It sounds like the job should be pretty simple. The mechanics of household electrical are very straightforward. I would definitely lean on your BIL here: discuss the project, not just what to do and pitfalls to avoid, but also have him give a vibe check on your understanding. He knows you better than any of us do.
this post was submitted on 14 Feb 2025
19 points (100.0% liked)
Home Improvement
9720 readers
11 users here now
Home Improvement
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
If you have the materials then ask your brother-in-law if he'll come give you a hand in return for dinner or something.
If you're uncertain enough to ask if you should do it on your own you shouldn't do it on your own when it comes to electrical wiring in the house.
I would totally trade dinner or whatever but unfortunately he's in a different state so it's not really convenient unless he's visiting.
This kind of falls in the "if you have to ask" territory.
While it's technically pretty simple (you're just moving it, not setting it up initially), code has specific rules, and this is the knowledge you're paying for with an electrician. Since code can vary, knowing the code for your area may be important.
May be worth a call to the electrician about the code and homeowners doing such work. He may not mind talking about it. Just be honest with him. Edit: ask your BIL about it, specifically the code side.
If you don't 100% know exactly what you're doing and 240 volts is involved, you shouldn't do it.
120 volts will give you a nice little shock, but 240 volts will kill you.
Well, obviously on the net everyone will tell you to don't do it yourself... personally I do change all my outlets, switches, chandeliers, thermostats, etc myself. I moved outlets too, extending them you need an accessible junction box, right wires gauge, romex 12/2, blabla, etc. shorting wires? well, disconnect the wires, move the outlet at the correct place, cut the wires and reput them (with the whatever way it is done in your country).
Having a EE degree and an electrician BIL you should be able to handle this. Best way, ask him to come and let him guide you on the howto.
This 100% within your reach, don't stop yourself.
Even if your BIL lives a long way away, you can always call him for advice. I'm pretty good with doing most of my own electrical work but if I have a question I just call my dad since he's a retired master electrician. He can usually tell me what I need to know without even looking at the job.
Remember to send your BIL detailed before/after photos of the insides of any boxes you're tinkering with, and let him take a look the next time he comes over.
I don't know what the electrical code is where you live, but where I am it's illegal to do what you propose.
Consider what would happen if your modifications were found to be the source of a fire at some point in the future.
Pay the sparky.