Spent Sunday in Uncle Larry's neck of the woods

Smoke

Silver Member
Not Bucks County, PA - my attic!

What a hateful place. Now I know why I seldom go into the attic: blown-in cellulose insulation (read, CLOUDS of dust), no headroom, nails poking through the roof deck, mouse poop, fiberglass insulation, etc. Thankfully, no spiders. Sunday was cloudy/rainy with a temperature of 58 °F (14.5 °C) - totally uncharacteristic for late July in Michigan. As a result, attic temps were quite decent. Ask Uncle Larry how the attic temps run in July/August...

I installed two recessed can lights over my kitchen. Logistically, that places them where the roof deck meets the exterior wall. I laid on my belly on a sheet of plywood for about two hours. My elbows, knees, and ribs are bruised and I have 6 small bloody divots on top of my bald head from a strategically placed nail in the roof deck. I only missed the ladder one time, and probably hurt myself worse when I caught myself than if I'd fallen to the garage floor. Now, three days later, I can finally relate the story without the temptation of torching the house.

But, Mrs. Smoke is happy with the result and we saved a couple of dollars.

I'm not sure how much electricians get paid, but I'm sure it's not enough.

Thank a soldier if you've got freedom; thank an electrician if you've got electricity! ;-)
 
Lol, I feel your pain brother Smoke. Especially in the skull. I have numerous scars on my scalp from roofing nails lol.

The best advise I ever got was...if you're working too hard, you're doing something wrong. I am assuming you laid in the attic to do the recessed can connections. If so, you didn't have to spend all that wonderful time up there. You could have just cut your holes, and used enough wire to wire them in while you are standing on your kitchen floor. It costs you extra wire, but so what, it's worth it to not have to lay up there. I just neatly stuff the excess wire in the attic. Plus it makes it easier to work on in the future when you have extra wire. Pull the fixture right down and work on it standing on the kitchen floor. You do have to use what they call "old work" cans, but they are sold right alongside the "new work" cans.

When I must be up there I wear knee pads, I have a mini mag LED flashlight wired on my forehead and a painters respirator so I don't breath all the particulate matter that you stir up while moving around up there. Sometimes a wet towel around my neck if it's dangerously hot, along with a bellyful of water. Pours right out of you when it's 110 and up.

But you could have done most, if not all the work from the kitchen side of the ceiling, especially if you used the electric from an existing ceiling light. I'm assuming that's what you did. Push new wire through a hole in the existing ceiling box and grab it through a hole you cut, then on to the next one.

I'm always available for free electrical advise if you (or anybody else) have questions or want to know the easiest way to wire something. Just another small added bonus of DW lol.

It's always pleasant when you see your name in a thread title, thanks for that.
 
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I'm always available for free electrical advise if you (or anybody else) have questions or want to know the easiest way to wire something. Just another small added bonus of DW lol.

Same goes for my area of "expertise" if anyone needs some computer/network help (with a bit of snark, and probably some Travis Barker bashing), I'm happy to answer questions.
 
That doesn't sound like an awful lot of fun, Smoke. Mrs Smoke was wise to delegate.
 
Lol, I feel your pain brother Smoke. Especially in the skull. I have numerous scars on my scalp from roofing nails lol.

The best advise I ever got was...if you're working too hard, you're doing something wrong. I am assuming you laid in the attic to do the recessed can connections. If so, you didn't have to spend all that wonderful time up there. You could have just cut your holes, and used enough wire to wire them in while you are standing on your kitchen floor. It costs you extra wire, but so what, it's worth it to not have to lay up there. I just neatly stuff the excess wire in the attic. Plus it makes it easier to work on in the future when you have extra wire. Pull the fixture right down and work on it standing on the kitchen floor. You do have to use what they call "old work" cans, but they are sold right alongside the "new work" cans.

When I must be up there I wear knee pads, I have a mini mag LED flashlight wired on my forehead and a painters respirator so I don't breath all the particulate matter that you stir up while moving around up there. Sometimes a wet towel around my neck if it's dangerously hot, along with a bellyful of water. Pours right out of you when it's 110 and up.

But you could have done most, if not all the work from the kitchen side of the ceiling, especially if you used the electric from an existing ceiling light. I'm assuming that's what you did. Push new wire through a hole in the existing ceiling box and grab it through a hole you cut, then on to the next one.

I'm always available for free electrical advise if you (or anybody else) have questions or want to know the easiest way to wire something. Just another small added bonus of DW lol.

It's always pleasant when you see your name in a thread title, thanks for that.

Yeah, I used "new work" cans - I've used some "old work" stuff before and I wasn't always satisfied, even if it worked out OK. It must be my Polish/German bloodlines... In my mind, I'm still 25 years old, and don't realize the impending damage I'm going to inflict on my 54 year old carcass. Plus, I don't have years of "learning things the hard way" to back me up. It's all good.

I'll echo lots of water. It was actually nice up there last weekend - if "nice" and "attic" can be used in the same sentence. I did wear a cheap dust-mask, so only blew black junk out of my nose once or twice.

I did run power from an existing light fixture (and switch and hot outlet), so I've still got to fix the hole in the ceiling. Though I'm no drywall expert, I'll muddle through this one and nobody will be the wiser. If Mrs Smoke's happy, my life is simple.

At present and in the next couple of years, I'm re-doing my future retirement home in Presque Isle County, Michigan. It's 1930's vintage and has it's own conundrums. I appreciate your experience and just may lean on you when the time comes.

Of course, there's always the hard way...

Thanks Uncle Larry, John
 
You could put a white round blank cover over the old hole,screw it right to the old box, if there is one. Saves a repair, if it covers the hole. Plus if it has a splice in there it is supposed to remain accessible without damaging the finish to get to it.

Certain brands of old work cans suck. But certain ones work great, and are worlds easier to wire. I can't believe you used new work cans. Ouch!
 
Same goes for my area of "expertise" if anyone needs some computer/network help (with a bit of snark, and probably some Travis Barker bashing), I'm happy to answer questions.

Thanks Doc. I'll keep that in my hip-pocket. As I get older (I'm only 54, but time marches on...) my computer expertise seems to be trickling down to my boys. Just the other day, I dang near "vapor locked" trying to get Mrs. Smoke's Nexus 7 to talk to the Win 7 PC. Turns out I was using my phone's USB cable and not the one that came with the tablet.

Might be a new thread - "What I can do for my DW Brother." Just a thought...
 
Quote....In my mind, I'm still 25 years old, and don't realize the impending damage I'm going to inflict on my 54 year old carcass.

The hardest thing to teach a 54 year old mind or a 65 year old mind, in my case, is that neither it nor the body will ever be 25 again. Props for your efforts.
 
That doesn't sound like an awful lot of fun, Smoke. Mrs Smoke was wise to delegate.

Good observation, Madge. We've been a pair for over 33 years, and we've each found our niche. She does demolition and I reconstruct. More often than not, she's faster than I. You can guess the result...

In this case, and more often than not, I create my own problems, so it's all good. As I mentioned earlier, "If Mama's happy, I'm ecstatic!"

"Delegate?!?" Fat chance, Girlie. I "wear the pants" in the "Smoke House." Thankfully, Mrs. Smoke dresses me every day. Life is good in the "Smoke House," and I couldn't be happier.

Love, John
 
You could put a white round blank cover over the old hole,screw it right to the old box, if there is one. Saves a repair, if it covers the hole. Plus if it has a splice in there it is supposed to remain accessible without damaging the finish to get to it.

Certain brands of old work cans suck. But certain ones work great, and are worlds easier to wire. I can't believe you used new work cans. Ouch!

I've got one of those blank cover repairs in an obscure part of the kitchen. Not too bad, but this one is over the kitchen sink. Drywall repair should be easy.

Yeah, new work cans. In my mind it produced the best result with the least effort. Sometimes the final product seems worth the added work. Then again, sometimes you're wrong.

I'd have thought I was old enough to not have to "learn things the hard way."

Still learning, I guess... Better than the flip-side!!
 
Quote....In my mind, I'm still 25 years old, and don't realize the impending damage I'm going to inflict on my 54 year old carcass.

The hardest thing to teach a 54 year old mind or a 65 year old mind, in my case, is that neither it nor the body will ever be 25 again. Props for your efforts.

Thanks GD! Lesson learned. I'll try to remember next time...

I've been plugging my 86 year old Dad for a while now. I'm trying to get a handle on aging gracefully, without causing undue damage. He hasn't too many summers left on his calendar, so my attention is keen. If I'm a good student - and lucky - my body will still be degrading in 32 years.
 
Thanks Doc. I'll keep that in my hip-pocket. As I get older (I'm only 54, but time marches on...) my computer expertise seems to be trickling down to my boys. Just the other day, I dang near "vapor locked" trying to get Mrs. Smoke's Nexus 7 to talk to the Win 7 PC. Turns out I was using my phone's USB cable and not the one that came with the tablet.

That's kind of odd... USB cables (although there are several different types) are typically all the same within each category (mini, micro, standard, a, b). Good that you got it worked out, though. Were you using the wrong tip, or did it fit and simply not work?
 
With a single glance, I take it?


Sibling. But that's a spiffing idea.

Demolition?!? No glances required - she's really good with a rip hammer and pry-bar - and loves it! As I alluded earlier, she's typically champing at the bit and will often start tearing stuff up before I'm ready to move to another project.

Sibling - sorry, no offense intended. Old habits die hard, but they eventually will die. I'll be more purposeful here in DW and "on the block." Would it be untoward if I said, "Thanks, Dude!" ;-)
 
That's kind of odd... USB cables (although there are several different types) are typically all the same within each category (mini, micro, standard, a, b). Good that you got it worked out, though. Were you using the wrong tip, or did it fit and simply not work?

Thought so too. The PC just wouldn't recognize the tablet. I charge all the micro USB stuff with any of the USB cables in the house without a hitch, so never imagined that they wouldn't work for data transfer. I spent a couple of hours on the net trying to get to the root of the problem, but ended up chasing my tail. There was one mention of using the USB cable that shipped with the tablet, so tried that posthaste. Voila!

The only thing I could imagine was that the "USB" cable that came with my phone was dumbed-down for charging duties only - not for data transfer. (I've got an old flip phone, so anything's possible)

We're cooking with gas now.
 
Demolition?!? No glances required - she's really good with a rip hammer and pry-bar - and loves it! As I alluded earlier, she's typically champing at the bit and will often start tearing stuff up before I'm ready to move to another project.

Sibling - sorry, no offense intended. Old habits die hard, but they eventually will die. I'll be more purposeful here in DW and "on the block." Would it be untoward if I said, "Thanks, Dude!" ;-)

Wow, go Mrs Smoke!

Absolutely no offence taken. "Thanks, Dude" would be just fine :)
 
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