BIG Mistakes Most Don't Know They Are Making When Stripping Wires!

In this video I am going to go over the biggest mistakes DIYers make when stripping wires with wire strippers. It may seem like a pretty straightforward process but there are some big mistakes that can be made that can make electrical connections potentially unsafe.
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Blessings,
Adam
How To Home assumes no liability for damage or injury. How To Home highly recommends using proper safety procedures and professionals when needed. Our content is for entertainment purposes only. No information contained in this video shall create any express or implied warranty or guarantee of any particular result. Any injury, damage or loss that may result from improper use of these tools, equipment, or the information contained in this video is the sole responsibility of the user and not How To Home. How To Home will not be held liable for any negligent or accidental damage or injury resulting from equipment, tools, electrical, fire, electronics or any items contained in this video. Attempt projects and repairs at your own risk.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

Have you noticed yourself making some of these mistakes? If so, which ones? The truth is, many of us are and hopefully bringing these to light was helpful!

[@johnroberts4760]

This is Bull Shjt!

[@HowToHomeDIY]

@johnroberts4760 how so?

[@conradcomics]

Hmm, so using a pocket knife, pinning the insulation between the blade and my thumb and rotating around the wire until I can pull the insulation off, is probably not a good habit then. LOL

[@HardRockMaster7577]

I would like to see your guide on a video of stripping braided wires, like ones used to stereo speakers, etc.

[@drizler]

@@johnroberts4760I can see it if you are careful and have a great sense of feel and a nice sharp cutter. Unfortunately many of us are ham handed and not so coordinated, pissed off, in a rush working angry ect….. 😅.

[@qapla]

Good video on how easy it is to damage wire when stripping. When I attended a safety seminar put on by the 811 people and the local utilities, the instructor actually demonstrated that, with graduated wire strippers, like the Klein ones you demonstrated starting at 6:25, it is NOT correct to start wit the strippers 90 degrees to the wire. He taught us that, if you notice, the cutters have slanted cutter slots. He demonstrated how, starting with them at a 45-degree angle allowing the wire to be seated in the groove, squeezing the handle and then tilting them to a 90-degree position will properly cut the insulation without damaging the wire, leaving a clean cut in the plastic without having to rotate the strippers or ripping the plastic off.

[@Czangrlli422]

Great tips, I use my Klein strippers every day for low voltage fire alarm installations and electrical connections

[@johng.4959]

Excellent video! The small details are important and often overlooked! This is what differentiates the good electricians from the hacks!👍

[@BackyardMaine]

Another great video Adam. I have come across a lot of failed connections for improper wire stripping.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

Thanks John, you are right, super common! Thanks for the input!

[@tedhill7017]

Thanks for sharing that good information. I’ve never even thought about that.

[@smartinwd]

Great informative channel!!! Well done. Might just rewire some outlets this weekend!

[@HowToHomeDIY]

Really glad to hear you are finding value in the channel. Thanks a lot for the feedback!

[@zekenzy6486]

Another Great Video. Thank you for sharing. Have a nice weekend

[@HowToHomeDIY]

You are very welcome. Really glad to hear you liked it. Thanks a lot for the feedback!

[@Eddy63]

Good info ... I use the Knipex auto wire stripper 10 thru 24 AWG ... Thx

[@marshaallen3965]

Yup. I prefer the Knipex. Fast, easily adjusted, replaceable blades, and no nics…

[@sabingratz]

Those wire-strippers look amazing. You would think they could make the a little small though? Thanks as always for the great intel.

[@CDRNorth]

I wish this video would’ve been available when I was fixing the wiring in my house.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

Let me know in advance next time and I’ll see what I can do! 😊

[@carebearkj4320]

Have faith in your work, bud! Even though i don’t agree with using cutters to strip, it can work and as long as you inspected the copper for any damage, you should be good.

[@GaryT1952]

One thing about nicks is that they effectively reduce the wire size meaning that it will reduce the amount of current that the wire can safely pass

[@konstiknk]

Спасибо, дорогой! Конечно, можно рассказать это в три раза короче, но думаю это просто адаптация под местный менталитет) Отдельная благодарность за ссылку на твой инструмент и используемые материалы! Это очень помогает, если еще не разбираешься в местном ассортименте!) Thank you, dear friend!)

[@miltonthecat2240]

I have all those tools (a couple from your prior recommendation), and use them pretty much as you describe if I'm stripping solid core wire. But for stranded wire, I almost always use a very sharp box cutter and score the insulation over the entire circumference, making sure not to break through the insulation layer, then pull the insulation jacket off carefully with a pliers. No matter how careful I am with the standard techniques, I always seem to break some strands on stranded wire. Admittedly this is slow and resembles surgery more than electrical work, but copper wires damaged from stripping are a particular pet peeve of mine.

[@boaragile82]

Weird. Typical Chinese auto stripper (like the one author has shown) usually dispenses with the issue, and I assume you have one (as in "all those tools"). These babiee do tend to mangle the insulation if not set properly.

[@veldtwalker]

In high school we were taught to whittle the wire with a knife and it was one of the few times we were told to cut towards ourselves. The same idea was to avoid nicking the wire with cheap wire cutters.

[@robertomunoz3719]

Hook knife. When I started in the trade in 98 that's how I was taught.

[@user-hu7ix5xc8q]

We have many great companies manufacturing perfect finished products so that we don't need to learn home made goods to be fixed, repaired manually. But in my opinion, that's America where there are vast land and houses located in distance from each other including shops, repair centers. So, maybe it is must learn skill to fix, repair things with do yourself strategy for each individual. Learning those skills must be very useful in many cases. I saw men building their own house for themselves. I was amazed seeing they did many professional jobs, standing pillars, connecting roofs, covering it with insulation materials, and handling brick stakes with glues,... All was done by each individual as if they are skillful veterans in that fields. I thought that must be caused from their long distance with each other. In a tiny country like here, it won't take longer hours to get fixed through the professional's touch. So, many of us don't care of getting a knack of how to handle each tools including me, of course. But I can tell not all countries can provide similar convenience for the dwellers. So it should become must learn skills, and must have items when it comes to getting things in order in the house. Oh, by the way, I'm living in south Korea where the most convenient life style is possible.

[@boaragile82]

I see a guy using cheap automotive do-it-all tool or pliers to strip the wire, he goes to find another place to work, that's for sure. Pull-apart auto strippers are nice; the best part is that even cheap one are usually functional enough to strip a single solid wire. The Chinese takes on copying pistol-like designs by Knipex and Haupa are usually much worser :)

[@Neeboopsh]

i dont have one of the super nice baller set of automatic gaging wire strippers. but i have used em. they're rad.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

Yes they are.

[@tvelektron]

Very important information of course - but actually at around 9:54 there is still a small but visible damage. Maybe the fine adjustment is a little too tight?

[@TheFlutecart]

I've been through some strippers. lol! , Nicking the wire pisses me off. My faves are the Ideal T Strippers or the shorter red handled Kleins. It's nice to be able to wrap my fingers around the cutting edges to keep it straight when I pull. Most are too big or bulky for that.

[@yvonnejackson1696]

Wow! And I thought I had a top of the line wire stripper.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

Always something else out there it seems haha.

[@LBCAndrew]

I use Klein automatic strippers. Perfect every time.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

Every time!

[@meganlalli5450]

Good video. It looks as though the automatic wire strippers will work only for right-handed people. All the others can work to a degree with either hand.

[@boaragile82]

Oh, I hear you. Those pullapart strippers are abundant (thanks, China), but most, if not all of them, are right-hand. Lefties are left (excuse the pun) with an option of Knipex/Weidmuller/Haupa auto strippers. But those carry fairly impressive price tag.

[@imaphxaznative]

Oh, wow, that last wire stripper was super cool! It would have been cool to see the cutting action in slow 🐌 motion bc it happened so quickly

[@RobC1999]

It doesn’t seem to cut. It pinches the insulation and pulls it off. The adjustment is for tension and not wire size. At least for mine.

[@Raymond-pz6oi]

What about a pocket knife?

[@shannonelliott6116]

Was about to say the same thing...once upon a time .wire strippers didn't exist ...

[@theperl9663]

These days with escalating prices, cost is a major consideration. so you have develop a feel, and check your work.

[@donhgr]

I think you’re over exaggerating the problem it causes, yes you don’t want to cut enough for a high open but for normal voltage to flow a small mar isn’t a big deal.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

It can be.

[@boaragile82]

He is not. Nicks are historically frowned upon for two reasons. One, a cut reduces cross-section of wire. Harder to make to solid conductors (it requires an amateur or wannabe pro with a boxcutter, making circular cut), very easy to do to stranded. And two, in many cases solid wire is stripped and then bent very close to the point of stripping (bad wall socket designs can be like that). Suddenly, you are bending a wire in exact place it was nicked, and if the nick is deep enough, wire is not top of the line, etc., you may have - in theory - a breakage. Small scrapes score very low among points of failure with quality solid wire. But how small is small? The good practice is turn small into zero and avoid the issue entirely.

[@jacksmith827]

if you don't know how to strip a wire you should hire a pro. Kind of like the newer car owners manuals telling you not to drink the battery acid!

[@enterprisar863]

I think wire strippers are over rated. I mean it’s not really wire they are wearing it’s more of a fish netting and shows everything. Leaves nothing to the imagination on stage. 😬😂

[@tagheuer02]

Guy really needs to make content, makes a 15 minute video on how to strip a wire. Gee whiz, don't damage the copper. No shit.

[@trotador1]

😂 had a laugh ! But it’s a good video…. Many do make some of those errors including myself..

[@douglasdever6134]

I use the same tool you do; however, please stop jerking the tools around on the camera, causes the quality of the video to suffer. It's almost like you cannot hold a tool steady. Just a suggestion.

[@HowToHomeDIY]

I’m animating what I’m talking about. I’m sorry you don’t care for it but it’s how I demonstrate and so far has worked fine for me. I can hold it still but I could also film a video for you of watching paint dry.