TIL about the old knob and tube wiring in that 1920s house on Maple Street

I was doing a walkthrough for a potential repaint job at a place on Maple Street here in town, and the homeowner asked me to look at a loose light fixture. When I got up in the attic, I saw it was all original knob and tube, still active. The insulation on some of those cloth wrapped wires was just crumbling away to nothing. It's a miracle the place hasn't had a fire. I guess it's been working fine for them for a hundred years, but seeing it up close was a real eye opener. Has anyone else run into this on a job and had to explain to a homeowner why it absolutely needs to be replaced?

3 comments

3 Comments

knight.felix7d ago

Isn't it crazy how we just trust old systems to hold up? I see this with plumbing too, like old galvanized pipes that are totally rusted shut but the water's still dripping through. People get used to things working until they see the actual decay.

the_wesley7d ago

My buddy bought a house built in the 1950s and the water pressure was always just okay. Last month, a pipe finally gave out under the kitchen sink. When he cut out the section, the inside was almost completely sealed with rust, just a tiny hole left for the water to squeeze through. It had been working just well enough that he never questioned it, but seeing that crumbled metal was a real shock. He's replacing all the plumbing now, but it makes you wonder what else is quietly falling apart while we go about our day.

phoenixw117d ago

Honestly? I get the worry but that stuff is built different. My own place has the original knob and tube. Never had a single issue. It's simple, it's separated, it doesn't overheat like modern wiring stuffed in insulation. People panic and want to rip it all out. Sure, if the cloth is gone that's bad. But a lot of it is still perfectly good. Just needs a proper inspection, not a full scare-job rewire.