Short Circuits

Jul 1, 2004 12:00 PM

Everyone makes mistakes. Some are just funnier than others

Scrap Door

I was once approached by a top corporate executive from the large corporation I worked at to perform some electrical work at his home — he wanted a light and ceiling fan installed in his living room. Thinking this would be quick and easy, I accepted the job. He lived in a very large and beautiful custom built home. During the installation he indicated where the switches were to be located next to a cased opening in the room. After cutting a nice clean opening in the wall, I discovered something was in the wall that would prevent me from inserting the old work box. Finding that it would move with my screwdriver, I gave it a quick flip to the side. Imagine my surprise when a pocket door quickly flew into the cased opening. I don't know if I was more embarrassed for cutting the hole or he was for forgetting he had a pocket door.
Ernie Mock
Canal Winchester, Ohio

Two Rods for the Price of One

While working in Sullivan County, N.Y., I was installing a 200A service on a new house. The summers are very busy in this area due to the influx of campers and vacationers to the Catskill Mountains, so we were in the practice of working late to keep up with the work load. On one of these late evenings all we had left to do was install two ground rods required by the utility. It was just about dark when I finished beating the first rod into what seemed like solid rock, and on my way out of the grassy area back to my truck I tripped over something sticking out of the ground. It was too dark to see that night, but when we returned the next morning it was clear that what I had tripped over was the pointed end of the 8-foot ground rod I had driven the night before. The rod glanced off some rock in the ground, made a U-turn and came back out. Does this qualify for two ground rods?
Michael Trupia
Lynchburg, Va.

Got a story about a jobsite blunder? Send it to electrical_group@primediabusiness.com. If we publish it, we'll send you a check for $25.

Illustrations by Clint Metcalf.