What Electrical Supplies Are Required for a Residential Job?

There are many different types of supplies and equipment available on the market. It may not always be clear what is appropriate or necessary for each job. When working on lighting plans for commercial spaces such as shopping malls or office buildings, it might not matter much as when working on wiring circuits in individual residences. Different circuits require different supplies and equipment for a safe, reliable end product. For instance, a residential electrician may need several specific electrical supplies in their toolbox that would not be necessary or even useful for commercial spaces.

Some of the electrical supplies used in a residential job are such are:

Electrical Cables

The cable comes in various thicknesses depending on the amount of power it can carry and spans long distances between certain pieces of equipment such as the panels and outlets. It is measured in gauges, and the lower the number, the thicker the cable. With this larger width comes more weight, so it is important to use proper support when running larger cables across longer distances.

Electrical Tape

The electrical tape serves two purposes. Firstly, it protects any exposed wires by binding them to each other, so they are insulated properly against touch, leading to shock if the electricity flows through the skin. Secondly, it provides a seal that can protect against water if installed correctly, preventing any risk of shorting due to a faulty connection outside of a piece of equipment.

Lineman's Pliers/ Vice Grips

Lineman's pliers or vice-grips are used for tightening or loosening bolts and screws that hold pieces of hardware together, such as wire nuts used inside an electrical box. The tighter they are, the more secure the insulation will be from contact with another wire or foreign material, which could create a spark that leads to a fire. A meter is used to test whether an outlet has power running through it before installing anything to avoid unnecessary work on dead circuits. Finally, the circular electrical box houses the actual connections between each piece of hardware.

How Many Wires Would You Like?

Residential light fixtures often use special screws to hold the wires instead of the more common nails or other means used for commercial buildings because they are designed to support more weight from extra wiring. Residential light fixtures also tend to have several cables coming from them due to the increased number of lamp sockets needed for various lights around a home.

This is because there is always one black wire and one white wire connected straight up into the ceiling, which powers all of the light fixtures in that room. These wires connect directly to this additional circuitry which splits off the first cable that ran into the ceiling. All these wires lead into the sub-panel, which has its circuit breaker and therefore offers protection against overloading if too many appliances are plugged in at once.

A residential electrician will need different basic electrical supplies to complete most wiring jobs in individual residences. Many jobs require more specialized equipment, but this list includes the bare essentials necessary for most home wiring projects.