80s electrical wiring shortcuts

Mailcoachinn

As in using a plug to push wires into a socket. Everyone did this back in the day. Electricians were the worst for it. Who remembers it. I don’t know if there’s a proper term for it

Hector Bellend

Mailcoachinn wrote: »

As in using a plug to push wires into a socket. Everyone did this back in the day. Electricians were the worst for it. Who remembers it. I don’t know if there’s a proper term for it

I prefer to pull my wire

Poor Uncle Tom

Hector Bellend wrote: »

I prefer to pull my wire

Shocking!

Vita nova

When consumer units were called fuse boards, if a fuse blew and you hadn't a spare, you could stick silver foil in the fuse socket as a temporary replacement, unfortunately it wasn't always temporary. Minature circuit breakers (MCBs) have largely done away with the need to have a stock of spare fuses (or silver foil).

I wish I could think of more examples but my memory power isn't watt it used to be.

verycool

I think I know where the nickname "sparks" came from so!

Yer Da sells Avon

Vita nova wrote: »

When consumer units were called fuse boards, if a fuse blew and you hadn't a spare, you could stick silver foil in the fuse socket as a temporary replacement, unfortunately it wasn't always temporary. Minature circuit breakers (MCBs) have largely done away with the need to have a stock of spare fuses (or silver foil).

A penny was a more long-term solution than tinfoil.

bazz26

colm_mcm

Cigarette pack foil instead of fuses.

Mailcoachinn

colm_mcm wrote: »

Cigarette pack foil instead of fuses.

Did that once, just as the EHS manager was walking past

Tokyo

There was an Irish version of this advert from the early 80's too, if I remember correctly. Can't find it anywhere though.

Trigger Happy

We had one of those houses that had round plug pins instead of rectangular ones. You would stick a pencil in to the earth hole and that would open the "safety" catch on the live and neutral holes so you could stick the wires in.
The plugs had no fuses in them and the fusebox looked like something out of a b-movie horror.

_Brian

Ive taken the live pin out of a plug and replaced it with the neutral from an old one, saves the whole fuse bother- very handy on the welder, have a socket in the workshop that bypasses fuse board for same reason, that gem was done by a sparks in early 70’s

Back in 70’s there weren’t many sockets in houses so piggy backing wires in along with another plug was common, or wiring two appliances into one plug.

Or turn a plug upside down and you can use the earth pin to open the safety guard inside and just push the wires in to L and N, take out Earth pin and the safety guard holds in the wires.

fryup

Mailcoachinn wrote: »

As in using a plug to push wires into a socket.

i don't quite get ya on that one, any photo eg

_Brian

fryup wrote: »

i don't quite get ya on that one, any photo eg

https://goo.gl/images/Ex8qEq

See wires not in plug just jammed in with pins

corner of hells

When I was an apprentice b, I can remember an older electrician tipping a wire he suspected was live on the back of his hand to see if was live.

There was slight logic in the sense his hand wouldn't contract and grip the live cable.

I used the more traditional method of accidentally bumping of the live .

Under His Eye

Use a meter Sideshow Bob. Use a meter.

MY BAD

corner of hells wrote: »

When I was an apprentice b, I can remember an older electrician tipping a wire he suspected was live on the back of his hand to see if was live.

We mush have worked with the same guy :eek:

Under His Eye

corner of hells wrote: »

When I was an apprentice b, I can remember an older electrician tipping a wire he suspected was live on the back of his hand to see if was live.

There was slight logic in the sense his hand wouldn't contract and grip the live cable.

I used the more traditional method of accidentally bumping of the live .

Mellow Yellow 26.2 wrote: »

We mush have worked with the same guy :eek:

Nothing like a slap of 400V on a Monday morning to wake you up.

Vita nova

_Brian wrote: »

Ive taken the live pin out of a plug and replaced it with the neutral from an old one, saves the whole fuse bother- very handy on the welder, have a socket in the workshop that bypasses fuse board for same reason, that gem was done by a sparks in early 70’s

Back in 70’s there weren’t many sockets in houses so piggy backing wires in along with another plug was common, or wiring two appliances into one plug.

Or turn a plug upside down and you can use the earth pin to open the safety guard inside and just push the wires in to L and N, take out Earth pin and the safety guard holds in the wires.

Especially when two appliances went together such as the TV and VCR.

Speaking of a dearth of sockets, I remember adapters for ceiling lights that allowed you to run other appliances off the light socket in addition to the light bulb. It was usually a Y/T fitting with a bayonet plug on one end and 2 bayonet sockets on the other end. The adapter was plugged into the light fitting and the bulb was plugged into one of the sockets and a light fitting plug into the other socket to power another appliance. I haven't seen those adapters or plugs in ages... were probably even illegal when I saw them.

Under His Eye

They were never legal even in the 60's.

corner of hells

Under His Eye wrote: »

Nothing like a slap of 400V on a Monday morning to wake you up.

It would've sorted out all these young fellahs strolling around in their fancy Snickers and stupid lookin' haircuts.

And another thing , there was no accidents on building sites before that Safe Pass ****e came in either.

Tokyo

Vita nova wrote: »

Speaking of a dearth of sockets, I remember adapters for ceiling lights that allowed you to run other appliances off the light socket in addition to the light bulb. It was usually a Y/T fitting with a bayonet plug on one end and 2 bayonet sockets on the other end. The adapter was plugged into the light fitting and the bulb was plugged into one of the sockets and a light fitting plug into the other socket to power another appliance. I haven't seen those adapters or plugs in ages... were probably even illegal when I saw them.

I still use those here - they are pretty commonly available in street vendors stores. I always have one in my bag when on camping trips or in the mountains - handy for charging a battery or two when only a light fitting is available.

Tokyo

Meter board at my current apartment....

Note the green insulating tape where they cut the power to the apartment for not paying the bill on time. Also, brown wire = live. Blue wire = maybe live. Green/yellow wire = more than likely live. It's also where I park my bike, so at least now and again, bike = live.

black & white

colm_mcm wrote: »

Cigarette pack foil instead of fuses.

When I was an apprentice in the late 70’s /early 80’s, that was known as a PJ Carroll fuse.

The Crowman

mike_ie wrote: »

There was an Irish version of this advert from the early 80's too, if I remember correctly. Can't find it anywhere though.

I remember that too, Id say it was the same ad but dubbed over for the irish version.

padd b1975

We used to run the electricity off the gas and the gas off the electricity.

Can't believe I'm first in with that thigh-slapper.

Sir Osis of Liver.

An elderly very distant relative asked me to take a look at his sitting room/kitchen sockets as they'd stopped working.
Turned out he was running the fridge,telly and bar heater from the sacred heart lamp holder through one of those y-adapters.


Seems when the ESB were wiring houses in the 40s/50s you had the choice of a sacred heart lamp or an extra socket.



Oh,and he had the gas cooker in the jacks.

Larbre34

Good times.