Construction noise always leaves me totally wired too.

Classic neighbor move lol. Tell him the half-price version is called "watching through your fence".

That high-pitch hum is a classic, and it's funny how old appliances have more personality. Honestly, it feels like newer stuff is built to just die quietly instead of making weird noises when you try to fix it. Maybe it's just me, but I miss when things were a bit more mechanical and less sealed-up plastic. Your story about the dog howling is the perfect example of appliances having a second life, and a weird voice, if you're willing to mess with them.

Wondering if this is really that common though. Most new builds I've seen had the basics done right, even if it wasn't perfect. Honestly, the worst I usually find is just a messy data panel, not actual dangerous wiring. Maybe we just notice the bad ones more.

Actually, I've seen this happen before with indie game devs. Always run your copy by someone who knows the hobby terms, like a dedicated player or editor. We had to reprint a batch once because nobody caught 'deck builder' vs. 'deck-building' until after production. Saves a lot of time and money to check early.