Pro tip: a client in Bend told me to always check the panel schedule before you touch a breaker

I was swapping a light fixture for a lady in her 80s, and she watched me head for the basement to kill the power. She stopped me and said, 'Honey, the breaker for the dining room is labeled 'garage door' on the panel. The guy who wired this place was my brother-in-law, and he was a bit creative.' I checked, and sure enough, she was right. Saved me a trip and a headache. How many of you have found truly wild labels in an old panel?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_andrew1mo ago

My uncle's cabin had a panel labeled entirely with fishing spots. "Largemouth" was the kitchen, "Smallmouth" ran the bathroom heater. Took twenty minutes to figure out "The Shallows" powered the porch light. You wonder what was going through someone's head when they do that.

king.derek1mo ago

Found a panel once where everything was just dates. Like "June 14th" or "October 3rd". No clue what system that was. Had to flip breakers and run around yelling to figure it out. Makes you wonder if they were just writing down the day they wired each circuit. Honestly, who does that?

gavina7328d ago

...and THAT'S when you KNOW someone took the "wire it however, label it whenever" approach to heart. I've got to ask though - did you ever figure out if the dates were ACTUALLY when the circuits were installed, or were they maybe some kind of weird numbering code? Because I've seen guys do that where they just write the date they finished each run, and it's a NIGHTMARE for anyone who comes after. Makes you wonder if they were even trying to be helpful or just didn't care at all.