Buying new WW machines Saved my house from Fire ,maybe our lives

[Michael Mahan]

Overheating at the light fixture locations (both the wiring and the drywall) was probably caused by using light bulbs in excess of what the incandescent light fixture was rated for.

I came across a house like that some years ago when I was doing residential electrical service work. It took a lot of work to get it all fixed, New light fixtures, some drywall repair, some wiring repair. It probably was just a matter of time before a fire would have started.

As incandescent light fixtures and lamps are being phased out of service I would hope this is a thing of the past but if you are still using incandescent lamps and fixtures in your house please follow the lamp rating on the fixture.

that wasn't the case of using too big a incandescent bulb , I've used CFFL's for 16 years now in every fixture in the house & I am now migrating to LED . As for the why of it all the electrician said it could be different factors & the damage was so bad he couldn't pin point it . He also said this could have been a bad install 58 years ago that just was getting worse as time wore on . all the taped connections the black tape was melted to some degree in all fixtures & switches . The oxidation on some wires was so thick that he had to sand the wire to get a reading on his meter , He said that shows that the problem was many years in the making .
this was a install before they used wire nuts .

[Ole Anderson]

I have been helping my son rehab a 1970 home for rental where the previous owners did all sorts of strange things. I found two circuits that had 20 amp breakers on 14 gauge wire circuits. To top it off it was an old Federal Pacific panel, notorious for problems. New 15 amp FPE breakers, made by a third party as FPE is out of business, were almost $35 each.

[Paul McGaha]

that wasn't the case of using too big a incandescent bulb , I've used CFFL's for 16 years now in every fixture in the house & I am now migrating to LED . As for the why of it all the electrician said it could be different factors & the damage was so bad he couldn't pin point it . He also said this could have been a bad install 58 years ago that just was getting worse as time wore on . all the taped connections the black tape was melted to some degree in all fixtures & switches . The oxidation on some wires was so thick that he had to sand the wire to get a reading on his meter , He said that shows that the problem was many years in the making .
this was a install before they used wire nuts .

Damaged wiring and drywall at the fixture locations really sounds like the fixtures over heating to be Mike. This could have been done by a previous owner of the house.

I'm not sure when it became a standard practice to use wire nuts to insulate a splice. I got into the electrical trade in 1977 and wire nuts were certainly in use then and I think had been for several years.

I'm sure you and your electricians will get to the bottom of it.

I'm glad the problem didn't result in a fire in your house.

Congratulations on all the new Mini-Max gear.

PHM

[Michael Mahan]

That's the odd thing was the light socket wires looked fine , the inside of the fixture was fine , the fixtures themselves were not showing any heat damage , the one junction box above the fixture was actually black from the heat & the heat was radiating downward.
the paint that was peeled away from the sheet rock was still white but the sheet rock that under the paint was dark brown & black under the paint . If the fixture was over heating then the reverse would be happening & the heat would have damage going up .
In any case , I was glad it was caught when it was , I had a hard time sleeping last night , going over & over the "what if's" in my mind .
I've opened up boxes before & even when the solar system went in all the wire connections are wrapped in black tape