Electricians, as with the other trades, require a lion’s share of general use and specialty tools. Let’s take a closer look at the top 5 types of tools that professional electricians customarily use on the job and should be in every electrician’s tool belt.
A flashlight is one of the most essential pieces of related equipment that an electrician can carry. Even if you’re assigned to a site where a flashlight may not seem important, it’s still best to have one because certain situations may require some additional light to help you see. Outlets, sockets, wire boxes, conduits, and pipe are always dark on the inside. Even if the area you are working in has abundant light, you should never try to work inside tiny places or reach inside panels without proper light. Because electricians work with and carry a lot of equipment, many flashlights that electricians carry are light weight, sturdy, yet provide a bright beam of light.
Voltmeters are yet another valuable piece of equipment that electricians utilize to not only work efficiently, but also to work safely. Voltmeters are a tool that measures the electrical potential difference between two points in an electric circuit. An electrician should never assume the circuit that needs to be worked on doesn’t have electricity flowing through them. With a voltmeter, an electrician can test the circuits and see if they are in fact “live.” Based on the readings made from the voltmeter, the electrician can properly and safely address the circuits and plan the best route to make necessary repairs.
A very good pair of wire strippers is also important. Wire strippers are small, hand-held tools, very similar to scissors, which are used to cut the unbound insulation surrounding the wire without actually cutting the wire itself. With the insulation removed and the wire exposed, an electrician can connect those wires to switches, conductors, or anything with requires to run on that electrical circuit.
Pliers are also a vital piece of equipment. Pliers can serve many functions for an electrician. Pliers can be used for tightening and loosening, providing much extra needed grip for the electrician, cutting blade for wires, pulling wires through locations, twisting wires, and a miriad of other functions. Pliers are indeed a very important multi-purpose tool for an electrician to have.
Draw Tape, or draw wire, is also a very important tool and electrician can have. Usually called “fish tape”, draw tape is a tool an electrician would use to route guide string for new wiring through pipes, walls, or electrical conduit.
Draw tape is a long, narrow band of medium-carbon steel that’s coiled, placed on a reel. Because it’s made of medium-carbon steel, it can conform to the curvatures of different conduits. The draw tape works by attaching one end of guide string to the end of the draw tape. The draw tape is pushed through the conduit with the guide string attached. Once the draw tape meets the end of the conduit, the wires are tied to the opposite end of the guide sting. By pulling the guide string, this would route the wire through to the end of the conduit.
An electrician can acquire a lot of tools that are needed to complete a job over the course of his or her career. There is no doubt that these tools are the top 5 must have tools of every electrician.
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