Maybe it's good that the boxes were buried, in that when they finally failed the current went straight to ground? (Just an idea.)

$3000 for 6 lights? why didnt this guy just throw a 'Malibu" set in?? Then you CAN bury the splices & 12V, youre not likely to hurt someone...

-Randy

Randy,
The owner told us he supplied the lights, they were 120V custom fixtures, the $3000 was for installation only, what a deal, for a days work.

LK
How long was the run??? $3000 I would've piped in ½" schedule 40, or at least UF cable... was there something difficult about the installation? Would the price have been justified if the job was done properly?

-Randy

Randy,
The lights were around a garden at the rear of the house, he has the nm cable 4" or less in the garden soft soil, there were nicks all over the cable where the were planting, the owner was lucky, they din't take a hit, the run length was aprox. 100' in a garden circle.

Thats sad! I coulda used that $3000 right now! His lights would've worked a hella lot longer also! 4" underground? Was this guy using a garden shovel for his trench?? This guy was very lucky no one was injured or worse from this!

Why is it that the rats all seem to make out like bandits even ignoring the corners they cut?

Unless the lights themselves were incredibly expensive, that job couldn't have been more than $600 worth of materials even if everything was done properly. $2,400 for a six-light install is a pretty hearty price in my book...

-John

I asked, if they tried to contact him about what we found, the owners wife said, she did, he is a very nice man, and he was sorry that the material was bad, he din't make the boxes or the wire, you really should meet him, he is very nice.

When i explained the hazzard involved, i was told, Mr handy did a nice job, you should have seen the lights when they were working,
I don't like you telling me, it was his work that was bad, when it was bad material, he told me to watch out for the electrician, that you would bad mouth his work.

When i suggested they ask the town inspector about the work, she told me, he warned her about that, they just want money, and they would find all kinds of problems with my home, i don't want them here.

Mr wonderful!!!

[This message has been edited by LK (edited 04-26-2004).]

LMAO,
This guy covered his bases didn't he! You should introduce your homeowner to ECN! I don't know either of them, so my judgement is based solely on the facts! (As apparently yours is also! ) But I'd have no problem informing anyone this installation was an outright ripoff! If done correctly by a master/journeyman electrician on a "I want it done NOW!" basis, I'd say ok on the price... It's ok to be expensive, but you gotta give what you promise!

-Randy

PS I have no problem letting people know I'm not the cheapest guy in town.. We've all seen the results of most of the lowest bidders!

So, I can install everything with lamp-wire and duct-tape and when it fails it's the manufacturers fault for not making 600V hard-use zip cord and non-conductive UL listed duct-tape? Give me a break!

He was obviously so nice he had absolutely no problem conning them out of a load of money just to create a significant electrocution hazard.

Gee, what a swell guy!

-John

Here in New Jersey, I don,t know why we have Lic. Issued, there is no inforcement, anyone can do jobs, and just laugh at us for following the rules, the board added 22 hours plus for us, but never addressed the problem of inforcement, I guess the state boards intention, is to make it harder for us to operate and let these idiots run wild, what a sad situation.

It is junk like that with NO effective penalty for the fly by nite that gets me angry.
Why do we have AHJ's if not to stop this kind of junk?
I have seen too much of this junk. The sweat talking SOB's that rip people off this way should be IN JAIL for fraud and working without licensing or permits.
Some times I think that if the AHJ's cannot or will not stop this junk maybe we should get rid of our license and permit system. After all there are a lot of areas that do not have permits or licenses.


OK done venting

Sheesh! The trouble is that there are those conmen who come across as so reasonable-sounding that some people won't accept when they've been hoodwinked.

Use of unsuitable materials and installation methods for outdoor wiring is something I come across fairly regularly. I've given quotes for outdoor work and had a homeowner complain that I must be trying to rip him off because I'm charging "such high prices" for a switch or socket. Pointing out that indoor devices are not suitable for outdoor installation doesn't seem to count for anything.

Another Beautiful Job:

Don't you think you're being a little hard on the guy? I mean, once they patch that hole by slopping a couple handfulls of joint-compound in on top of that panel it'll be like there was never even a problem!

-John

John,
If you look above the 04 the black wire is bare in one spot and almost touching the bare ground, but they got a good deal on this panel only change out, the AC guy told them since he was already there doing the AC he could put the new panel in for only $1800.00 this is the second time in one month, we found a job with serious problems done by the village idiot.

Gotta love the double barrel MC connectors... Doesn't he realize that the sheath is supposed to be about an inch inside the box?..

Speaking of which... I'd be afraid to look inside this thing!

-Randy

[This message has been edited by Lostazhell (edited 04-28-2004).]