It didn't take too long for the electrical inspector to get back to us on the ground wire for the new sub-panel that was in question during the inspection. Friday at 5 PM he called (he said he wanted to be sure he got to me before the weekend so I could work on it this weekend) and said the according the the NEC (national electrical code) the ground wire needs to be in the same conduit as the neutral and two hot wires. I asked if I could run it in a separate conduit adjacent to the other?... NO. Can I run a ground wire to a ground rod outside the addition instead?...NO. There are no other options, we had to pull the new ground wire through the conduit that was already installed with the 3 wires in it.
This was not the news I wanted to hear. When we pulled the three wires the first time several months ago, it took a long time to do and was difficult to do. I had no idea how we were going to do this. I asked the inspector, and his best option was to pull the 3 wires back out and then pull the 4 wires back in all at the same time.
Shortly after that call, our bible study group got together and then since it was Friday night (when my brother and his family cover supper and bedtime medication with my Mom) I tried to get to bed a little early at about 10. At 1:15am or so, Rinnah woke up and needed to go to the bathroom, so I took her down and then came back up to bed, but could not fall asleep. My mind just kept spinning trying to figure out how we were going to get that ground wire into the conduit...it seemed impossible at worst and extremely difficult and time-consuming at best. After about an hour of that mixed with praying, I woke Andrea up and we just spent the next hour or so talking.
I reflected with her about how I really appreciated her dad's help on the addition and how at the same time, it really made me miss my dad. My dad would have been over here at least once a day either checking to see how things were going or to help. And any time that I have had questions in the past, I would call my dad to ask him. So as much as I am thankful for my father-in-law, he still is not my dad and being in the Milwaukee area, he can't just stop by to look at something or give me a hand. I also knew that I only had about 3 more hours of his help left on Saturday before they left to go home. There were so many things I wanted to get done, so many things I knew that we weren't going to get to and I wasn't even sure if we would get the 4 wires pulled before he had to leave. I felt like I was in way over my head.
As Andrea and I talked, she commented about how she had not been specifically praying for help for me on the house as she and I had both been doing earlier on in the summer. She re-assured me that none of this was a surprise to God and that things would get done when they were supposed to get done. She recited one of the verses that we had memorized together when we were in grad school. 1 Peter 5:7 "Cast all your anxieties on Him because he cares for you"
After that, I dozed on and off till morning and spent my more alert moments praying/silently singing this song.
I cast all my cares upon You,
I lay all of my burdens down at Your feet.
And anytime that I don't know just what to do,
I will cast all my cares upon You.
By the time the day started, I had a plan for how to get the ground wire into the conduit. I didn't want have to touch anything at the existing panel, but rather disconnect at the sub-panel where nothing was live with power yet. Once we were disconnected, we could pull the conduit off one section at a time and slide it off the 3 wires until we got back to the main panel. Then we could slip the ground in at the main panel and then feed the sections of conduit back over the four wires and put it all back in place. Sounded like a lot of work, but the best option available.
I came downstairs, got breakfast started and checked my email quickly before running to Menards to buy the new ground wire that we needed (stranded instead of the solid that I had originally used) so as soon as we were done with breakfast we could get started. When I checked, there was an email from our friend Duane who had helped me with wiring the previous weekend. He said he had Saturday morning until noon open to help if I wanted a hand again. I was completely blown away and on the edge of tears as I read the email to Andrea. God was reminding me that I am not alone and that he DOES have this all under control. Later today, Andrea pointed out to me that Duane had sent his email at 10:30 Friday night. God had answered our prayers before we even uttered them.
Andrea's dad and I finished up a little bit of plumbing supply line and then got started on the panel. It was a little tricky getting the conduit and wires out of the new sub-panel, but we were able to do it and then the sections of conduit slid off pretty easily. Before Duane arrived, we already had the new ground wire into the panel and a couple of sections of conduit slid back on. We finished that while Duane started wire nutting neutrals and hots at the outlet and switch locations to get things ready for the inspector to come back. By the time Andrea's parents were ready to leave to head home, Scott, Duane and I had completed all of the wiring and things are ready for the inspector on Tuesday.
Next time I am tempted to despair, I need to recall all the ways that God has provided for us during the adoption process as well as the house addition.
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