DIY Tips - Wiring
So every homeowner can scour the internet to figure out how to do certain electrical projects around the house. You'll be able to find You-tube videos, or long winded forums with different people bickering over which is the proper way of doing things. Hopefully we can simplify this process for you by providing some "insider knowledge" on the subject. All drawings are created by us to provide the best description possible...
More information and tips will be updated periodically.
Splicing/ Stripping
- Take out the wire your working with and a pair of strippers
1) Strip the wire insulation back so that 1" to 1-1/8" of copper is showing for all of your leads.
2) Take both ends and tightly twist together with a pair of pliers. "Lineman" style pliers are preferred, or at least one with a wide enough head to grasp the wires.
(You'll end up with a tight splice, which will retain a solid connection for years)
3) After which, cut off any excess copper, THEN install your wire-nut.
Please don't rely solely on the wire-nut to act as the main splice of any connection. The wire nut only acts as an insulating bushing, and will retain the integrity of the pre-twist. I've tried this method in the past, and it always results on a call-back
Technically you can skip "Step 2" by using just the wire-nut and a torque wrench with a special wire-nut socket, but seriously, who has the time and tools for all that? Just twist them.
Remember: The tighter, the better! Loose connections = arcing, and arcing = fires.
Correctly wire a receptacle
Another widely misunderstood concept is installing receptacles, or "outlets." They seem simple and difficult to mess up, but its an extremely common mistake for people to wire them wrong.
For starters, after you strip back the insulation by 1" or so. You'll need to create a "J" shape from the copper conductor with a pair of strippers or pliers.
When installing the conductor on the receptacle screws, always imagine the loop of the wire or "J" is turning with the screw as it tightens.
If you'll notice beside the receptacle in the drawing, there's an arrow. It's indicating the screw when tightened, is turning to the right. I.E. so should the direction of of the "J" be bent in the same direction.
WHY DOES THIS EVEN MATTER? When done properly the screw grabs hold of the wire when tightened and clamps down on the conductor when fully torqued. Creating the tightest connection possible.
When the "J" of the conductor is flipped around the opposite way, the screw now pushes the conductor away. Creating a bad connection in only a few spots of the wire compared to almost all of it. Bad connections cause arcing, which causes heat, which causes fires.
Splice Stranded to Solid wire
This is a common issue when installing light fixtures or ceiling fans. Almost always are the fixture wires stranded, and the wires in your junction box solid. Half the time you'll hold them together and twist on the wire nut, only to come back a month later and the lights not working.
It's almost always from a bad splice...
- Take your two different conductors, hold them side by side.
- Strip the solid conductor insulation, leaving 1" to 1-1/8" of exposed copper.
- Strip the stranded conductor about 1/4" longer than your copper.
- Grab the stranded conductor & wrap it around the solid one multiple times. See middle image
- Cut off any excess wire and install your wire-nut. Pull on the stranded wire just a bit to make sure the wire-nut has engaged it and connected fully
*ALWAYS cut off the excess. After the wire-nut is installed, you only want to see insulation and plastic. You shouldn't see any copper when finished.