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Other topics concerning older houses
I have aluminum wiring in my house. I was told this is unsafe. Should I be worried?
While remodeling our bathroom we replaced an old light fixture above
the vanity with two new ones. The new lights aren’t very bright even though they both have three 60 watt bulbs in them.
It’s like they’re not getting enough juice. Is it possible we didn’t wire them right?
360 watts is a lot of light for a vanity! Try checking the fixtures with a volt
meter to see if you are getting 120 volts, as you may have a loose or oxidized connection (common for wiring in older houses).
Check for 120 volts both between the ‘hot’ wire and neutral, as well as between hot and ground. A bad connection
is always just limited to the ungrounded conductor. If none of this helps, you may want to hire a licensed electrician to
check your work to make sure it’s safe.
I was replacing a light fixture when I saw that the wirenuts
on the wires are rusted and breaking apart. Do I need to take any extra precautions before disconnecting and reconnecting
the wires? Is it safe to do myself?
It should be OK for you to do so long as the power is off; however, you should make
sure that there is no deteriorating insulation on the wire after you change the fixture, as this may cause a future short
circuit. Either strip the wire back to good insulation, or wrap the exposed conductors with electrical tape.
I have a 3 year old son who is fascinated with electricity.
Last night he wanted to play with an extension cord in the rain and he got upset when I insisted that the cord be unplugged
from the wall. My husband looked at me as though I was being overly protective. What's your opinion?
We’re with you - we don't play with live wires in the rain, and we're master
electricians!
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