# Residential makes me feel dumb.



## TGGT (Oct 28, 2012)

Our company doesn't really do residential, mostly commercial and industrial. I've dabbled in residential, but not enough to be quick. My truck also isn't setup for that kind of work.

Some of the service calls we get are replacing broken lugs in meter enclosures. Sometimes the meter can itself has to be replaced, but usually just one of the lugs is enough.

Utility tried to pull the meter and it shorted to ground, which backfed into the house and started a fire in the wall.

It's not a big job, just a panel and meter change, but looking at the tools and material I have on my truck it was just made obvious that a residential contractor would be running circles around me. I had to borrow a sledge to set a ground rod. Since I couldn't get the last 18'' shop is sending out a corded hammer drill and a generator with a rod attachment because they don't see the value in having a cordless rotary hammer. 

I don't keep romex, or staples, or plastic boxes on the truck so I had to keep amending my supply house order long after I had submitted it.

I burned through 6 batteries and was barely able to complete the work because they have a smorgasbord of different brands of tools, most of which are old and beat up, batteries don't hold charges well.

I would've subbed it out to Hax if he were in Texas.


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## nrp3 (Jan 24, 2009)

Just different stuff to work with. I’ve never set a transformer in my life and am bidding a 277/480 panel, x former and a 208 panel, to provide extra circuits for future use and a few kitchen circuits for now.


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

I mainly do resi now, but only service work. Any first year resi helper that does new construction or renovations would work circles around me on a renovation or new construction job. The same goes for commercial which I spent most of career doing.

It's just the way it goes.


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## Wirenuting (Sep 12, 2010)

TGGT said:


> Our company doesn't really do residential, mostly commercial and industrial. I've dabbled in residential, but not enough to be quick. My truck also isn't setup for that kind of work.
> 
> Some of the service calls we get are replacing broken lugs in meter enclosures. Sometimes the meter can itself has to be replaced, but usually just one of the lugs is enough.
> 
> ...



I feel your pain. I’m the same way. 
My mouth drops open when the boss sends me on service calls like that. I have 1 or 2 receptacles and maybe a trim plate on my truck. I have yet to need my 1 1/4” bender on any of them kind of jobs. 

If Hax could drive to Illinois I would sub it to him and pay him travel time.


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## telsa (May 22, 2015)

OP -- your firm needs to dump such work onto a 'buddy' Residential Contractor.

There's no profit to be had by keeping such action in-house.

No-one can be effective if they have to keep looking into the NEC Handbook during a build.

One must know the solution right off the top of one's head... because the Other Guy(R) certainly can.

And you need your tools and materials all lined up like ducks for you to bang the work out.

For all these reasons, one must concentrate on this or that niche.

Then you stop making stupid boners, running out of critical supplies, and no longer face warranty calls. 

Then there's a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.


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## lighterup (Jun 14, 2013)

telsa said:


> OP -- your firm needs to dump such work onto a 'buddy' Residential Contractor.
> 
> There's no profit to be had by keeping such action in-house.
> 
> ...


I've seen some bids (on residential work) from 
companies out here who are known to be primarily
Industrial / commercial..

Believe me (Trump imitation -- heh heh) if they get
get these jobs , they are making good money at them


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

Romex yankers don't get the respect they deserve.


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## Bird dog (Oct 27, 2015)

99cents said:


> Romex yankers don't get the respect they deserve.


Some well deserve it & some are just trunk slammers.


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## RePhase277 (Feb 5, 2008)

TGGT said:


> I would've subbed it out to Hax if he were in Texas.


You'd sub a job to a guy that uses 1/2" offset connectors?


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

RePhase277 said:


> You'd sub a job to a guy that uses 1/2" offset connectors?


I also have them in PVC in both 1-1/4" and 2" for services and other various shenanigans:


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## MTW (Aug 28, 2013)

Thankfully I am extremely talented and just so happen to be extremely handsome as well, so I never feel dumb at anything.


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## 99cents (Aug 20, 2012)

HackWork said:


> I also have them in PVC in both 1-1/4" and 2" for services and other various shenanigans:
> 
> 
> 
> View attachment 123826


That's a meter offset. It's not hack, it's necessary.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

I cut my teeth in residential service work and have never wired a complete house.
Everything i have now is too dirty to bring near a house.
I have come to the epiphany that we have become over specialized to the point that we cannot easily transition from construction to service.
I very much enjoy commercial and residential service work but, it seems to take two different trucks, tools, stock and clothing to pull off both that kind of work and keep the two worlds from colliding.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

MTW said:


> Thankfully I am extremely talented and just so happen to be extremely handsome as well, so I never feel dumb at anything.


I knew that was you Hack. :biggrin:


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

99cents said:


> That's a meter offset. It's not hack, it's necessary.


It's not necessary, you could bend the PVC the same way as you can bend EMT.

It's the exact same thing as an EMT boxset connector. It's an easy and smart way to get a raceway into an enclosure without having to bend pipe.


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## TGGT (Oct 28, 2012)

Yeah I demo'd and renovated a kitchen on the fly, from kitchen equipment, to the RTU's, to the ansul system (never messed with one and I had to design it).

Not having proper tools or material really irritates the hell out of me though. I hate making more than 1 trip to the supply house in a day.

Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk


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## Galt (Sep 11, 2013)

Gives you an excuse to buy more tools.


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## macmikeman (Jan 23, 2007)

Southeast Power said:


> I cut my teeth in residential service work and have never wired a complete house.
> Everything i have now is too dirty to bring near a house.
> I have come to the epiphany that we have become over specialized to the point that we cannot easily transition from construction to service.
> I very much enjoy commercial and residential service work but, it seems to take two different trucks, tools, stock and clothing to pull off both that kind of work and keep the two worlds from colliding.


I have all the tooling and stuff for each type of work, from electric and hydraulic benders and ko knockout punches all the way to 6" and Greenlee tuggers and the like, Three electrically run threading machines and a handful of manual ones. Digging equipment. And all the residential new , remodel , and service work tooling and supplies you could possibly think of, but only run one work vehicle at this point in time till we get all children out of the driveway with their cars. This makes a typical month for me very difficult at times. Like tonight times. Right now it is way too hot outside for me to go out and pull out all the romex stuff and put in the threading equipment , but once the sun goes down that is exactly what has to happen since I'm running some new lighting at a propane tank farm in the morning and it's all rigid work. Then on Monday, its back to another residential addition , then Tuesday it's trim out time on my commercial job I have going.... you get the idea. I still have another van but the trans on it is shot and its sitting there in reserve for the boy should he decide he wants to put in the money and get himself out on the road for himself , which won't happen for another 3 yrs at least since he still is an apprentice right now.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

macmikeman said:


> I have all the tooling and stuff for each type of work, from electric and hydraulic benders and ko knockout punches all the way to 6" and Greenlee tuggers and the like, Three electrically run threading machines and a handful of manual ones. Digging equipment. And all the residential new , remodel , and service work tooling and supplies you could possibly think of, but only run one work vehicle at this point in time till we get all children out of the driveway with their cars. This makes a typical month for me very difficult at times. Like tonight times. Right now it is way too hot outside for me to go out and pull out all the romex stuff and put in the threading equipment , but once the sun goes down that is exactly what has to happen since I'm running some new lighting at a propane tank farm in the morning and it's all rigid work. Then on Monday, its back to another residential addition , then Tuesday it's trim out time on my commercial job I have going.... you get the idea. I still have another van but the trans on it is shot and its sitting there in reserve for the boy should he decide he wants to put in the money and get himself out on the road for himself , which won't happen for another 3 yrs at least since he still is an apprentice right now.


I feel your pain.
I was looking forward to getting a Transit Connect and setting it up just for residential work and then the problem of transporting ladders came up.
Then the problem of parking it in a HOA or Condo parking lot overnight came up.
Now, Im back to an unmarked, full size plus white van A Ford Transit 250 is going to be it. Stealth parking and plenty of interior space.
We have quite of one year lease turn overs here for under 25K.
We have been traveling the State lately and need to haul an entire jobs worth of materials with us. 
Im coming off a job that required 2M plus a 1M umbrella of insurance so, dropping that down to 500/ 1M, will pay for the van.


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## Switched (Dec 23, 2012)

We have a bunch of smaller shops around here that seem to try and do everything, all they end up doing is nothing well. 

Too many of them will take the quick service calls to fill in time, then when they get steady GC type work they stop answering their phones, just leaving their service customers up the creek.

I can step foot onto most projects and hold my own with my skills, but as my own business, I focus solely on light commercial and residential service and repair. 

If I attempted to do residential, commercial or industrial and compete with those guys on a business level... They would crush me, that is what they are geared to do. 

Now if I wanted to gear up and quit doing service, I could tool up and begin to compete successfully with them. 

One isn't better than the other, it's about picking a niche (like has been mentioned) and gearing up properly to work that niche correctly and successfully.


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## Southeast Power (Jan 18, 2009)

Residential service requires you to be on top of your game with everything you say or do. Some people will leave you alone but others will bug the crap out of you.
The best ones for me is where a house manager will show you what is needed and leave you alone.
The worst is a small condo full of clutter or a house full of roaches or cats.


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## Cow (Jan 16, 2008)

MTW said:


> Thankfully I am extremely talented and just so happen to be extremely handsome as well, so I never feel dumb at anything.


I bet I could say the same for a gay male pole dancer....just sayin....


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## bostonPedro (Nov 14, 2017)

You need to be set up for and have the proper tools and materials to be better. Sure you might not be as efficient as someone who does resi all the time but its a hell of a lot harder to do as any job is without the proper tools.


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## lighterup (Jun 14, 2013)

I think residential service calls require you to 
develop strong mental skill set in order to
avoid becoming bipolar.

You have to prepared to deal with the 
weirdest behavior from some people .
Hover over you , argue , dictate what 
they think needs to be done , how long it
should take , what it should cost...
internet nerds are the worst.

Then other people are completely cool 
and leave you alone...you know your the 
pro and whatever you say needs to be done
they trust your correct.

This vacillates back & forth. You cannot
let this pendulum swing affect you
or you'll lose it.


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## nrp3 (Jan 24, 2009)

It can and does make you crazy at times.


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## lighterup (Jun 14, 2013)

nrp3 said:


> It can and does make you crazy at times.


Yeah...because you'll get a string of good customers 
and be relaxed when the 3rd or 4th customer turns
out to be a complete a hole...

Proceed with caution with each one.


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## nrp3 (Jan 24, 2009)

Some you are glad to spend time with and others your just happy to spend as little time with as possible. Better still when they aren't around and only have to deal with them by email or text.


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## lighterup (Jun 14, 2013)

I intently listen on the inaugural phone call
for 

service requests...
If i so much as catch a whiff of BS , then it's
..._sorry I just don't have the time for this ...
I would be at least 2 months out assuming 
all goes well with my current schedule_


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## nrp3 (Jan 24, 2009)

Today I didn't feel like hanging around to discuss the bill, I left as quickly as possible. I always get paid, by them, just wanted to move on to the next gig.


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## MTW (Aug 28, 2013)

Cow said:


> I bet I could say the same for a gay male pole dancer....just sayin....


Is that the kind of thing you're into?


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## Greg Sparkovich (Sep 15, 2007)

99% of my work is residential. And you're right; it's very different.
Over the past 20 years I've had an equal amount of customers screw me ..about 4 resi and 4 commercial. With a 99:1 ratio of work and a 50:50 ratio of assholery, I am terrified to do commercial. The only commercial I will do these days is Mom & Pop stuff like a small store.

Residential customers are like "OMG! Thank goodness little Timmy has a night light! You're a hero!!!! Is cash OK? Would you like some fresh cookies?"

Commercial customers are like: "I don't have time for this. Get it done fast and cheap". FFS I got screwed by American Apparel once!


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## nrp3 (Jan 24, 2009)

I have commercial property managers who get it, they pay within two weeks, and are good to deal with. They have multiple electricians to work with. If I think its too big for me to deal with, the large scale contractor comes in. I take the small stuff. I know its not always this way. Anyone new, if I have time, and it's something I'm interested in, gets the question, "how soon do I get paid, net 30, 60, 90?" That determines any further conversation.


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