Crazy house wiring

[Meatwad]

We had a light switch go out in the bedroom, so after the wife pounds it into my head (literary) to change it, I finally bought one and went to change it. Went to the breaker box and killed the one labeled BEDROOM. I thought to myself "I better get my multimeter and make sure the power is killed before I start grabbing wires." Apply the leands and

+120

WTF?? That shouldnt be like that.  So I go back to the breaker box and flip off the breaker for the bedroom heater (Theres a heater built into the wall.)

+120?????

This dont add up. Now I go back and shut off the living rom power and go back to the bedroom.

+120

I says to myself "What the hell, this isnt right!" Now I get smart and kill the main breaker

00.0

After some checking with the breaker panel, I find out the bedroom ceiling light is direct wired to the 200 amp main breaker. I know for a fact this isnt up to code and pretty dangerous.  This is actually a mobile home thats about 40 years old. Some moron that owned it a long time ago wired the place up, and even though I dont want to admit it to myself, its a fire/shock hazard. Too poor to move but just have to hope nothing happens.

Freakin scary

[RedDg]

220...221.  Whatever it takes.

[Chairboy]

I was replacing a bunch of outlets in one of my apartment units last month.  Everything was going fine, too fine.  It got to a point where I got complacent, a factor in MANY deaths.

I shut off all the sub-circuits for the downstairs and went to each outlet, testing for power, then replacing it.  As I'm doing this, I eventually hit that complacency point and stop testing them.  Like a pilot who skips a "needless" step in their preflight, doesn't die, then makes skipping that step a part of the usual process, I changed a few outlets, wasn't shocked, and thought nothing more about it.  

...until I got to the lightswitch that controlled the disposal in the kitchen.  Krr-ZAP!  Numb hand, twitchy muscles, and a very surprised Chairboy.  Turns out it shared a circuit with the upstairs.

I learned the obvious lessons, plus connected it with my "dangerous personality factors" list that I apply to flying, driving, etc.  A good cheap lesson is the kind that hurt enough for you to notice, but doesn't kill you or put you in the hospital.

[Holden McGroin]

I was having problems with my lights, then I found the problem in my basement:

[rpm]

I see your 40 year old trailer house and raise you my 20 year old grocery store. This thing has been remodeled so many times it's a spider web of circuits. I have 110 power to all my endcaps wired in series. One in the middle is 220.

[Meatwad]

Hoo boy, that sound like about as much fun as sticking a 9volt to your tongue when you have to trace or rewire something

[WhiteHawk]

wow, the main breaker should be bussed to all the branchs of the circuit.  How did they wire one light bulb to it?  Are you sure thats the problem.  Sometimes the light circuits are ran along the attic while the outlets are ran through the floorboards.  I would try each breaker and see if your bedroom light isnt hooked in with another circuit, possibly to an adjoining room.  Wiring in my house is so confusing I gave up trying to understand it, and I do industrial electrical work for a living.

[Meatwad]

Come to find out the person that wired this place up also re-wired the fire dept years and years ago. We were there cleaning all day and redoing the wiring. He had one long conduit that fed 6 incandescent light sockets and 4 outlets.  It was wired in series and went straight to the main 60 amp (maybe?) pull out style fuse block. Were slowly but surely getting the wiring there up to code

[DREDIOCK]

heh, Sounds like one of those typical "I wont hire a contractor cause I want it done right so I'll do it myself" types lived there before you LMAO

At one time it probably was wired right. And the box was probbly labled right.

But that was before some homeowner got to it

[capt. apathy]

so take the wires off of the main and move them to a breaker.

It can't be nearly as bad as this 102 yr old house.  when I moved in it had one outlet per room, a 60 amp main, and knob and post wiring in the attic for the ceiling light in each room.

switched out all the big-ticket electric appliances for gas to free up enough amperage for a reasonable amount of outlets.  even installed a grounding rod so I could have actual working 3-pronged outlets with GFI's.

  now if we could only get rid of the lath and plaster. and maybe something bigger than a 1/2" water main.

[Ghosth]

When I bought my house 8 years ago I found an interesting mix of modern insulated circuits tied into the original 1922 Knob & tube wireing. (Terrible cloth type insulation on the wire, ceramic insulators mounted in the wall.)

At one point in the kitchen I found an light bulb socket about 4 feet up, buried in the wall. Knob & tube running too it, and when I screwed a bulb in, it lite up.

Needless to say we didn't sleep in the house till I'd rewired the whole works.
Cut out every piece of the old stuff I could reach as I went.

[Masherbrum]

MeatWad, your dilemma sounds like our garage when we moved in.  One outlet hanging by a piece a Romex, and the Garage Door Opener literally spliced into the main feed from the house (not an attached garage) with electrical tape over it.  

We moved in around May 1999.  I was opening the garage and noticed an arc coming from the "splice".  

I drove to my in-laws and told him about it.  He gave me 200+ ft of Romex, 8 boxes, receptacles, switches, and a right angle drill.  Within, 2 hours or returning, I had the 450+ nails in the studs in a box (still have them as a reminder of the stupidity of some), and the wire stripped.   I drilled 100+ studs, ran the wire (without a permit).  

We even had an City Inspector living down the street at the time and he never knew I did this.

I then insulated the walls and paneled them.   This took longer than gutting and running Romex.

In short, just make sure it is done right.  

Karaya