Love the video, I appreciate the disclaimer. Professionals always give warnings when giving instructions to non-pros. Never let anyone tell you different.
Excellent tutorial and especially clarifying the required two grounding rods. I was a bit confused regarding the distance and how to connect them together. I too am required to sink two "copper" rods at 8' minimum feet apart.
Good video. Checking the voltage is highly recommended. I went to a project today that had 240 going to all the outlets and lighting circuit. Turns out that it was a bad sub panel. The electrician said he has never seen it in his entire career.
great upfront statement. Loud and clear. Thanks for showing us such profession DIY. Great tutorial for apprentices. Many people fake such profession and mess around things and people.
Great video, helps a lot. Did I miss the part where you connected into the main panel? What is the rating for the sub panel breaker that is mounted in the main panel?
Use fiber glass fish tape or a compressor to blow a string through the conduit, but using a metal fish tape in a live panel without gloves is very dangerous and quite negligent
I know how inspectors are in Florida as well. I'm a plumber in Sarasota county and inspectors are the same way here. Always looking for fellow preppers in my area. Like minded folks are hard to come by. Great video
Nice video. I especially like that you explain why things are done, not just that you should do it. It proves you have knowledge of the subject and lets people understand why you do things the correct way.
See 310.18 a. Conduit to be installed as a complete system before inserting conductors. But sometimes you have to install 10' at a time and pull your wires in as you go along. There is a pretty high coefficient of friction between PVC and insulated wire. That's why we use lube on the wires when we pull.
I find if you are working out of a live panel using a shop vac with some pull string with a scrap of rag works quicker and easier, not to mention safer because your not messing with a stiff metal fish tape.
Hey, great video, I heard ya say Pinellas, I am in Hernando, wiring up my shop right now too. You mentioned gray paint and marker would not run off. Try a couple hits of "off bug spray" and that marker will just melt off. Wipe, dry, then its blank like new.
Absolutely one of the best how-to videos I've seen on wiring a sub panel. Great work and thanks. You mentioned grounding the container separately. Hopefully you can explain why the additional ground to the container is necessary, I'm curious now. I ran my sub panel pretty much the same way but was assuming the panel ground bar and the panel being screwed to the metal wall would be enough. Thanks
The quick answer is you have to isolate the neutral from the metal sub-fed panel. If not and the neutral was to ever open between main and sub-fed panel then the equipment ground/bare wire/green wire would become your neutral. Thus a possible shock hazard would be present. Kinda short answer but that's the just of it ....
I'd never heard of the wire lube before, so thanks for that. I had to replace a corroded electrical box in my house because the lights were randomly dimming. I upgraded to a bigger box while I was at it since I couldn't find an identical replacement box. The process was pretty simple, actually. I called the power company and asked about having the power shut off at the meter. They told me to just cut the tag and pull the meter myself, so I did. They said that the next time they checked the meter and saw the tag missing, they'd replace it (this was ComEd in Illinois, btw). Now, I'm not an electrician or contractor but if is no supply, there should not be any danger. Still, I was careful just in case there was any back-flow of electricity in the house. I only regret not having more lighting to work by. Of course, this was a replacement and not a new box, so there was no real danger of getting connections wrong. I'd be less confident of installing a new panel on my own without some guidance.
For those of you choosing to DIY this type of job, I strongly recommend calling your power company and asking them to pull the meter ahead of time most will do this for free. This will de-energize the service line power to your house and reduce or eliminate the risk of electrical shock. Especially if you're choosing to use bare hands and/or metal tools anywhere near the main load center. Professionals know what they're doing and take risk accordingly. For people who have not worked around these conditions before, be prepared to make a few rookie mistakes and don't take any chances.
OMMA- LLAMA if you that then you have to go through the permit inspection bs. There isn’t one bf in any level of government that has a clue. You can pull your own meter.
You don't need to call anybody to pull the meter. When you service it. You own the meter box as well. As you have to pay for anything up to the riser. Including wiring the weather head. All they do is come out and install the meter. Run the service feed from the transformer to riser head.
@@MasterChief-sl9ro It may depend on the company. Where I live, it is not allowed and comes with a heavy fine. If they find their lock broken it becomes a bad day.
Thank you for all the tips; I'll certainly be using at least a handful. One for you: denatured alcohol is the solvent for Sharpee. By their design, it's the only thing that takes it off and it does so easily so scribble away!
I had a repair job that had a printer blow up as well. the previous electrician had installed a 120 volt receptacle and tied into a junction box going to an old 240 volt server receptacle. They had run 12/3 but the server only used the two lives and the neutral was just capped off. The electrician never checked but one of those phases was the "wild leg" of the delta 3 phase transformer and had 208 volts to neutral. I know it is not required but I will always make a point of marking the "wild leg" in junction boxes so its obvious to the next electrician working on the equipment.
Hey mr electrician, might be a good idea to at least show those out here the right way to dangerously pull from a live panel. How about putting cardboard in front of the live bus lugs and all. That fish tape can bounce all around and strike a live area even when pulling. If you cant shut it off, then cover it up.
Nice Video. I really envy the fact that you can pound in a ground rod so easily. I live in Connecticut and we hit ledge after about 1 foot. It is never easy.
great video man! all these home owner diy vids are so painful to watch. Nice to watch a video of some one who actually knows codes and what they are doing! my Journeyman and I just finished a 400 amp service upgrade for 2 main 200 amp panels. one for the house and one for the shed to run his new out door sauna and hot tub. lots of pvc heat gun bending and ditch digging. :D
It looks scary to feed the fishing tape close to the live lines; the tape could touch the hot terminal and cause an electrocute. I would recommend to cover the live wire area with a plastic shield before using the fishing line. Anyway, thank you very much for a very clear and informative instruction.
Too close for me, (to use a steel fish tape). You stated you’ve been electrocuted before. I think if you check “electrocuted” is past tense meaning the incident took you out, or did not survive. Being shocked, bit, burned means you survived. Me too. Laying under an old wood sided house getting ready to change out a water heater. The panel box matched the house was filled only with screw in fuses. Well, I removed the fuse labeled water heater, crawled under. Took a metal box bladed knife began to strip the insulation back. There was that awful arc sound I’ll never forget as it blew the blade away. I guess that’s all that saved me. Laying on the damp ground, still felt the jolt go through me I felt paralyzed for at least 10 mins. Couldn’t move from that spot or call for help. On the old houses the fuses carry only one leg of a 220 circuit. I failed to remove the other 110 fuse which I cut into.
Best way is to take some high tension string (stringline) and tie a piece of paper or a small plastic bag piece and use shopvac on other end. Pulls it though like a kite. Non conductive way to do it.
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If video creators could afford to be sued by not making disclaimers, like "work at your own risk" or "this video is for informational purposes only" and etc there would be no disclaimers on any of the videos that we all watch here on TH-cam.
Great job on explaining how things and would go wrong if done unsafely. Great job on keeping safety theme first, but safety gloves and safety goggles don't hurt a bit. As the preacher says "Do as I say, don't do as I do." One day I was replacing 6 volt golf cart batteries, a young gal at work came up to me and told me she wanted to learn, I handed her an uninsulated wrench to remove one pole, she wasn't careful enough and shorted the batteries, sparks flew everywhere, rendered a useless wrench and a freaked out cat.
I would have liked to have seen you connect to the main panel. Also, I think my neutral and ground are bonded in my main panel. Could you explain why you don't bond them in the sub panel.
I didn't get the footage of connecting to the main panel but, it is fairly easy and straight forward, black wires go to the breaker, green wire goes to the ground bar and the white wire goes to the neutral bar. The reason we do not bond the grounds and the neutrals at the sub panel is because the equiptment grounding conductor would be in parallel with the neutral conductor making a conductive or "hazardous" path for electricity to potentially kill/shock/injure someone. I believe this code has been around since the 1920's.
I know this is wrong but a novice could think that anytime it is possible to direct stay current to ground, is a good thing. The problem is, is that if current goes threw you to ground (grounding rod by generator in a field) there is enough resistance that the fuse will not blow and you will die.
Great job. I wasn't able to pull the fish tape with my leather work gloves. I couldn't get enough friction. I had to use bare hands and worked blisters on them.
Get rubber coated Kevlar gloves and use a linemans' pliers when necessary. And for God's sake! Put cardboard or something nonconductive over a live exposed panel when pulling wire near it!
Lots of people use a shop vacuum cleaner, and that works fine. You can also take a green Scotchlok (the ones with the hole in top) and tie a string through the thing. Feed it into the empty conduit point first, then use a compressor to blow it through the conduit. Done in a hurry!
Nice video but you forgot some important safety items such as covering the live panel with cardboard, using a fiberglass fish tape, show installing the wires in the sub-panel, bonding the metal trailer. You could have used a demolition hammer to install the ground rods in the earth.
Well, it depends what jurisdiction you reside in. Electrical codes and inspector requirements are always in flux. I did end up bonding the ground to the container in another video but, that was for EMP protection. The most correct way would to run a ground wire of proper size from the sub panel ground bar to a lug that is bolted and not screwed to the metal structure of the building or container.
Yellow 77 is the werst wire lube you can use. In a few months, it becomes glue and IF you have to add or change the wire you are in for a fight to pull the old wire out. The GREEN lube is the best formulation as it does not degrade.
I don’t think you’re limited on the size conduit so why not go with a larger conduit to also make pulling easier? You could have went with a much larger conduit and been plenty good. Just what I would do.
26:36 you can use masking tape for labeling and any label correction not will be a problem. To clean the permanent marker u can use thinner very effective thing.
The NEC is adopted in all 50 states, and covers electrical wiring and installations. They can made it stricter but not relax it. Inspectors tend to interpret it differently in some cases but it’s the same code. Since your so close to a live wire I would have probably used a rope to pull since the metal touching could kill someone.
There is one thing that bothers me, all grounds should be single point bonded, here have a separate ground run to the remote panel and yet installed a separate ground, this is bad. grounds should only be tied back to a single point bond to ground, have a separate ground run to the new panel, no additional ground rod should be located there. this allows for a dangerous situation that can have a high differential potential between the ground locations.
Greg Elkins thank you... I was wondering if I was the only one thinking this. I'm even surprised some of the commenters who say they are electricians didn't notice this.
Thank you for adding this. So many things can go wrong with the addition of auxiliary ground rods. We think about it when in a sub panel that it is wrong, but the addition of auxiliary ground rods at light poles, generators and machines can have the same negative effects. Ground voltage gradients, ground lighting paths to enter and exit your system. Besides it's a waste of money. Always use your equipment grounding conductor and that's it.
So are you all saying Option 1: The main and sub panel grounds should be connected together with appropriate size wire and no additional rods are needed at either panel? or Option 2: The sub and main panel grounds should not be connected. Then connect sub panel's grounding bar to new rods? Not doing work myself; just checking if my sub was hooked up right. Thanks
This is a real question, I have read in the NEC that it is unacceptable to connect a sub panel to the main panel with the neutral (green) . I understand that the reason is so each panel is not able to loop back through from one to the other in case there is a problem. That is why a subpanel needs its own ground rods times two 6' apart. They are not to be shared on purpose. Thank you, overall the video was very helpful.
If you dont have a neutral no 120 volt circuits will work. The green wire is an equipment grounding conductor and is call for in the NEC article 250-32. So you are wrong.
i thought the ground from the main panel to subpanel is not supposed to be used and you only use the ground from the new ground rods you installed for the subpanel.
I love all the comments from everybody . Stop slamming him I think he did a good job for a quick basic video . Everyone does things a little different as do I . Over all nice job , though I wouldn't recommend this if your not sure , call an electrician you'll sleep better
I live in FL and as a homeowner I seen the FL law that allows for a home owner to be a "self contractor" but also must apply for the permits for building but what if I want to do my own wiring? Can I do wiring by code and just have it looked over by the county if they issue me a permit? If not I think it would be much better to get my a license just for where I live so I can do my own work rather then paying a contractor for add on's or replacements. Great video by the way.
The State of Florida allowed me to be the contractor on my home and pull all permits. I was allowed to do everything like plumbing, electrical, HVAC, roofing, framing and etc. The only thing that you are NOT allowed to do is run gas lines.That has to be performed by a mechanical contractor for obvious reasons. The bottom line is that you do not need to be a contractor( in Florida) to do your own work on your own house except for the gas lines. Check with your local building dept.
Because It'll turn the power off to everything connected to it. Given it's the main panel, the whole house will have no power. I know this question was posted 2 years ago. But Just thought I'd answer just in case other people are wondering about the same thing.
@@Ed-uu9eo So what if the house has no power? It's Florida. It's not like they're shutting off heating for half a day in the middle of a freezing winter.
@@internettoughguy Of course it's always a good idea to remove all power whenever you can. But this homeowner obviously had a reason he didn't want his main off. Whatever it was that's none of my business.
Yikes...Think I would cover that hot area with cardboard or other insulator, but yes the best idea is have the power company pull your meter temporarily... As a sub panel did you remove the bonding screws since you ran a neutral from your main panel? By the way acetone will remove that permanent marker...
Great job, but 6awg is 50amps so I will see if we are allowed to rate it higher ?, teach a 5 second pull when you pull count 3-5 seconds then pull again especially when the distance is far that gives the other end a chance to untangle stranded wire, use a post slammer instead of a sledge hammer you get two hands and a better force to drive the rods, when staggering wire stagger it longer it makes it better to pull at the 90, use a bigger conduit one size it makes it easier to pull, use 6 awg solid and you don’t have to sleeve the grounding with pvc, silicon screws after there in the metal, obvious stuff strapping of pvc, I liked your video keep it up Ed with Ochoa Electri in San Diego
at 10:30 into the video, he indicates the safer thing to do is contact the electric utility provider to "...pull the meter, if you need to be extra safe - probably be the smart thing to do..." So why doesn't he? His message is "be safe, because electricity is dangerous, but watch me take shortcuts". Hmmmm. and then people comment how good and excellent the video is. But it is okay to take shortcuts.... I guess that is okay because we all only die once in our lives.
I have presented this video to help educate/entertain the viewer on the proper way to work safe and how some electrical installations are done out in the field. Especially to people who have no experience like you. If you didn't like or enjoy this video presentation, fine and good. However, you could do us all (including me) a great service by making your own video and showing us all of the proper and accepted safety protocols when installing a sub panel?
You mentioned grounding the shipping container, since it is metal, but you didn't show doing that. I am in the exact same circumstance and need to ground the container. I was told to use #4 solid copper wire. It needs to be attached to the grounding lug in the box, but can it go to just anywhere on the container? My subpanel is inside; I am tentatively planning to drop out of the bottom of the box and put a grounding screw in the bottom beam, just below the box. Is it OK to do this inside the wall, or should it be accessible? Thanks for the advice.
There are many different correct ways to accomplish grounding. From what you have described, you could run the wire from the ground bar of the panel to a lug that is bolted (not screwed) with a 1/4x20 bolt and nut. #4 sounds a little big, how many amps is the panel and is it a sub panel or a main service? A ground wire should not ever exceed the size of the neutral conductor. If you go to about 7:23 in this vid that I have linked, you can see how I grounded my container th-cam.com/video/Qf8ioa-VI5Q/w-d-xo.html
homesteadprepper Thanks for the quick response. I actually have 2 containers, they are connected with an 8' wide wood-framed section. This is a house, 24x40. My inspector came by last week for an informal look-see. He is the one who said that I should use #4 solid copper. Our load center is technically a sub-panel, the main panel is on a power pole, as you would see in a house trailer set-up. I already have 2 grounding rods placed at the power pole. I need to ground the container to the load center. The inspector said to connect the copper wire to the ground lug; if I recall correctly, he said to screw the copper to the wall of the container. I plan to call him next week for clarification, we talked about so many topics that day. BTW, the two cans will have a steel rod welded to each other to electrically bond them together.
I too saw the water method to drive a ground rod in another video and thought "no way this will work". The two ground rods I did slipped into the ground with just my hands for about six feet and the last two feet tapped in with ease. Amazing.
sub panels aren't bonded. bonding is done at first point of disconnect. the green screw is a bonding screw. It bonds grounded conductors and grounds together at first point of disconnect.
Here in Canada, we have to ground our sub panels as well. However, if you pull a bond to the sub panel then you do not have to ground it, because it is bonded to ground. You pulled a bond to your sub panel, so why did you have to ground it? From what I know, the Canadian Electrical Code (CEC) and NEC are very similar to eachother. Also, you installed an aluminum grounding electrode, and pulled a copper grounding conductor and attached to the electrode. Dissimilar metals. You gotta put some sort of de-oxidizer on there.
As I stated in the vid, your codes and methods may differ by your area and your authority having jurisdiction. The NEC does allow what you have stated above. In my area, we are only required to use de-ox if we are using an aluminum conductor instead of copper.
If the sub panel is in a separate building it needs its own earth ground. (More for lighting strikes), NEC 250 something or other (don't have code book in side it's out in my van) but it is clearly stated that sub panels in a separate building need there own Earth ground separate from the ground pulled from the main service.
Is that for a 100 amp panel the power company says u can use plane 4 copper for service and entry as long as your neutral is white or marked white both ends as house service entrances is 25 amp from pole to meter were they right & how comes #4 copper has 2 different temptress ratings celcus wise when I see the charts running #4 thn.not 4/0.so you know exactly the wirer menards brand writing from manufacturer is crazy thin
A decent video. The disclaimers are fine and should be heeded, but you sort of leave a person hanging that watches your video. It give them some knowledge but leaves them hanging out in the air as where the wires go and what you did at the other end Sure would have been nice to show where each wire went rather than just show in the box and then suddenly cover is closed and no clue what you did inside the panel You then give little quick shots of the wiring but no comment on what you did One suggestion that I would add is protecting yourself when running the wire pull I always take a thick piece of cradboard the length and size of the inside of the panel I lay it over the breakers and power cables. If need be I will then tape it to the inside of the main and sub panel. This gives some reasonable protection from being shocked while pusing the wire pull thru When finished just pull the cardboard out
yeah, it's not much about wire size needed for distance, figuring how many circuits are needed at subpanel etc. There's 2 conduit pipes in the ditch ???
blackstatis 0 That was 90% of the work. You need to further research how to install breakers and so forth. if you still do not understand, you shouldn't be near electrical installations.
Try using a small shop vac with a box of nylon pulling string to pull your wires. Metal fish tape can be disastrous with one slip of the tape. At least have gloves and eye protection if you cannot kill power feeding the panel and place something non-conductive in front of the terminals. Better safe than ..............................!
Being careful you should have put a cardboard shield taped up in front of your line side..hot conductors while fishing line to your helper protecting you both..just saying
Great video, but why not run the fish tape through the lengths of conduit as you're laying your conduit? It seems it would be an easier way and less friction.
Love the video, I appreciate the disclaimer. Professionals always give warnings when giving instructions to non-pros. Never let anyone tell you different.
So, you convinced me to get a permit for my new Shed conversion 100amp (80 breaker) sub panel.
Insurance & proper fire protection.
Bravo sir
To summarize the first 2 minutes: be careful. Video starts at 2:10
Already on 2x speed
Excellent tutorial and especially clarifying the required two grounding rods. I was a bit confused regarding the distance and how to connect them together. I too am required to sink two "copper" rods at 8' minimum feet apart.
Good video. Checking the voltage is highly recommended. I went to a project today that had 240 going to all the outlets and lighting circuit. Turns out that it was a bad sub panel. The electrician said he has never seen it in his entire career.
great upfront statement. Loud and clear. Thanks for showing us such profession DIY. Great tutorial for apprentices. Many people fake such profession and mess around things and people.
Great video, helps a lot.
Did I miss the part where you connected into the main panel?
What is the rating for the sub panel breaker that is mounted in the main panel?
Gonna try to wire a detached Amish building/shop to 220
Thanks best article yet.
Use fiber glass fish tape or a compressor to blow a string through the conduit, but using a metal fish tape in a live panel without gloves is very dangerous and quite negligent
I always leave an extra yellow rope when possible if there's good pull space.
I love my two fiberglass fish tapes 👍
I know how inspectors are in Florida as well. I'm a plumber in Sarasota county and inspectors are the same way here. Always looking for fellow preppers in my area. Like minded folks are hard to come by. Great video
Nice video. I especially like that you explain why things are done, not just that you should do it. It proves you have knowledge of the subject and lets people understand why you do things the correct way.
See 310.18 a. Conduit to be installed as a complete system before inserting conductors. But sometimes you have to install 10' at a time and pull your wires in as you go along. There is a pretty high coefficient of friction between PVC and insulated wire. That's why we use lube on the wires when we pull.
I find if you are working out of a live panel using a shop vac with some pull string with a scrap of rag works quicker and easier, not to mention safer because your not messing with a stiff metal fish tape.
Hey, great video, I heard ya say Pinellas, I am in Hernando, wiring up my shop right now too. You mentioned gray paint and marker would not run off. Try a couple hits of "off bug spray" and that marker will just melt off. Wipe, dry, then its blank like new.
Absolutely one of the best how-to videos I've seen on wiring a sub panel. Great work and thanks. You mentioned grounding the container separately. Hopefully you can explain why the additional ground to the container is necessary, I'm curious now. I ran my sub panel pretty much the same way but was assuming the panel ground bar and the panel being screwed to the metal wall would be enough.
Thanks
The quick answer is you have to isolate the neutral from the metal sub-fed panel. If not and the neutral was to ever open between main and sub-fed panel then the equipment ground/bare wire/green wire would become your neutral. Thus a possible shock hazard would be present. Kinda short answer but that's the just of it ....
I'd never heard of the wire lube before, so thanks for that. I had to replace a corroded electrical box in my house because the lights were randomly dimming. I upgraded to a bigger box while I was at it since I couldn't find an identical replacement box. The process was pretty simple, actually.
I called the power company and asked about having the power shut off at the meter. They told me to just cut the tag and pull the meter myself, so I did. They said that the next time they checked the meter and saw the tag missing, they'd replace it (this was ComEd in Illinois, btw).
Now, I'm not an electrician or contractor but if is no supply, there should not be any danger. Still, I was careful just in case there was any back-flow of electricity in the house. I only regret not having more lighting to work by. Of course, this was a replacement and not a new box, so there was no real danger of getting connections wrong. I'd be less confident of installing a new panel on my own without some guidance.
Way to go! You saved some big bucks.
For those of you choosing to DIY this type of job, I strongly recommend calling your power company and asking them to pull the meter ahead of time most will do this for free. This will de-energize the service line power to your house and reduce or eliminate the risk of electrical shock. Especially if you're choosing to use bare hands and/or metal tools anywhere near the main load center. Professionals know what they're doing and take risk accordingly. For people who have not worked around these conditions before, be prepared to make a few rookie mistakes and don't take any chances.
OMMA- LLAMA if you that then you have to go through the permit inspection bs. There isn’t one bf in any level of government that has a clue. You can pull your own meter.
You don't need to call anybody to pull the meter. When you service it. You own the meter box as well. As you have to pay for anything up to the riser. Including wiring the weather head. All they do is come out and install the meter. Run the service feed from the transformer to riser head.
Don't be afraid to pull your own meter.
Imagine living inside city limits and needing permits and inspections for residential work
@@MasterChief-sl9ro It may depend on the company. Where I live, it is not allowed and comes with a heavy fine. If they find their lock broken it becomes a bad day.
Thank you for all the tips; I'll certainly be using at least a handful.
One for you: denatured alcohol is the solvent for Sharpee. By their design, it's the only thing that takes it off and it does so easily so scribble away!
I had a repair job that had a printer blow up as well. the previous electrician had installed a 120 volt receptacle and tied into a junction box going to an old 240 volt server receptacle. They had run 12/3 but the server only used the two lives and the neutral was just capped off. The electrician never checked but one of those phases was the "wild leg" of the delta 3 phase transformer and had 208 volts to neutral. I know it is not required but I will always make a point of marking the "wild leg" in junction boxes so its obvious to the next electrician working on the equipment.
WOah! Yeah watching out for the bastard leg is key!
Enjoyed the video - even the disclaimer disclaimer.
The videoin general is just a great job... I appreciate when people take part of their time to do videos like this one... 👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍💪💪💪💪
Hey mr electrician, might be a good idea to at least show those out here the right way to dangerously pull from a live panel. How about putting cardboard in front of the live bus lugs and all. That fish tape can bounce all around and strike a live area even when pulling. If you cant shut it off, then cover it up.
Cyote One saw the same thing. Thought at least us gloves
Informative. Entertaining.. Thanks for the bloopers! My sub panel is now done. Thank you.
Nice video. I like you simple explanation
Nice Video. I really envy the fact that you can pound in a ground rod so easily. I live in Connecticut and we hit ledge after about 1 foot. It is never easy.
great video man! all these home owner diy vids are so painful to watch. Nice to watch a video of some one who actually knows codes and what they are doing! my Journeyman and I just finished a 400 amp service upgrade for 2 main 200 amp panels. one for the house and one for the shed to run his new out door sauna and hot tub. lots of pvc heat gun bending and ditch digging. :D
Good job so hard to find people who actually know what their doing these days
Excellent work and great teaching style, mush appreciated
Tip: use a pole driver for your ground rods. Way easier than using a hammer.
He could cover the main bus lugs with cardboard for safety.
It looks scary to feed the fishing tape close to the live lines; the tape could touch the hot terminal and cause an electrocute. I would recommend to cover the live wire area with a plastic shield before using the fishing line.
Anyway, thank you very much for a very clear and informative instruction.
Or tape a heavy piece of cardboard over the hot areas
You pulled on it and said, It's not going anywhere.
That panel is there for life.
Too close for me, (to use a steel fish tape). You stated you’ve been electrocuted before. I think if you check “electrocuted” is past tense meaning the incident took you out, or did not survive. Being shocked, bit, burned means you survived. Me too. Laying under an old wood sided house getting ready to change out a water heater. The panel box matched the house was filled only with screw in fuses. Well, I removed the fuse labeled water heater, crawled under. Took a metal box bladed knife began to strip the insulation back. There was that awful arc sound I’ll never forget as it blew the blade away. I guess that’s all that saved me. Laying on the damp ground, still felt the jolt go through me I felt paralyzed for at least 10 mins. Couldn’t move from that spot or call for help. On the old houses the fuses carry only one leg of a 220 circuit. I failed to remove the other 110 fuse which I cut into.
Technically he did say he was dead for a short period of time, so electrocuted I guess still is the right term
Best way is to take some high tension string (stringline) and tie a piece of paper or a small plastic bag piece and use shopvac on other end. Pulls it though like a kite.
Non conductive way to do it.
13:38 had me dying "... it has a lot of colorful names in the trade"
You really seem to know what you are doing. Kudos for a valuable lesson.
You show digging a trench but nothing on hooking up the sub panel wires????????
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If a person could afford a "licensed electrical contractor" they wouldn't be watching a video like this.
If video creators could afford to be sued by not making disclaimers, like "work at your own risk" or "this video is for informational purposes only" and etc there would be no disclaimers on any of the videos that we all watch here on TH-cam.
Very informative sir... Thanks!!! I have a friend thats an electrician here in East Dallas Tx... im a roofer but i ve learned a lot thanks to him... 😃
Great job on explaining how things and would go wrong if done unsafely. Great job on keeping safety theme first, but safety gloves and safety goggles don't hurt a bit. As the preacher says "Do as I say, don't do as I do." One day I was replacing 6 volt golf cart batteries, a young gal at work came up to me and told me she wanted to learn, I handed her an uninsulated wrench to remove one pole, she wasn't careful enough and shorted the batteries, sparks flew everywhere, rendered a useless wrench and a freaked out cat.
Thank's for the tips , putting a sub panel in the garage tomorrow ! 👍
Everything sounds good what you said, but how much you change for that??I like to know that if possible thanks
Nice of you to put this up for everyone.
I would have liked to have seen you connect to the main panel. Also, I think my neutral and ground are bonded in my main panel. Could you explain why you don't bond them in the sub panel.
I didn't get the footage of connecting to the main panel but, it is fairly easy and straight forward, black wires go to the breaker, green wire goes to the ground bar and the white wire goes to the neutral bar.
The reason we do not bond the grounds and the neutrals at the sub panel is because the equiptment grounding conductor would be in parallel with the neutral conductor making a conductive or "hazardous" path for electricity to potentially kill/shock/injure someone.
I believe this code has been around since the 1920's.
I know this is wrong but a novice could think that anytime it is possible to direct stay current to ground, is a good thing. The problem is, is that if current goes threw you to ground (grounding rod by generator in a field) there is enough resistance that the fuse will not blow and you will die.
Thanks for sharing. Very informative and instructional.
I've got one question. Can you bond the neutral bar with the grounding bar in the sub panel ?
Not in a sub panel
Great job. I wasn't able to pull the fish tape with my leather work gloves. I couldn't get enough friction. I had to use bare hands and worked blisters on them.
Get rubber coated Kevlar gloves and use a linemans' pliers when necessary. And for God's sake! Put cardboard or something nonconductive over a live exposed panel when pulling wire near it!
Lots of people use a shop vacuum cleaner, and that works fine. You can also take a green Scotchlok (the ones with the hole in top) and tie a string through the thing. Feed it into the empty conduit point first, then use a compressor to blow it through the conduit. Done in a hurry!
Great tutorial, you sold me at smoke test , now that’s funny
great vid, comprehensive, and adequate for today. ty
Hello I am an electrician...u need a fiberglass fish tape so u don’t get killed or shock in live panel. it’s safety first ..
Hello I am an electrician...u can use whatever you want. Thank.
Are you happy with the Siemens panel after all these years?
I guess I missed it. What size was your main wire feed? For the sub panel Thank you for the video.
#6 THHN with a #10 THHN ground.
Nice video but you forgot some important safety items such as covering the live panel with cardboard, using a fiberglass fish tape, show installing the wires in the sub-panel, bonding the metal trailer. You could have used a demolition hammer to install the ground rods in the earth.
gave you a thumbs up! but.. it would have really been nice to show the hookup at the main panel. cheers
So there is no danger in attaching the sub panel directly onto the metal shipping container? Great vid, thanks!
Well, it depends what jurisdiction you reside in. Electrical codes and inspector requirements are always in flux. I did end up bonding the ground to the container in another video but, that was for EMP protection. The most correct way would to run a ground wire of proper size from the sub panel ground bar to a lug that is bolted and not screwed to the metal structure of the building or container.
I do use to lubricate wire vasseline petroleum jelly.
Yellow 77 is the werst wire lube you can use. In a few months, it becomes glue and IF you have to add or change the wire you are in for a fight to pull the old wire out. The GREEN lube is the best formulation as it does not degrade.
I don’t think you’re limited on the size conduit so why not go with a larger conduit to also make pulling easier? You could have went with a much larger conduit and been plenty good. Just what I would do.
Man a simple cardboard box fashioned to fit over live parts is better than nothing
26:36 you can use masking tape for labeling and any label correction not will be a problem. To clean the permanent marker u can use thinner very effective thing.
.....you can pre install wire in conduit once you lay it all out first. No working near power until last steps.
For entertainment and educational purposes is CYA approved.
Great video, lots of detail, very helpful. Thanks for posting it.
The NEC is adopted in all 50 states, and covers electrical wiring and installations. They can made it stricter but not relax it. Inspectors tend to interpret it differently in some cases but it’s the same code. Since your so close to a live wire I would have probably used a rope to pull since the metal touching could kill someone.
Im learning electricity from a dude who electrocuted himself and died for a few minutes lol.
lmao. Good one.
You should have used the right type and sized screwdriver to tighten your gec in the sub.
Yours was too large and you didn't even torque the thing.
Awesome video! Glad you explained grounding and grounded... always confused me
There is one thing that bothers me, all grounds should be single point bonded, here have a separate ground run to the remote panel and yet installed a separate ground, this is bad. grounds should only be tied back to a single point bond to ground, have a separate ground run to the new panel, no additional ground rod should be located there. this allows for a dangerous situation that can have a high differential potential between the ground locations.
Greg Elkins thank you... I was wondering if I was the only one thinking this. I'm even surprised some of the commenters who say they are electricians didn't notice this.
Wonder the same thing myself, good call.
Finally someone else is aware of this issue
Thank you for adding this. So many things can go wrong with the addition of auxiliary ground rods. We think about it when in a sub panel that it is wrong, but the addition of auxiliary ground rods at light poles, generators and machines can have the same negative effects. Ground voltage gradients, ground lighting paths to enter and exit your system. Besides it's a waste of money. Always use your equipment grounding conductor and that's it.
So are you all saying
Option 1:
The main and sub panel grounds should be connected together with appropriate size wire and no additional rods are needed at either panel?
or Option 2:
The sub and main panel grounds should not be connected. Then connect sub panel's grounding bar to new rods?
Not doing work myself; just checking if my sub was hooked up right. Thanks
This is a real question, I have read in the NEC that it is unacceptable to connect a sub panel to the main panel with the neutral (green) . I understand that the reason is so each panel is not able to loop back through from one to the other in case there is a problem.
That is why a subpanel needs its own ground rods times two 6' apart.
They are not to be shared on purpose.
Thank you, overall the video was very helpful.
If you dont have a neutral no 120 volt circuits will work. The green wire is an equipment grounding conductor and is call for in the NEC article 250-32. So you are wrong.
In Florida you have to pull a permit for everything even low-voltage I am in Pasco
i thought the ground from the main panel to subpanel is not supposed to be used and you only use the ground from the new ground rods you installed for the subpanel.
Try using nylon fish tape for pulling in live panels friend
You should make your own video to show us how.
It will break the fiberglass that’s not made for pulling heavy wire only pull string
I love all the comments from everybody . Stop slamming him I think he did a good job for a quick basic video . Everyone does things a little different as do I . Over all nice job , though I wouldn't recommend this if your not sure , call an electrician you'll sleep better
Very nice video, well explained. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Every bit of wire is live. Even when working on a panel I always work as if it is live!!!
God advice. Doing it wrong, can be shocking.
Thank you for the helpful info and entertainment 😊
Great Job, now its my turn why do they give you mounting holes??
YOU HAVE A GREAT VIDEO BUT THE WIRING INSIDE THE MAIN PANEL IS MISSING IN THE VIDEO AND IT IS NOT KNOWN HOW THE WIRING DONE IN THE MAIN PANEL
I live in FL and as a homeowner I seen the FL law that allows for a home owner to be a "self contractor" but also must apply for the permits for building but what if I want to do my own wiring? Can I do wiring by code and just have it looked over by the county if they issue me a permit? If not I think it would be much better to get my a license just for where I live so I can do my own work rather then paying a contractor for add on's or replacements. Great video by the way.
The State of Florida allowed me to be the contractor on my home and pull all permits. I was allowed to do everything like plumbing, electrical, HVAC, roofing, framing and etc.
The only thing that you are NOT allowed to do is run gas lines.That has to be performed by a mechanical contractor for obvious reasons.
The bottom line is that you do not need to be a contractor( in Florida) to do your own work on your own house except for the gas lines. Check with your local building dept.
Why dont you turn off the panel when running fish wire?
Because It'll turn the power off to everything connected to it. Given it's the main panel, the whole house will have no power. I know this question was posted 2 years ago. But Just thought I'd answer just in case other people are wondering about the same thing.
@@Ed-uu9eo So what if the house has no power? It's Florida. It's not like they're shutting off heating for half a day in the middle of a freezing winter.
@@internettoughguy Of course it's always a good idea to remove all power whenever you can. But this homeowner obviously had a reason he didn't want his main off. Whatever it was that's none of my business.
Yikes...Think I would cover that hot area with cardboard or other insulator, but yes the best idea is have the power company pull your meter temporarily... As a sub panel did you remove the bonding screws since you ran a neutral from your main panel? By the way acetone will remove that permanent marker...
Great job, but 6awg is 50amps so I will see if we are allowed to rate it higher ?, teach a 5 second pull when you pull count 3-5 seconds then pull again especially when the distance is far that gives the other end a chance to untangle stranded wire, use a post slammer instead of a sledge hammer you get two hands and a better force to drive the rods, when staggering wire stagger it longer it makes it better to pull at the 90, use a bigger conduit one size it makes it easier to pull, use 6 awg solid and you don’t have to sleeve the grounding with pvc, silicon screws after there in the metal, obvious stuff strapping of pvc, I liked your video keep it up Ed with Ochoa Electri in San Diego
#6 is rated for 65amps.
at 10:30 into the video, he indicates the safer thing to do is contact the electric utility provider to "...pull the meter, if you need to be extra safe - probably be the smart thing to do..." So why doesn't he? His message is "be safe, because electricity is dangerous, but watch me take shortcuts". Hmmmm. and then people comment how good and excellent the video is. But it is okay to take shortcuts.... I guess that is okay because we all only die once in our lives.
I have presented this video to help educate/entertain the viewer on the proper way to work safe and how some electrical installations are done out in the field. Especially to people who have no experience like you. If you didn't like or enjoy this video presentation, fine and good. However, you could do us all (including me) a great service by making your own video and showing us all of the proper and accepted safety protocols when installing a sub panel?
Very nice job!!! Thanks for sharing your knowledge!!
Ground would be better at the bottom of the rail. Doing this gives you easier wiring from the breakers
at:20:12 - for ground rods, I cheat like crazy. I get my demo hammer with the ground rod attachment. HaHa!
You mentioned grounding the shipping container, since it is metal, but you didn't show doing that. I am in the exact same circumstance and need to ground the container. I was told to use #4 solid copper wire. It needs to be attached to the grounding lug in the box, but can it go to just anywhere on the container?
My subpanel is inside; I am tentatively planning to drop out of the bottom of the box and put a grounding screw in the bottom beam, just below the box. Is it OK to do this inside the wall, or should it be accessible? Thanks for the advice.
There are many different correct ways to accomplish grounding. From what you have described, you could run the wire from the ground bar of the panel to a lug that is bolted (not screwed) with a 1/4x20 bolt and nut. #4 sounds a little big, how many amps is the panel and is it a sub panel or a main service? A ground wire should not ever exceed the size of the neutral conductor. If you go to about 7:23 in this vid that I have linked, you can see how I grounded my container th-cam.com/video/Qf8ioa-VI5Q/w-d-xo.html
homesteadprepper Thanks for the quick response. I actually have 2 containers, they are connected with an 8' wide wood-framed section. This is a house, 24x40. My inspector came by last week for an informal look-see. He is the one who said that I should use #4 solid copper.
Our load center is technically a sub-panel, the main panel is on a power pole, as you would see in a house trailer set-up. I already have 2 grounding rods placed at the power pole. I need to ground the container to the load center. The inspector said to connect the copper wire to the ground lug; if I recall correctly, he said to screw the copper to the wall of the container. I plan to call him next week for clarification, we talked about so many topics that day. BTW, the two cans will have a steel rod welded to each other to electrically bond them together.
I would do what the inspector told you to do to the letter.
Hey Kathy, you lookin like a JUICY SNACCCCC
if you pour a little water down the hole then wiggle the ground rod, you'll probably never have to hammer on it - works great even in clay.
mmforeman I agree they go down easy that way. I was taught not to hammer ground rod.
I too saw the water method to drive a ground rod in another video and thought "no way this will work".
The two ground rods I did slipped into the ground with just my hands for about six feet and the last two feet tapped in with ease. Amazing.
Try that in the Ozarks. You'll never get past 2 feet
I didn't see a green term screw in that sub panel? I thought that was code in all 50 states? Nice work Nice and clean. Good job
sub panels aren't bonded. bonding is done at first point of disconnect. the green screw is a bonding screw. It bonds grounded conductors and grounds together at first point of disconnect.
I needed this video... thanks for this content.
Here in Canada, we have to ground our sub panels as well. However, if you pull a bond to the sub panel then you do not have to ground it, because it is bonded to ground. You pulled a bond to your sub panel, so why did you have to ground it?
From what I know, the Canadian Electrical Code (CEC) and NEC are very similar to eachother.
Also, you installed an aluminum grounding electrode, and pulled a copper grounding conductor and attached to the electrode. Dissimilar metals. You gotta put some sort of de-oxidizer on there.
As I stated in the vid, your codes and methods may differ by your area and your authority having jurisdiction.
The NEC does allow what you have stated above.
In my area, we are only required to use de-ox if we are using an aluminum conductor instead of copper.
If the sub panel is in a separate building it needs its own earth ground. (More for lighting strikes), NEC 250 something or other (don't have code book in side it's out in my van) but it is clearly stated that sub panels in a separate building need there own Earth ground separate from the ground pulled from the main service.
Did you show the coneccion on the main o NOT
Is that for a 100 amp panel the power company says u can use plane 4 copper for service and entry as long as your neutral is white or marked white both ends as house service entrances is 25 amp from pole to meter were they right & how comes #4 copper has 2 different temptress ratings celcus wise when I see the charts running #4 thn.not 4/0.so you know exactly the wirer menards brand writing from manufacturer is crazy thin
Heck, if I have to work under the direct supervision of a licensed electrical contractor HE better be paying ME!
A decent video.
The disclaimers are fine and should be heeded, but you sort of leave a person hanging that watches your video. It give them some knowledge but leaves them hanging out in the air as where the wires go and what you did at the other end
Sure would have been nice to show where each wire went rather than just show in the box and then suddenly cover is closed and no clue what you did inside the panel
You then give little quick shots of the wiring but no comment on what you did
One suggestion that I would add is protecting yourself when running the wire pull
I always take a thick piece of cradboard the length and size of the inside of the panel
I lay it over the breakers and power cables. If need be I will then tape it to the inside of the main and sub panel. This gives some reasonable protection from being shocked while pusing the wire pull thru
When finished just pull the cardboard out
yeah, it's not much about wire size needed for distance, figuring how many circuits are needed at subpanel etc. There's 2 conduit pipes in the ditch ???
yea you didn't show the wire panel hook up, what's up with that
i just wasted 30 minutes mostly watching a guy run wire from the main to the sub and give me no information about what wires go where and why.
too bad
blackstatis 0 That was 90% of the work. You need to further research how to install breakers and so forth. if you still do not understand, you shouldn't be near electrical installations.
Wow ive watched 5 videos from ur channel and i love u got urself a subscriber and loads of likes
Did you leave that copper exposed in the ground from the grounding electrode?
Does a subpanel need their own ground rods...?
Try using a small shop vac with a box of nylon pulling string to pull your wires. Metal fish tape can be disastrous with one slip of the tape. At least have gloves and eye protection if you cannot kill power feeding the panel and place something non-conductive in front of the terminals. Better safe than ..............................!
Being careful you should have put a cardboard shield taped up in front of your line side..hot conductors while fishing line to your helper protecting you both..just saying
We use the clear wire pulling lube. Over time the yellow seems to become sticky in the pipe when adding new lines
Great video, but why not run the fish tape through the lengths of conduit as you're laying your conduit? It seems it would be an easier way and less friction.
Why not pre-run the cable in the conduit rather than using the fish?