Sparky,

I listened and relistended to your videos for hours; they were amazing pieces of information, and I just wanted to thank you for taping some of your jobs.

I’m a 52 year old DIY/Handyman attempting to begin working in localities where I’m permited, as an unlicensed, school-of-hard-knocks electrician, to pull permits, and arrange for inspections. But I’m not your average DIY/Handyman, as I actually take pride in my work, and try to gain as much knowledge and expertise as is possible in order to make folks comfortable and safe. Most nothing would tear me up more than have a previous job cause a problem and hurt people, or damage property that I’ve been involved in, so I’m very careful with the jobs I take on.

All that is to say this… If you could manage to tape some of your actual work in progress, geared toward folks such as myself, that would be great.

The Circuit mapping (tracing) techniques that you showed were very enlightening.

I guess I’m just curious as to your stand on the DIY of the world who actually do work (often w/o pay, because of bad billing practices) such as myself who do insist on Code Compliant, safe, and quality work. Would you be attuned to making your site informative for us DIY/Handymen who want to earn a good living, but have been dealt lousy cards in life, and only as a result of our aging process are we realizing what we’re missing out on: good, honest, interesting and ever learning work, and a bettter pay grade.

Dear Sparky,

Wanted to drop you a line of comment to tell you that what you are doing to right the wrongs all too common out there in the world of electrical installations and maintenance is truly long overdue, and in my opinion a very laudable endeavor. My hat is truly off to you! I am a jack of several trades, a handyman with experience in carpentry, plumbing, residential electrical, and even automotive repair, maintenance, and body work. However the past few years, I’ve placed a strong emphasis on personal and public safety as I’ve pursued a mastery of all things electrical. And that is how I eventually came upon your submissions. The point is, one thing I’ve always adhered to is the importance of discovering all one can about anything they put their hand to. The journey of learning is an essential ongoing process for anyone looking to make the very most of themselves. And I really appreciate all of your time and effort taken to assist others on a similar journey. You truly are a point of light in a realm of darkness. Keep up the good work and never doubt that your experiences and knowledge make a truly positive difference to those of us out here seeking any and every opportunity to improve our skill-sets and really see how bad (not to mention hazardous) some of these (so called) installers have performed their duties. Your site and videos are a very effective word of warning to the wise. It would be a pleasure to shake your hand. You may consider me a friend, something I do not hand out lightly.

sincerely, Rob Steffan
St louis Mo.