Seattle Home Inspector's Blog

    I had a really good example of this the other day.  I could see from the ground the potential problem, but I have experience with this hazard and knew where to put my ladder---my fiberglass ladder.  My concern is that someone with a metal ladder might not have the same knowledge or foresight.

      In this picture I have drawn an imaginary line of where the ladder would come in contact with the bare connector if it was moved over a foot. 

     A metal ladder could be deadly----not to mention that the gutter would also become energized along with everything that the gutter system came in contact with.  In a worse case scenario this might mean aluminum siding, aluminum windows and wire fences until it found something grounded enough to melt the connection----like the outside water faucets.

     I have heard that there are "things worse than death"---although it is difficult to do a double blind study of the idea.  Regardless, even a "little" tingle from this hazard might result in pitching off the ladder to the concrete sidewalk below---I hate breaking the personal furnishings.  Electrocution is no fun either.

     I guess it's a wrap-----of the connectors that is.

     Outdoor electrical installations have to meet special requirements including wire rated for outdoor use and protection from physical damage.  They did mount it to a pretty sturdy post though.  Changing the bulbs would be an adventure I guess.

     Nutsy did show up to help a little later on when it was time to test the outside water faucets.  Better late than never I guess----I don't know how Steve puts up with it.  He got right up on top of the handle and then proceeded to "leak" all over me.  NOT too professional.

     But like I said----this one takes the cake.  Typically the switch is held in place with two screws.  Most switches have little Mickey Mouse ears---two at the top---two at the bottom that help to stabilize the switch on the wall surface.  In this case the screws were missing and the four Mickey Mouse ears had these strange little white covered things at each ear.  Can you guess what they are?

Yup----thumb tacks!  UL Approved thumb tacks you think?  Me thinks not.

     In the picture you can see the multi-tester (reading 49 volts) with one test lead on the fixture and the other on a grounded water pipe (you will have to trust me on that).

     This is one of those safety issue that the inspector has to call for repairs "prior to the close of escrow," with a strong recommendation directly to the seller and seller's agent that the shower not be used until the electrical defect is repaired.

     This is especially true in relation to electrical wiring.  People love to finish off those attics and basement spaces without getting permits because it is so easy to do the work unnoticed by officials of the building department.  They can work on the projects in their spare time and as they get the funds.  And then, THEY CAN MAKE TONS MORE MONEY WHEN THEY SELL-----because they didn't have to hire some over priced professional to do the job.

     From my point of view this is false economy---- even if we are only talking about the money.  It is really false economy if "Mr. Home Remodeler" is called to task by the building department (and has to rip it all out), or has to provide documentation for the work later on, or worse yet-----somebody dies because the house burned down or because they got electrocuted.

     Case in point, I inspected a home a while back that had a nicely finished off attic that was now the Master Suite.  Everything looked great electrically.  All the receptacles tested as grounded etc.  My first clue that something might be amiss was that the 3 Master Bathroom receptacles were not GFCI protected (You know the receptacles with the little test buttons?).   All new construction would require them, so my next thought is that I am looking at work that wasn't inspected and/or didn't have a permit issued.

     Like many finished-off attic spaces there were knee walls with attics along the sides.  From inside those attic spaces some of the receptacles and wiring were visible----sort of a glimpse inside the walls---a view we don't often see as inspectors.  One of these attics even had a light with a switch (run from one of the room receptacles).  Now this one switch location had so many issues that I just snapped a picture of it and moved on.  It wasn't until I got home and saw the picture on my computer screen that the implications of the defect hit home. 

     It was obvious that this was not a professional installation.  As an inspector I don't even get overly concerned about whether work had permits or not----I want to know how the work was done and that it was done professionally---safely.  While permits will get you headed in the right direction, unfortunately, even that is no guarantee of good work. 

     This switch location had: wires not secured near the box, ground wires just twisted together without a proper connector, no ground wire to the switch itself, the switch not connected to the box, a box of a type without a place to connect the switch, and no cover plate.  Sounds like enough issues for just one location doesn't it?  But, that is not the end of the list.  The biggest problem is that the neutral (white) wire is being switched.

     The idea behind the requirement that the "hot" (black) wire be switched is that when the light switch is "off" there would then be no energy potential at the light fixture.  By switching the neutral wire, the light wouldn't work but there would still be a shock hazard present between the ground wire and the hot wire in the fixture itself. A very serious shock hazard!

     This brings me, finally, to the point of this blog.  Does "Mr. Deal Killer Inspector" have to recommend that every junction box in all portions of this remodeled attic be taken apart and evaluated by a licensed electrical contractor? 

     Me thinks so.

  In this next picture we see splices of aluminum wire outside of a junction box in an attic with obvious melting.  In both of these cases the wire nut are not rated for use with aluminum wiring.<

     As previously discussed these wire types have different rates of expansion and contraction and which can lead to:  arcing---everyone beginning to get the picture?  These are just a few of the more serious issues that are associated with aluminum wire and they all can lead to serious fire safety concerns.  Because almost every aluminum wired house that I have inspected has had some arcing related conditions that could have resulted in loss of property or life, it is perhaps the my least favorite issue to find in a home----and often results in my buyer walking away from the deal.

      While, there is some controversy over what to recommend and do about houses with aluminum wiring, the end result is going to be expensive.  There are specific repairs accepted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, involving installation of Copalum Connectors , that are considered by some to be an acceptable solution.  There are very few contractors certified to make these connections (and are only recommended on the "second-generation" type wire).  My concern with this approach is this:  is "every" "single" connection going to be locatedto be properly repaired?  (These homes are going to be at least 40 years old---has any remodeling been done that might have resulted in buried/hidden junction boxes?)  I have come around to the position that the "best" protocol is to rewire the home (especially those pre-1970 houses), and if that is not an option then to have the Copalum Connectors installed and add AFCI  type circuit breakers to the circuits.  These types of breakers are designed to pick up the kinds of arcing conditions associated with aluminum wiring.