[sokoloff]

I’m a slow as hell perfectionist DIYer and I can’t see any way I could take even 2 months of full-time work to wire a small, simple new construction house. How can it take a pro 4 months? (Or 2 months solo and 1 month with a journeyman electrician?)

My parents place was new, custom construction (not small, but only 3BR/3Ba) and there were 2 sparkies there for 1 day to set the temporary power, 4 or 5 days to rough the house in and, after drywall, they were back for 3 or 4 days to trim everything out.

[whartung]

I watched my house being built. We'd visit the site pretty much once a week or every other week.

One day we showed up, and all of the electrical had been done. Power, internet, pre-wired home alarm, panels, the whole kit. Plumbing was the same way. One day, plumbing. (It uses that flexible plastic tubing internally, that has to go up fast.)

Did I see it being done? No. For all I know 50 folks showed up and wired it in a day. "2 man months". But, I'm guessing that's not what happened.

The most interesting anecdote from this is that I actually met one of the guys that did the work. He did, at least part of, the internet wiring.

Know how I met him? He was driving a dump truck delivering landscaping material. He liked the work better, I guess his family owned the hauling business.

I don't know what he was getting paid to route CAT 6 cable, but, apparently, all told, driving a dump truck is better.

[bombcar]

You pay $300/hr for electrical work, and by the time it trickles down to the actual apprentices doing the grunt work it’s $20-40/hr. Even the electrician officially in charge is $100/hr at best unless he owns the company (and then it’s often lower due to bad accounting).

[paulcole]

Where in California was your parents’ house built?