Re-Wiring Your Home

Remember these? It’s an original electrical fuse box from the 1920′s. I went on a call yesterday to a beautiful Spanish style home in West Hollywood. Everything was original, the fireplace tiles, the light fixtures. It was gorgeous.

 Electrical Wiring

Original 1920′s design is a feast for the eyes but original wiring in Los Angeles is a scary fire hazard. I’m so glad the woman who owns the home called me. I’ve been an electrician for 25 years. I specialize in older homes, so I know how to re-wire her home and bring the electrical system up to current safety standards without compromising the design integrity.

When I looked in the electrical circuit box I saw 12 gauge electrical wire attached to an over-sized 30 amp fuse. I understood immediately what happened, “The fuse kept blowing and the nice person at the hardware store gave you a bigger fuse, a 30 amp instead of a 20 amp, right?” The homeowner, Shirley, nodded her head. “Your fuse stopped blowing but you overloaded the wiring in your home.” I explained.

Cloth Wiring

The cloth covering on the wiring is brittle and frayed. Instead of an incandescent light bulb the homeowner has been using a much hotter halogen bulb in her sconces. Yikes!

Electrical Components

The drip loops, which is the wiring that connects the DWP utility line to the home, were completely bare. All protective covering was disintegrated. If they get wet or there is arching it is a fire hazard.

Electrical Contractor

The wiring was scary but what really horrified me was the other estimate Shirley had gotten from another company to fix her electrical problems. The company had nothing but a business license. The person who bid her job was a handyman. He wasn’t a licensed electrical contractor, like I am. He wasn’t even a general building contractor, which I also hold a license for. He was a handyman who had the arrogance to present himself as someone qualified to re-wire Shirley’s home. That kind of dishonesty puts Shirley’s safety at risk. Especially because he gave her a choice to do the job piecemeal. To save money he would have attached new wiring to an old antiquated fuse box. That really bothered me.

You can’t pick and choose whether or not to properly install electrical wiring, everything needs to be brought up to current electrical code. And for good reason; Safety!

GFI outlets, for instance are required in the bathrooms and kitchens. It’s not a choice because there is a danger of someone with wet hands touching the outlet and water becoming a conduit for electricity. The Ground Fault Interrupter, GFI, that is built into some outlets immediately stops the flow of electricity to save people from being electrocuted. It’s all about safety. When I deal with electricity in someone’s home it’s ALL about safety.

In any case the job went well. Shirley's beautiful West Hollywood home is properly re-wired.