Know Anything about House Wiring?

[sawbill]

Rick, I did my entire camp w/o help. As you said, its not that difficult.
The stories I could pass along of licenced tradespeople who've done shoddy work on the two homes I've owned would make one cringe. Plumbers, electricians, furnace installers, insulators and roofers have all done plenty damage (Try having to pay off the balance of a gas furnace that was installed by a professional and rotted out within a year). So this is why I've elected to ask the guys on here for help and/or advice--then do the work myself. I know I'll take the time and do it right.
So for you guys who've offered up information--Thank you.

[trimmer21]

I paid to swap out all the aluminum wiring in a rental house I owned because I couldn't get it insured (built in '72). No company wanted to touch it without a Fire inspection. Not only would they not pass it because the aluminum wiring was of very poor quality,but,the install job was done badly. The Fire Inspector couldn't understand how it was passed when the joint was built. According to Hydro,at the time,aluminum wiring was in it's infancy . By today's standards,someone could have gone to jail.

[rick_iles]

I paid to swap out all the aluminum wiring in a rental house I owned because I couldn't get it insured (built in '72). No company wanted to touch it without a Fire inspection. Not only would they not pass it because the aluminum wiring was of very poor quality,but,the install job was done badly. The Fire Inspector couldn't understand how it was passed when the joint was built. According to Hydro,at the time,aluminum wiring was in it's infancy . By today's standards,someone could have gone to jail.

Our whole subdivision was built when they used aluminum, as are others around here. I don’t know of one house fire in the past 40 years that was attributed to the wiring.

[trimmer21]

Our whole subdivision was built when they used aluminum, as are others around here. I don’t know of one house fire in the past 40 years that was attributed to the wiring.

I know of two house fires that were wiring related from people mixing copper and aluminum fixtures (neighbor is a TFS FF). I'm not an electrician so I have no idea how it works except they shorted out,sparked and started to burn surrounding combustibles.

[jaycee]

I know of two house fires that were wiring related from people mixing copper and aluminum fixtures (neighbor is a TFS FF). I'm not an electrician so I have no idea how it works except they shorted out,sparked and started to burn surrounding combustibles.

Problems with aluminum wiring were/are caused by shoddy workmanship by electricians who are in too much of a hurry to get the job done .
In 30 years as a full time fire fighter involved in many house fires, the ones that involved aluminum wiring were all put down to shoddy or poor workmanship upon investigation, ie; nicked wires when removing insulation, loops not fully formed around screws in receptacles , loose screws, not fully tightened onto the wires, or the worst, push in connections, this all lead to the oxidization of the wiring leading to arcing and finally to fires most were only in and around the switches, receptacles , small fires that were quickly extinguished.

[JoePa]

With the information that is available in books and the internet one should be able to do most of their home wiring by themselves - just take your time and fully understand what you are doing - over the years I've done a lot of electrical work on the homes that I have owned - home wiring isn't rocket science - just because a licensed electrician does the job doesn't mean that it will be done right - a lot of times these guys are in a hurry and don't do things in the best manner - my son had a new home built and had all kinds of problems from sloppy work - but I add this - if you aren't sure of what you are doing then don't mess with it - get a electrician or someone who knows what he is doing -

[Fox]

Our whole subdivision was built when they used aluminum, as are others around here. I don’t know of one house fire in the past 40 years that was attributed to the wiring.

We almost lost our house when I was a kid, that would have been about 1994 or so. The aluminum wiring in the breaker panel loosened up and shorted out, the wire burnt back inside the breaker box, melting the wire and was almost out of the box when my dad noticed the smell in the middle of the night. He was an Electrical Technologist, not certified to wire a house but knows how to wire a house, he fixed it temporarily before bringing in an electrician.

There are tools and dopes out there, I helped a friend pigtail aluminum wires in a house he was selling, we did the work and an electrician checked it and proved it safe and legal.

The key here is that aluminum and copper expand and contract at different rates, when the loosen up they will make a bad connection and short, this heats up the wires and burns back on the line, this can burn down your house. Another problem with aluminum is that the oxidation of aluminum is very hard, it makes the aluminum brittle, it can crack when moved around and you may not know it, this can cause a stress riser in the metal which will cause an increased resistance and again generate heat.

Aluminum wiring is still used in industrial applications as it is a lot cheaper than copper but still perfectly safe when dealt with properly.

Best of luck, lots of books, you can always talk to an inspector in your area anonymously to figure out what you may need to be concerned about, ideally getting an inspection would be your best bet for insurance reasons.

[BIG MAC]

Gentlemen a Lot has changed over the years as a Licensed Electrcian is telling ( I'm one as well ) you are supposed to have a permit for EVERY electrical job you do in your house. Pretty sure if you did some electrical work WITHOUT a Permit and that was found to be the cause of the fire that burnt your house to the ground then some Insurance companies will not cover you. Sawbill as for your question can it be done , yes it can, as someone stated above they have a paste that goes in the wires before the marrette is put on.

[Fox]

Gentlemen a Lot has changed over the years as a Licensed Electrcian is telling ( I'm one as well ) you are supposed to have a permit for EVERY electrical job you do in your house. Pretty sure if you did some electrical work WITHOUT a Permit and that was found to be the cause of the fire that burnt your house to the ground then some Insurance companies will not cover you. Sawbill as for your question can it be done , yes it can, as someone stated above they have a paste that goes in the wires before the marrette is put on.

Change a light bulb, need a permit and an inspection, this is pretty much where it is going.

The funny part is that when you call your municipality they wonder why you are even bothering to ask you about permits.

[Bluebulldog]

As a property manager, licensed trade, and a homeowner, I'll offer up the following.

1. Pull a permit.
2. Anywhere you are connecting new copper, to existing aluminum, use the approved Marrete connectors, utilizing No-Lox paste.

OP, I'm surprised you were able to obtain insurance without having the house wiring inspected. When I bought my 1972 bungalow, I had to have a licensed electrician inspect the house, including all device boxes. My contractor had two electricians attend, and spent the day going over every circuit, replacing non-compliant devices and connectors. It cost $800, but at the end of the day, the house is safe, and I have a letter for the file indicating that it conforms to current code.