Rewire, Knob and Tube, Aluminum Wiring

During a typical year in the United States, home electrical problems account for 67,800 fires, 485 deaths and $868 million in property loses.  Home electrical wiring causes twice as many fires as electrical appliances.  Most electrical fires result from problems with "fixed wiring" such as faulty electrical outlets and old wiring.¹

Types of outdated wiring:

• Knob and Tube - Knob and tube is very old wiring (at least 62 years old, at best) and in many cases have deteriorated, creacked or is missing insulation, which can lead to fires.²
• Non-metallic sheathed cable - Many wiring systems installed in the 1950's and earlier used non-metallic wiring, which lacked a ground wire.  Homes from this era have only two-pronged outlets, unsuitable for many modern conveniences.  Simply replacing two-pronged receptacles with three-pronged receptacles is a violation of the Naional Electrical Code if there is no ground path present.³
• Alumninum wiring - Aluminum wiring is no longer permitted for new installations.  The connections can become hot enough to start a fire without ever tripping a circuit breaker.⁴

Not sure what to do?  Give us a call, and we'll send out one of our licensed technicians to meet with you.

¹On the Safety Circuit: US Fire Administration, Dept. of Homeland Security
²International Association of Certified Home Inspectors
³Underwriters Laboratories
⁴Consumer Product Safety Commission