The day I stopped stripping wire with my teeth

Was doing a panel swap at an old house near Salem last Tuesday and bit right through the insulation into a live 12/2. My jaw locked up for a second and my apprentice just stared at me. That's when I realized I'd been doing this hack for 15 years and it only takes one mistake to forget the breaker is hot. Anyone else got a bad habit they're trying to quit before it gets them zapped?

3 comments

3 Comments

valw361mo ago

Piper is right to ditch the teeth method, but dont toss the strippers just yet. You actually don't want a pair of automatic strippers for everything - they can tear up solid wire in tight boxes. Keep a good pair of manual strippers handy, the ones with different size holes. I learned that the hard way after my apprentice bought me a fancy auto stripper and I mangled a neutral bar trying to get it to work in a tight panel. @the_piper just stick with manual strippers and a good habit of always double checking the breaker before you touch anything with your face near it.

the_piper1mo ago

Wait, you actually bit through a live wire? I used to think guys who talked about this were just being dramatic, but now I'm throwing out all my wire strippers and buying a real pair tomorrow.

taylor66821d ago

Did you see that one YouTube video where a guy tested cheap vs. expensive strippers and the cheap ones just crushed the copper every time? I heard an electrician say once that a good manual pair is like a good knife - you don't need fancy features, just sharp edges that actually line up. Stick with the manual ones and you're good, just maybe keep your teeth for opening beer bottles, not wires.