Punita reached out to me via TaskRabbit for help with a malfunctioning electric outlet, replacing 6 smoke alarms, replacing the bulbs in a chandelier, and adding one additional outlet in her bedroom.
In discussing the project with her beforehand, I recommended that rather than adding a new outlet in her bedroom, it would save her money to just purchase a plug-in 6 outlet adapter from Home Depot instead, and she agreed. I'm always looking to save money and add value for my clients.
I brought my 7-year-old son along with me as my assistant. First we tackled the chandelier light bulbs. It was tricky because the chandelier was higher than my ladder could safely reach. Luckily we figured out a safe solution - by pulling in the chandelier from the balcony with a broom stick we were able to access and replace the bulbs from there.
Next we looked into the malfunctioning outlet. It was behind a home office desk and wasn't working so Punita had the computer plugged into an extension cord going around the wall. With the help of my son, we flipped the electrical breakers until we could find the right one to turn off the power and work safely. I removed the outlet to inspect the wiring and found that it had been converted into a half-switched outlet, where the top half was controlled by the light switch and the bottom half had continuous power. On Punita's request I replaced it with a normal outlet and put wire nuts on the switched wiring.
Next we tackled the smoke alarms. I climbed the ladder, removed the old smoke alarm, and give it to my son. While he removed the batteries to stop the annoying beeping noise, I installed the new smoke alarms.
Finally, there was a bonus task that Punita asked if we could look into if there was extra time. The doorbell was wired to an app-based device that would send a notification to her phone, but she wanted it to also ring the physical doorbell. First I looked at the doorbell button itself, but it required a special screwdriver. I asked Punita more details and found that the doorbell was not working ever since they moved in. This gave me the idea to check the physical doorbell high on the inside wall. When I removed the cover and checked the wiring, I found that there was a bypass union connecting the hot and neutral to prevent the doorbell from functioning. I removed that piece, and Ding-Dong! Success never sounded so good.
It was great helping Punita and her family, and her husband was kind enough to give my son some chocolate treats as a tip for his hard work.
The project cost only $125 not including TaskRabbit fees and supplies. Punita gave us a 5-star review, saying "Nathan was good and did great work. He was polite, knew his job and came in time."
Book your next electrical project with me here: https://www.taskrabbit.com/profile/nathan-b--46/category/63
