I did the same here, to our National Electrical Code edition of 1990.

As opposed to working 42 feet in the air to top our chimneys or build our roof on our 3-story house, I decided I could learn how to wire a house, like I learned to lay block and brick and pour concrete and excavate the foundations.

I got a textbook and learned the basics, then went to our county building inspector and told him what I intended to do. He supported me and told me the points at which he had to come out and inspect the work; he was a big help actually.

I used 12-gauge wiring for the basic 15 amp circuits, although 14-gauge would have done. That was a lot of extra work, as 12-gauge is MUCH harder to work into tight boxes, or 3- and 4-way lighting circuits.

I wired two 200-amp boxes in, as I didn't want to run out of capacity. The house I grew up in had 60-amp two-wire service with 3 glass fuses, and you had to be careful how many things you had turned on at once! I didn't want that ...

It all came out very well, with 15 and 20-amp outlets every few feet along the walls, and plenty of 20, 30, and 50-amp circuits for the heavy stuff (heat pumps, jacuzzi, dryer, electric oven, water pump, etc).

I could wire a house for someone today. The thing that takes 10 years to learn is how to do it quickly and efficiently enough to make a living at it. If I wired a house for someone at the speed I wired mine, we'd all fall asleep before I was done, and I'd starve to death trying it ....

Lannis