Neatness Counts

I cannot emphasize enough the need for clean, neat, and accurate work when doing your own electrical jobs. Inspectors aren’t fond of homeowners doing their own wiring, and they probably will scrutinize your work more than the work of an electrician. Chalk it up to one more example of life being unfair, or see it as motivation to do the best work possible. (How’s that for making lemonade out of lemons?) A new electrical service that’s been done well is a beautiful exercise in symmetry. All the wires entering the service panel are installed at neat right angles without any excess length. Wires running along exposed basement floor joist are taut, stapled, and secured. The point of the staple is to gently hold the cable in place. It is very easy to damage the outer sheath of NMB (nonmetallic) cable if you aggressively pound staples against it.
Cable inside receptacle and switch boxes is cut clean and is folded in and out of the way at the back of the boxes. These are not inordinate standards but the ones an inspector expects to see. You should expect them, too, whether you do your own work or hire it out.
Can you get these results as a novice? Of course you can! It will take you longer than a trained electrician, but so would just about any work that’s new to you. That’s why you read this blog. This text—and a few good tools —will see you through most electrical jobs with inspector-pleasing results.