Why does nobody talk about how dangerous old cloth wiring really is?

I was out on a service call in a 1950s house in Cleveland last month and found a mess. The homeowner said her lights flickered when the washer ran, so I popped the panel cover. That old cloth sheathing was cracked and crumbling in my hand, bare wire showing in three spots right where it entered the box. I had to shut the whole panel down and tell her we needed a rewire before the place burned down. She was not happy about the 4 grand quote, but what can you do? Has anyone else run into a situation where the insulation just disintegrated on you?

2 comments

2 Comments

abby30819d ago

Walked into a similar nightmare last year, an old house built in the 40s. The cloth wires were hanging on by a thread, literally. When I touched one of the splices in the attic, the insulation just flaked off like dried mud. It's scary how many people think that old wiring is fine just because it hasn't caught fire yet. The real kicker is that most insurance companies won't even cover a house with that stuff anymore. I had to explain to a family that their policy was basically useless until they redid the whole place. It's a ticking time bomb, plain and simple.

butler.abby18d agoMost Upvoted

Wait, the insulation just flaked off when you touched it? That's terrifying honestly. @abby308 I can't believe you actually had to touch one of those splices to find out how bad it was. Ngl, that gives me the creeps just thinking about it. I've seen some sketchy wiring in old houses but that sounds like it was on its last legs. It's wild that some homeowners just assume if it hasn't burned down yet, it's fine. You probably saved that family from a really bad situation by being upfront about it.