Couple of questions regarding electrician’s installation of lighting fixtures, switchplates, etc., in order of concern:
1) recess can lights trim… HALO ERT709WHT 7″ WH COILEX BAFFLE with SATCO S4207 90PAR38/FL-130V bulbs: standing on the floor, when I look up into the installed can, I can see a rim around the bulb, up into the ‘guts’ of the can, i.e., some wiring, and the bulb itself is not centered in the fixture.
When I showed the electrician the off-center-wire-exposed-fixtures, he said ‘they’re all like that, nothing I can do…nobody’s going to look up there’, but to me as the homeowner who’s going to live with these fixtures, I think it’s unsightly. Electrician even got up on a ladder and waggled the bulb to show me how ‘mushy’ it is ‘in there’. The bulb settled off-center.
2) secondly, we’ve (two of us) noticed some SWITCHPLATES are not on the level, and some are being held away from the drywall due to drywall build-up around the receptacle. Think I can take the switchplate off, file off the rough edges, repaint, re-install plate. Any recommendations?
Cleaning up after Sparkie, we’re finding a bunch of left-over unused brackets, discs, washers, screws, laying about. Is this normal?
My question… are these things considered par for the course? On the recessed cans, is there anything I can do or change before he returns to install the the majority of the rest of the trims, i.e., get a different bulb… I dunno … something?
Am I being too picky?
Gup
Replies
In general, cleaning up after an electrician is a normal requirement -- their mothers rarely come to clean up after them.
after years of patient behaviour modification, my sparkie learned to clean up after himself.I can offer tips on how to train your electrician.A - Say "BAD BOY" in a stern voice when he messes upB - Say "Attaboy" and give him a milk bone when he does goodC - When you notice him getting ready to leave the jobsite, get ready to meet him at the door on the way out with a broom, dustpan and a smile! if he can't take that hint, he might not be worth the efforts of trying to train him.D - Sometimes it is necessary to drop phrases like, "your wife says it would be nice if you got paid on this job" 0r "I'll have your check ready as soon as you finish cleaning up and adjusting those fixtures"E - Be prepared to step in and hand him a cardboard box with a suggestion that if he places it on the floor immediately under the devices he is working on, then he won't have as much trouble cleaning up, because all the sheetrock crumbs and wire ends and extra clips and screws will already be in the box, as long as they don't do anything to upset Mr Gravity
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
PIF: I tell my daughter: Electricians & surgeons have one thing in common - they throw their trash on the floor for someone else to pick up. She really gets pizzed!
DonDon Reinhard
The Glass Masterworks
"If it scratches, I etch it!"
I forget - which one is she?
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
In reply to your Q1, yes, that's pretty common. Bulbs are generally a bit smaller in diameter than the trim & can -- otherwise you could not install or remove the bulb -- leaving a gap around the bulb. In severe cases where the bulb is way off center, it's an easy thing to turn off the switch, remove the bulb, and tweak the socket to center the bulb. (The socket is usually just held in place with a thin-ish piece of metal that's easily bent - either accidently in mfgr or shipping, or on purpose to fix it.) You may also be using the wrong bulb (i.e., too small diameter) for the trim, or your trim selection may be wrong. FWIW, a brief look at the specs you gave seems to say that you should be using 75W bulbs, max. with that trim instead of 90 -- you may want to check the literature that comes with the trim and the can to confirm what type of bulb you should be using. Using too high wattage bulbs for the can/trim combo can overheat the can units and cause the lights to turn off and on and/or cause the wiring at the can to fail prematurely.
As for Q2, you may find it a bit harder to make your trim plates flush than you suspect. It's possible (maybe even likely) that the boxes are installed a bit proud of the wall surface. If this is so, the only real fix is to reset the boxes or, if it's not too bad, to taper the wall surface gradually away from the box with DW mud. But if it is just excess drywall mud causing the problem (not likely), fixing it like you propose will work fine.
As for cleaning up after the electrician -- if this is new construction, pretty much all the trades will leave a *bit* of flotsam & jetsam as they go. It gets cleaned up at the end of the day/job, usually by the general. But if this is just an upgrade or renovation, and the electrician is the only one involved in the work, it's his responsibility to follow the clean campsite rule.
Mike Hennessy
Pittsburgh, PA
Everything fits, until you put glue on it.
PS: You might have had better luck posting this in a forum other than "Breaktime Fests." A moderator may come along and move it to a more appropriate folder, so don't be surprised if you have to do a bit of searching to fine it later.
Edited 8/7/2009 8:17 am ET by MikeHennessy
Mike, I appreciate your input.
Which forum do you think more appropriate for discussions of this type?
Thanks, Gup
This forum, but the "General Discussion" folder.Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PAEverything fits, until you put glue on it.
"Which forum do you think more appropriate for discussions of this type?"Breaktime is the best forum for any question from construction to gumbo recipes.Regarding your can trims, Can you move/shift the trim ring to accommodate the lamp location?TFB (Bill)
Doesnt matter which sub, you've got to be on them. Final payment holds alot of weight.
I've often considered putting their final check under their pile of debris. The site would be spotless.:>)
Family.....They're always there when they need you.