam at 40', bright sun light - forget it. Often I set up the string with the lazer, then shut the thing off for all the ones in the middle.

[This message has been edited by e57 (edited 10-07-2006).]