Having just moved I got to move my old world to a new place -
When will house wiring catch up to the 2020's? It's like wiring in homes hasn't changed in 60 years.
Wall switches are in serial to bulbs. I can't see circuit breaker states. No load info on circuits.
If every switch and box were run back to a central point. I could assign 'this switch controls that bulb(s). Then I could use a smart bulb AND a smart switch. No identifications of circuit legs. overloaded use of a circuit, and under use of another. 15a vs 20a. its all so hodge podge where are the engineers anyway. Unions. hmph.
If I build a new house, I'm going to wiring it correctly. It's BS as it is for smart homes.
And (3, 5, 10, whatever) years from now when nothing uses 5vdc anymore (we're already well on our way there now), now I'm stuck with a house full of uselessly-accessorized outlets?
I feel like the electrical trade is one of the most bureaucratic around. There are obvious safety aspects to be considered, but so much of the regulatory structure seems to be driven by two things: corporations that want to sell widgets and the installers trying to protect their "exclusive" ability to practice the trade. To me, it seems like safety has become a convenient argument to achieve those two objectives. Need an example?
Not necessarily. In the state I live in, doing this in a workplace technically requires a permit and an inspection, with a master electrician required to pull the permit. Silliness in my opinion.
Most states allow homeowners to change out outlets and what not. In my state (Pa) I wired my own home from the weatherhead in and just needed it to be signed off on by a certified inspector. Generally though you don't need an electrician or a permit just to change outlets, at least in the residential area.
Maybe a few things... all based on the rules in my jurisdiction and my personal views. Shorten the experience requirement for journeyman and master electricians. Keep the testing & code knowledge the same. Expand the scope of what a licensed "maintenance" electrician is permitted to do. Limit manufacturers role in establishing code requirements where they have a financial interest.
Just my personal views... fully expect that others will have different opinions.
Isn't this already the case? At least in the 50 states? Do any of them adopt NFPA 70 without exception or amendment? And doesn't each govern their own licensing?
Update: apparently there are several states who don't even have state level licensing...
Electricity can kill. There's nothing silly about that. Improper wiring can also cause fires, and there's nothing silly about that either.
In a house I bought several years ago, there were all sorts of dangerous things that weren't discovered by the inspector prior to purchase. For example, the dishwasher was hard wired into a socket with lamp cord, and not even grounded. A fault in the dishwasher could have electrocuted me or my wife because some jacka$$ thought he knew what he was doing. Ungrounded sockets wired in reverse, wiring splices inside a wall, and more...
If you choose to do electrical work in your own home, you're risking the safety not only of yourself but your family or other occupants, current and future. If you really know what you're doing, that may be an acceptable risk.
Unlicensed and uninspected work in a commercial setting potentially puts a much greater number people at risk. Also, there are different requirements for non-residential installations. Laypersons aren't going to have knowledge of that sort of thing.
I'm certainly no fan of bureaucracy or trivial interference in what one can do to their own property, but when it comes to electrical, that's a different story.
