a quick q

[ianst28]

ok i was fitting a stereo to a mates vectra the other day and he says to me

i hate car electrics they scare me give me house electrics any day

and it got me thinking
i hate house electrics why would anyone prefer them to car electrics if you get it wrong on a car you may pop a fuse or at worst blow an ecu
if you get it wrong in the house then that's it your stood at the pearly gates kinda crispy wondering if you should have got an electrician in

so who prefers what and why please it's just to satisfy my inquiring mind

[steve_earwig]

Car electrics - increasingly over-complicated, needs expensive test gear to suss out.
House electrics - only 3 wires (5 here with the 3-phase) and very hard to screw up (unless the electricians generally use the first wire that comes to hand, regardless of colour )

Frying tonight:

[Welly]

I'm the same as your mate - I don't "get" car electrics (not nowadays).

Houses are simple, Live Neutral and Earth and that's about it. Two-way switching on lighting circuits is a bit challenging at first but I'm pretty good with house wiring now, well it doesn't scare me anyway. Most modern consumer units trip out even if you fart near them so shocks, fires etc are minimised.

In cars, the whole thing is an earth, there's miles of pretty coloured wires, computers, relays, everything has a different gauge wire and fuse rating etc. etc.

[steve_earwig]

Two-way switching on lighting circuits is a bit challenging at first...

Try three way (it's just a switch in the middle to reverse the transfer legs)

Most modern consumer units trip out even if you fart near them so shocks, fires etc are minimised.

Minature circuit breakers don't p!ss about! Every house here has an earth leakage circuit breaker (or residual current device ), if you look at my pic you'll see why...

Btw 230 volts is very unlikely to kill you (unless you have a weak heart or are stood on a very tall ladder when you find it), you're far more likely to end up on a cloud playing a harp from a modern car's HT.

[teamster1975]

I enjoy doing both!
I've got a background in electronics so the car's mountain of loom doesn't really daunt me; I just step through it logically.
I rewired the inlaws cottage for them before the Part P regs came in, thoroughly enjoyed that job (Except for the making good as most of the plaster had blown, and disintegrated when I did the chasing )

[ianst28]

(unless you have a weak heart or are stood on a very tall ladder when you find it), you're far more likely to end up on a cloud playing a harp from a modern car's HT.

ahhhhh that'll be me then weak heart and not the best with altitude
i had to re-wire my bathroom lights a few years ago and tbh i've never been so scared didn't help when my friend (so called semi pro electrician bod type) managed to get sparks running across the junction
it took me ages to feel happy about pulling the light cord of an evening

car electrics however have never bothered me i did a btec in auto electronics so i guess thats the main reason why but i've always had an interest in all things car audioish