Other Projects I'm Working On

[Lady Fitzgerald]

...We interrupt this post with a News Flash! Ontrac's tracking just posted they were unable to deliver but gave an idiotic reason. This is what the idiots posted:

We attempted to deliver the package on 11/16/22 at 09:11PM, but could not reach the delivery address because of an access issue. This could be because of an access code, security clearance or locked gate. Please contact us with the access code or delivery instructions.

Yeah, they had an access issue; the place is closed. They couldn't just say the business was closed and will deliver tomorrow? I had already sent them new delivery directions a little after 6PM so I'll have to wait to see what happens tomorrow. I'm so sick and tired of dealing with incompetence. At least the driver had the good sense to not just drop it at the door (I've had it happen).

You are now being returned to your regularly scheduled (?) post.

Hopefully, the package will be delivered tomorrow so I can pick them up, along with some other parts, including a section of the railing I'm waiting on, first thing Friday morning, then get to work installing the new outlet. I can't believe all the crap I've been dealing with!

Well the *&^%$#@! "mute donkeys" at Offtrac continue to monumentally screw up. After they failed to deliver on the 16th, due to my mail service being closed by the time they showed up, they eventually rescheduled for the 17th, then didn't do a damned thing! Overnight, they moved the package from one depot to another one and rescheduled for today. So far, again, the package is just sitting at that depot. It's not out for delivery yet; nothing. I've tried contacting them over the "interwebs" via their website, but despite promises to respond, the lying "donkey excavations" have yet to. Their virtual assistant is the most worthless one I have ever seen!

I delayed working on the outlet today hoping the parts would come in but the Hell with it. If it doesn't deliver today, I'll source the missing parts tomorrow, along with picking up parts that are waiting for me to pick up, tomorrow morning, then get to (pardon my language) work on installing the outlet. Assuming the magnificent morons eventually deliver the package, I'll return the parts to Home Depot for a refund using the receipt I'll get when I buy the missing parts tomorrow. If the package doesn't show up at all, I'll contact Home Depot for a refund.

Lowes isn't much better. Twice, I ordered parts to be filled for pickup at the store and, despite their website showing they had those parts in stock, they responded saying they were out of stock. I substituted one part and changed the pickup location for the other part so now I have to go to two different Lowes to pickup my orders tomorrow morning.

All this hassle for one lousy outlet! I'll spend less time installing conduit (including removing and replacing skirting), pulling wires, and installing the outlet than I have trying to get the parts.

[rossdv8]

Sounds like the donkey excavations have been feeding you a line of kaupoo . .

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Sounds like the donkey excavations have been feeding you a line of kaupoo . .

No kidding! As stands now, they will not deliver today. The package is still sitting at a hub.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Sounds like the donkey excavations have been feeding you a line of kaupoo . .

No kidding! As stands now, they will not deliver today. The package is still sitting at a hub.

Upate. The magnificent morons actually put it on a truck for delivery at 4PM. The question now is, even though I've told them many times the business closes at 6 PM, will they deliver in time? I'm not holding my breath.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Sounds like the donkey excavations have been feeding you a line of kaupoo . .

No kidding! As stands now, they will not deliver today. The package is still sitting at a hub.

Upate. The magnificent morons actually put it on a truck for delivery at 4PM. The question now is, even though I've told them many times the business closes at 6 PM, will they deliver in time? I'm not holding my breath.

Well, the *&^%$#@! idiots missed the 6PM deadline again.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

The*&^%$#@! idiots still hadn't delivered the package this morning when I went to my mail service so, while picking up other stuff, I bought the missing parts again so I could get to work on the project. I learned this evening when I knocked off for the day that the idiots delivered finally delivered the package in the afternoon, too late to do me any good (mutter, mutter, mumble, mumble). I'll pick it up next week and return it to Home Depot.

On to the project. Here is a shot of some of the parts and tools I'm going to be using.

On the left is the new box with a Romex box connector and two screws temporarily installed for the picture and a ground wire pigtail permanently installed. Next is a ratcheting, offset screwdriver. The screws need to go straight into pilot holes drilled into the wall sill so, since the driver extension to the right of the screwdriver will have to work at a slight angle to ensure they will follow the pilot hole that I will have to drill with my Dremel, I'll drive the screws in straight before installing the box to make sure they will go straight after installing the box.

To the right of the driver extension is another Romex box connector. The two gizmos on the right are conduit bodies used to allow pulling wire, or, in this case, Romex at a sharp right angle. I have the rigid conduit nipples installed temporarily until I can determine which length I will need to get up into the wall cavity (spoiler: it was the longer length).

Here are two more shots of the conduit bodies and their covers and gaskets.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

To hang the conduit on the underside of the trailer, I'm using little widgets called beam clamps to hold conduit hangers to the flanges on a couple of the steel outrigger beams that hold up the rim joist of my mobile home walls. I assembled the beam clamps to the conduit hangers inside the house where I could sit in a comfortable chair. Here are the parts.

And here is how they look assembled.

To accommodate any misalignment (and there was some) when hanging the conduit, I ran some flexible liquid tight conduit between the EMT conduit and the conduit bodies. To connect the two types of conduits, I had to use an EMT box connector and a liquid tight box connector joined together with a rigid conduit coupling.

The other end of the liquid tight conduit will be attached to a conduit body with a liquid tight box connector.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Here is one of the EMT to liquid tight conduit assemblies attached to one end of a length of EMT (the other assembly goes on the other end of the EMT). A nine inch section of liquid tight conduit goes on the other end of the assembly.

Here, I'm attaching the other end of liquid tight conduit to a conduit using a liquid tight conduit box connector screwed directly into the conduit body.

A cap is first slipped onto the liquid tight followed by a plastic ferrule, then a metal bushing is screwed into the liquid tight to protect wiring from the sharp edges on the cut end of the liquid tight. This what the bushing looks like.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Here, the EMT, liquid tight conduit, conduit bodies, and the rigid nipples that will go up into the wall cavity have been all assembled and a length of 12/2 Romex has been pulled through (actually, I pushed it through).

I grossly underestimated the amount of Romex I needed so I had to Make a frantic trip to Ace Hardware to snag a longer roll, then push it through the conduit assembly. It was easier to put the Romxex in now than after I hung the conduit.

Now the real fun begins. I had to crawl under my mobile home to drill 7/8" holes into the wall cavity. I used my inpact driver, an extension, and a 7/8" Iriwin Speedbor tri-flute auger bit. Those things drill aggressively and it often takes an impact driver to drive them. Drilling the holes was easy. Figuring out where to put them, not so much.

I was running out of daylight so I didn't get any shots of the first end of the conduit assembly being installed. This shot shows the other end after it was installed. The conduit in the foreground and the conduit body is to the right of that black pipe hanging down. The yellow Romex hanging down has been pushed up into the wall cavity from the conduit nipple in the conduit body.

The last nipple was a tight fit requiring some percussive persuasion to get it up the hole. When I came out of the house after getting the percussive persuader (aka hammer), a *&^%$#@! cat came flying out from under the trailer. When I was on my back taking photos under there, another came flying out from under the trailer right over me. It startled the snot out of me. I'm going to have to have a talk with the park management. Something has to be done about the magnificent morons feeding the *&^%$#@! things. I'm sick and tired of cleaning up their "calling cards", the little buggers putting their paw prints all over my truck, doing property damage (other neighbors have also had property damage from the vermin), yowling at night, etc.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

This a shot of the last conduit body installed. It was a tight fit.

This shot shows the beam clamp and conduit hanger installed. It's the one on the left. The other one is from an earlier installation.

After replacing the rest of the skirting (and fervently hoping there aren't any cats still under my home), I started working on running the Romex through the wall to the box and outlet I'm stealing power from.

Once I had the Romex pulled into the box, I screwed the siding back down. The outlet is a 20A GFCI so, after connecting the wires, stuffing them and the outlet into the box was a chore. Eventually, I was able to reinstall the weather proof cover. That part of the job is done.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

It was getting too dark to start working on installing and outlet box and outlet at the other end of the new cable so I screwed some wire nuts on the ends of the wires at the end of the cable still hanging out of the wall, then taped them to make sure they couldn't get into any mischief.

I then stuffed the Romex into the wall and screwed the siding down. I temporarily heated up the first outlet and checked it with an outlet tester to make sure it was wired correctly and it was.

When I was screwing down the siding, a section of Romex from another circuit slipped down and I nailed it with a screw. After I stuffed back up where it belonged, I reset the breaker long enough to determine that I hadn't broken the wires in the Romex. I shut the breaker back off for now (the circuit only goes to the carport and rear "porch" lights and the outlets along the west side of the trailer—except the one I worked on today—so it won't be a problem to keep the breaker off. I'll have to check it out the next time I'm working on the project see if I got lucky and only damaged the insulation, which can be taped up, or if I'm going to have to replace the Romex altogether before installing the new box and outlet for the other circuit (which will not be fun).

I don't believe I've said why I'm doing this project. The existing outlet is a 20A outlet, the only one on that circuit before I started this project (the other three outlets on that wall are on a 15A circuit). I originally planned on using it to provide a GFCI protected circuit for the shed that will replace my current POS shed. I've since decided against that. When I get some power tools that will need a 20A outlet, I don't want to have to run a long extension cord from my carport to the existing outlet, especially with the new backdoor steps in the way, hence the need for a second outlet in a more convenient location. I will eventually extend that circuit from the new outlet to the workshop I'm going to build in my living room (which is already being used as a workshop) so I can have enough power for a bigger bandsaw and drill press (I won't be using big power tools on the carport and in the workshop at the same time so a shared circuit will be just fine.

I didn't want to have to move the new steps coming in early next week to install this new circuit so that is why I'm doing it now.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

I'm resting today, recovering from yesterday and the leg cramps I had last night. The next few days may get rather frantic, especially tomorrow, making it hard for me to take time to take photos, so I'm going to show a few today.

First up is a better explanation of the outlet box I'm going to install, hopefully tomorrow after I fix the damage I did to an existing Romex. This a top view of the box.

The green wire is a premade ground pigtail. Premade ground pigtails ae a bit pricey but the pros love them because they increase productivity, increasing profits. In my case, I hate making pigtails from solid bare copper. Bare, solid copper is stiff and I have to form a hook or loop on the end, which is a bit of a PITA since, as a DIYer, I don't do it often enough to be proficient at it. The pigtails have a ring tongue connector with a ground screw attached to one. The ring tongue connector keeps the ground wire from slipping off the ground screw when in the box and the screw is captive on the connector so one doesn't have to juggle it and the screw to keep them together while installing the screw.

The other end has a spade tongue connector that has little lugs on the ends of each prong that ensure the connector will not slip off the ground screw on an outlet or switch. In this case, I'm going to snip off this connector since it's going to be connected to other wires.

The wire itself is insulated stranded wire. Stranded wire is far more flexible than solid wire, making it much easier to stuff into a box after connecting it to a switch or outlet. For me, that is huge because the #12 wire I'll be dealing with is very stiff and hard for my old hands to stuff back into a box when installing a switch or outlet. The insulation protects the strands from damage and unraveling but also keeps the ground wire from causing a short if it contacts a terminal.

The box has multiple knockouts that can be removed to allow connectors for wire to pass through via connectors installed in the holes left when the knockouts are removed.

I removed the knockout on both ends of the box. The one in the foreground is where the Romex I installed yesterday will go through a connector I will show in the next post. The knockout I removed from the other end is for the Romex I will install in the future for the new workshop. It was far easier for me to remove the knock out now than it would be after the box has been installed. To keep crud and spiders out (spiders love to build webs around electricity), I put a round piece of sealing tape over the hole from inside the box. In the next photo, I put a round piece of card stock cut from a cosmetic box on the outside of the box to reinforce the tape.

Technically, that violates code but it will be fine and will be much easier to remove than a knockout or a code approved knockout plug (which I also don't have handy).

[Lady Fitzgerald]

This a shot of the end of a Romex connector I mentioned earlier that will go into the knockout hole in the box.

The little ring with teeth on it is a locknut that gets removed before inserting the connector into the knockout hole, then is threaded back onto the threads of the connector to hold it in place. The locknut is tightened by putting a screwdriver on one of the teeth and hitting the screwdriver with a hammer. Crude but easier and faster than using a wrench.

This the end that stays on the outside of the box.

That little coverlike thing clamps down on the Romex that passes through the connector with the two screws to secure the Romex to the box. Since getting at the two screws is going to rather awkward once the box is in the wall, I'm going to put the connector on the Romex first, feed the Romex through the knockout hole until the connector goes in, then lock it down.


This is a shot of the outlet I will be installing in the box.

I like commercial outlets like this one over residential outlets. Besides being more rugged, they are easier to connect wires to. Residential outlets have to have wires attached by putting a loop or hook at the end of a wire that gets put under a screw head which, for me, is a PITA. Another way to install wire is called backstabbing (there's an unintentional pun there). There are holes in the back that you can stick the stripped end of a wire into and a little spring is supposed to contact the wire and hold it in the outlet. However, they are notorious for failing, potentially causing fires and no responsible electrician (or savvy DIYer) will use them.

Commercial outlets can also be wired by looping the end of the wire under a screw head but also can be backwired. Backwiring is different from backstabbing in the the screws on the side of the outlet have a little plate under each screw head that a stripped wire end can be placed under and will be secured under the plate when the screw is tightened. This almost as convenient as backstabbing but is much more secure and safer. Also one can easily remove the wire. Many commercial outlets are able to secure two wires per screw this way. I only use commercial outlets anymore. They cost more than residential outlets but the increased convenience and safety is well worth it.

Unfortunately, both residential and commercial outlets require looping a wire under a screw head for the ground wire (mutter, mutter, mumble, mumble). Here is where premade ground pigtails come in handy. Here, I just cut off the ring tongue connector and screw, then inserted the spade connector under the ground screw on the outlet and tightened the screw. The little lugs on the ends of the forks on the connector ensure that sucker is never coming off until I want it to. Installation is easy, peasy, slick and sleazy.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Now for the weatherproof outlet cover I'm going to use here and have used on all my other outside outlets. Older style outdoor outlet covers were weatherproof only when they were closed. If something was plugged into the outlet, they were no longer weatherproof. Newer styled outlet covers are designed to allow the cover to remain weatherproof when a power cord is plugged into the outlet but the vast majority at home centers have clear plastic covers that do not last long before getting broken.

This is an industrial type of weatherproof outlet cover as seen from the front.

This one has an anodized aluminum body and cover that will last longer than I will. The cover either closes fully or, if a power cord is plugged into it, the cover can be set to remain partially open while still protecting the outlets from all but a horizontal rain. This shot shows the cover fully closed at the bottom.

This is how the cover looks from the bottom when set to partially opened.

The cover can be locked in the fully closed or partially open position with a padlock (not that I'll ever need it).

[Lady Fitzgerald]

This is a view of the inside of the cover when the cover is fully opened.

The cover comes with no inserts installed and is ready as is for installing a GFCI outlet like the one I just ran new Romex to yesterday. I've already installed the insert for a regular duplex outlet.

The way this cover is installed is the easiest I've ever encountered. Most weatherproof covers are installed via a single screw on the outlet the way a regular indoor outlet plate is installed which is not very secure. This one uses the two screws used to install the outlet to the box. The cover includes longer screws to make installing the cover a bit easier. You partially install the screws through the mounting holes into the threaded holds on the outlet box. You then push the cover onto the screws, going though some keyholes, push down to capture the screw heads, then finish tightening the screws. It's so easy it should be illegal (thank goodness it isn't).

This is the other side of the cover, the side that goes against the wall.

You can kinda sorta see how the insert was inserted. There is also a gasket to help seal the cover to the wall.

This cover also has an insert for installing round single sockets, such as used for twistlock industrial 240v machinery cords. It may be necessary to break out the crescent shaped areas not covered for larger round outlets. It's not necessary for this outlet.

That's pretty much it for now.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Well, things went pretty well today. The damaged Romex has been "fixed" and the outlet has been installed.

First, this little gizmo saved me from getting a nasty shock or possibly getting killed.

It a contactless circuit tester used to check if a circuit is live without actually having to touch a conductor. It will detect voltage even through insulation. I checked both the damaged Romex and the new 20A Romex I installed Saturday before working on them. The damaged Romex was dead but the 20A Romex was live. Yikes!

I got lucky (kinda sorta) on the damaged Romex. The screw went right between the black (hot) wire and the bare ground wire. The neutral was untouched. I was able to pull the Romex out of the wall enough to make it easy work on.

Disclaimer! What I did to fix the damage is not NEC (National Electric Code for the SSA) compliant! I do not recommend using this procedure and take no responsibility if anyone tries to use it!

That said, replacing that Romex would have been a bear. Normally, in wall connections are prohibited by the NEC unless an approved device is used. Those device are as rare as an honest politician and they are actually less desirable than the procedure I used. They are roughly the equivalent of back stab connections on an outlet or switch. The crimped butt splice sleeves I used have far more contact area on a conductor than the tiny blades in in-wall splice devices.

Where the screw shorted the black wire to the ground wire, the arc left a small divot in the conductors. I cut the black wire and the ground wire at the divot, then joined each one back together with the butt splice sleeve.

This is a close up of one of a crimped sleeve.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

This is the crimping tool I used.

This tool both compresses the sleeve and also stakes the sleeve on one side. Staking refers to compressing one spot enough to cause the sleeve to actually be compressed into the conductor in that spot. These crimpers have a series of ridges on one jaw that stakes the sleeves in multiple places. One squeeze of the crimper is enough to make a secure connection but, being the anal old broad I am, I rotated the crimper 90° three times so all four side of the crimp are also staked. This, plus cleaning the any corrosion of the end of the conductor with a small piece of ScotchBrite, ensured the splice will never fail or heat up due to extra resistance.

Incidentally, I used this tool, a Knipex automatic wire stripper, to strip insulation off the end of of insulated wires.

After both splices had been fully crimped, I wrapped a piece of self fusing rubber tape around the sleeve on the black wire to insulate it.

It's not pretty but it will do the job.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

To protect the rubber tape, I wrapped some regular vinyl electrical tape around it. Even though it didn't need insulating, I also wrapped the electrical tape around the the sleeve on the bare ground wire to protect the insulation on the other two wires from any sharp points or corners on the crimped sleeve.

When I exposed the wires, I cut the sheath back in a way I could put it back over the wires after repairing the damage. Here, I have the sheath back in place and secured with a bit of cellophane tape so I don't have to chase after it while wrapping it all with electrical tape.

I then tightly wrapped the entire area with electrical tape.

It's not pretty but it got the job done. To make sure I didn't screw up and screw a screw into some Romex again, I taped the existing runs of Romex onto a couple of studs up inside the wall.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Now, on to the main event: installing the outlet box and outlet.

I got a bit ahead of myself and had the box installed in the wall before I remembered to take pictures. Sorry!

I goofed and cut the access hole for my snips too low, hence that notch at the bottom. Fortunately, the weatherproof outlet cover will cover my faux pas. The cuts in the sheet metal are rough because it was hard to get my snips in there. I bent flanges into the box so the sheet metal siding would have some structure for the weather proof outlet cover to press against. I'll take care of that roughness shortly.

Here, I have the Romex secured to the box. I also cut some strips of sealing tape to cover all the sharp rough edges of the sheet metal. That tape has an adhesive that is pretty much impossible to remove.

This is a close up showing where the Romex and Romex connector comes into the box. I first fastened the connector to the Romex, then poked the Romex through the hole, pulling the connector into the hole. I then ran a nut over the Romex down to the connector and screwed it on.

At this point, I screwed down the siding. While I was working, I kept hearing a cat meowing but couldn't see it. It finally dawned on me the meowing was coming from under the trailer! I partially pulled out a section of skirting, stepped away a bit, then waited. About a minute later, out comes another )*(&^%$#@! cat which I quickly shooed off. The little bugger had been trapped in there since Saturday. I hope there aren't any more of the misbegotten vermin under there. I haven't heard anymore meowing since then.

I broke for lunch and afterwards, even though it's cool outside, since I didn't want to work while the sun was beating down on me (glare was more of a problem that any heat), I waddled some errands.

[Lady Fitzgerald]

Normally, I use wire nuts to connect wires together but they can be a bit of a PITA to use, especially with stranded wire. I've been considering switching to a type connector called a Wago lever nut. These come in two wire, three wire, and five wire versions and, recently, they came out with an inline two wire version. These things are easy to use; just lift a lever, insert the stripped end of a wire (only one wire per lever), and flip the lever back down. It's easy to remove just one wire without messing with any other wires and it's easy to add more wires later, if there is room for them.

I had three ground wires—the one connected to the box, the one connected to the socket, and the one from the Romex; two of those are stranded wire—plus, someday, I will be adding another run of Romex from the box to my future workshop so I decided to use a five wire Wago. Here, I have the three ground wires connected to the Wago.

This is a close up of the Wago.

Here, I have all the wires connected to the socket.

Once I had the box installed (which wasn't difficult but was tedious and time consuming), things started moving along quickly. I'm definitely hooked on Wagos instead of wire nuts now.