Join the forum, it's quick and easy

Would you like to react to this message? Create an account in a few clicks or log in to continue.
Latest topics
» RX20 for sale
by ACE Services Mon Jun 10, 2019 12:25 pm

» So has this forum too, went the way of extinction too?
by Mo Wed May 01, 2019 9:13 pm

» Roll call....
by ACE Services Sat Apr 06, 2019 4:59 am

» New moves for business 2019
by ACpower1 Tue Feb 19, 2019 12:48 am

» Government shutdown
by ACE Services Tue Jan 22, 2019 5:35 am

» Stepped back in time
by Mo Mon Jan 21, 2019 11:47 am

» .....Christmas ever
by Mo Mon Jan 21, 2019 11:46 am

» have you ever use dyson for cleaning ?
by milspec6 Mon Dec 17, 2018 10:22 pm

» Water Heater
by Mo Mon Dec 17, 2018 8:31 pm

» anyone have an idea of why...?
by milspec6 Fri Dec 07, 2018 11:03 pm

» I don't know squat
by Matt; My carpet cleaner Wed Dec 05, 2018 11:14 pm

» what would you charge
by Mo Sun Dec 02, 2018 8:01 am

» Frozen cleaning for practice
by milspec6 Wed Nov 21, 2018 9:33 pm

» for the Holidays........
by Matt; My carpet cleaner Tue Nov 20, 2018 9:20 pm

» Pricing....ouch
by milspec6 Sat Nov 17, 2018 8:37 pm


Old House Wiring

3 posters

 :: Forums :: Off Topic

Go down

Old House Wiring Empty Old House Wiring

Post by milspec6 Sun Jan 14, 2018 8:19 pm

I woke up last night to a house that was 48 degrees due to the furnace tripping a breaker over-night. I couldn't find the cause and re-set the breaker...once the blower kicked on, the breaker tripped again.

I spent 20 minutes with my head stuck in the furnace checking the blower and again could not find a problem. Realizing that I was stumped and the outside temperature was -2, I decided to break out the kerosene heaters before I end up with a frozen pipe.

When I set one heater in the kitchen and opened up the below sink cabinets for the heat to reach the pipes sooner, I noticed that the outside temperature sensor in my van was showing only 17 degrees instead of the normal 45 degrees.

So, off to the van to see WTF was going on. The fan was off with no power reaching it. Checked the extension cord and found that the plug was showing signs of over-heating. I replaced the cord and found that the outlet on the house exterior was dead and so I had to run the cord to the garage circuits. When the ceramic came on, the fan was grinding...then it all started to make sense.

Turned out that whichever idiot wired this house in '79, placed the furnace on the same circuit with the home's exterior outlets. When the ceramic heater's fan failed, it drew additional amps on the circuit and tripped the breaker.

I talked to an electrician in town and told me this was not a rare discovery in old houses. So, something to consider if you have an old house or need to do some work in an old house. There might be a lot of things sharing a circuit that you would never suspect when you plug in that air mover, rotary extractor, or Dehu unit.
milspec6
milspec6
Moderator
Moderator

Posts : 10088
Join date : 2013-09-21
Location : Nebraska

http://castledefendersllc.com

Back to top Go down

Old House Wiring Empty Re: Old House Wiring

Post by Freemind1 Mon Jan 15, 2018 9:09 am

It's not just old homes. Even the ones built in the 70's have wiring issues if the homeowner at the time, did the wiring.

The average Joe doesn't understand load limits on outlets. The average Joe doesn't know how many circuits should be on a breaker.

Freemind1
Senior Member
Senior Member

Posts : 1282
Join date : 2013-09-20

Back to top Go down

Old House Wiring Empty Re: Old House Wiring

Post by milspec6 Mon Jan 15, 2018 11:13 am

What is scary is that the wiring was done by the owner before me who was an electrician, yet every electrician that has looked at my wiring shakes their head.

That guy remains a licensed electrician for one of the larger businesses in the city near me and was one of the reasons that I purchased this house as I thought that I was avoiding the "thrown together" wiring that the average DIY is known for.

I think I might have to re-wire and upgrade the service this Spring now that I know the reality.
milspec6
milspec6
Moderator
Moderator

Posts : 10088
Join date : 2013-09-21
Location : Nebraska

http://castledefendersllc.com

Back to top Go down

Old House Wiring Empty Re: Old House Wiring

Post by Matt; My carpet cleaner Mon Jan 15, 2018 12:11 pm

I know its been along time; but is there any recourse against the idiot and possible any code infractions???
I have no idea about this stuff, but a hungry lawyer might have something to say??
Just sayin...
Matt; My carpet cleaner
Matt; My carpet cleaner
Senior Member
Senior Member

Posts : 1419
Join date : 2013-09-21
Age : 58
Location : Yakima, wa.

Back to top Go down

Old House Wiring Empty Re: Old House Wiring

Post by milspec6 Mon Jan 15, 2018 5:22 pm

They tell me that it was acceptable code-wise when the wiring was done (late-70's), but would not be the case now. I have run a ceramic heater on that circuit before without issue, so it must just barely fall under the circuit's upper limits, but when the heater's fan started to fail it changed all that.

The fact that some of the outlets in the house are installed backwards makes me wonder about the attention to detail of this guy, so the updating really should be done despite the expense.
milspec6
milspec6
Moderator
Moderator

Posts : 10088
Join date : 2013-09-21
Location : Nebraska

http://castledefendersllc.com

Back to top Go down

Old House Wiring Empty Re: Old House Wiring

Post by Sponsored content


Sponsored content


Back to top Go down

Back to top

- Similar topics

 :: Forums :: Off Topic

 
Permissions in this forum:
You cannot reply to topics in this forum