Nice Article on Old House Wiring

[Paul W. Abernathy]

http://www.oldhouseweb.com/stories/Detailed/10327.shtml

[brian winkle]

Paul, I had to snicker when I read this: " Flip all circuit breakers on and off manually to make sure they are in good operating condition"


I guarantee once you flip a 40 or 50 year old obselete main breaker that won't reset and you have to overnight one for $300 you won't ever touch another one, you won't even look at it too hard!

Also, how can you tape a circuit breaker on when they trip internally?

[Russel Ray]

Originally Posted by brian winkle

Also, how can you tape a circuit breaker on when they trip internally?

I've never had a problem, or I should say that my tenants have never had a problem. They might trip internally, but they always throw the switch when they trip, and if that switch cannot be thrown because it's been taped on, then they don't trip. However, I'll ask my tenants, just to be sure, how they do this and will report back here sometime in the future (yeah, right--when there are no more margaritas left in the world ).

[Harold E. Miller]

Awww...if the tape doesn't work..then just disconnect the wire from the faulty breaker and double tap it to the next one in the panel....
...you learn lots of interesting "do it yourself" tips while inspecting homes.
....some people should not be allowed in the electrical panel...especially after a couple margaritas!

[Russel Ray]

Some people....

....should not be allowed to have a couple of margaritas
....should not be allowed to have children
....should not be allowed to own homes
....should not be allowed to go to sporting events where more than 10 people are present

[Paul W. Abernathy]

lol....I did not write the flippin article....lol...

I always love the articles from the DIY forum...lol.........I think the taping of the breaker when OFF would be to alarm them it should not be turned on...lol.....

[sparks]

Originally Posted by pabernathy

http://www.oldhouseweb.com/stories/Detailed/10327.shtml

http://www.toolbase.org/docs/MainNav...abinspect1.pdf

Look here for the rest of the story!

[Robert J. OConnor]

Just from a quick look I noticed they gave the wrong NEC table for ampacity of residential service entrance conductors. It should be NEC Table 310.15.B.6, and not Table 310.16. I think they also missed the mark with the inspection recommendations and potential hazards of aluminum wiring.

JMO & 2-nickels ...

[Paul W. Abernathy]

lol...all the DIY articles miss those things.....What...you think they are freakin Electricians...thehehehe

Still my original link is a nice little article to read and has some good info for the home inspector.

[jclark1]

I like the part of the article that tells about testing dielectric strength with a megger. It says "if fixtures or appliances are connected the reading should be about 500k ohms." Last time I checked it wasn't a good idea to put 1000 volts across some things that might be plugged into a receptacle.