how to rewire with out damageing the old plaster ?
#1
11-21-02, 02:06 AM
how to rewire with out damageing the old plaster ?
How do I rewire an old house without damageing the old plaster ? This is house is more then 100 years old ... It was wired in the late 20s or early 30s ..So it should have tube wireing . that is single insulated wire raped around insulaters set apart six inches or more for the people who do not know about tube wireing .. I do not want to damage the old plaster .. It has the old paint from the 30s on it . I am trying to keep this house as close to what it was as I can . The rewireing would be eazy otherwise ... Any help out there ? I can run the wires behined the base board in conduit then go up from there .but what about the swicht to light wires ? These have to go though the top plate but I would not be able to pull them becuse of the tube wireing . Or should I leave the tube wireing in place the is no fuse blowing any where .. everything works . .. Thank you 
#2
11-21-02, 07:11 AM
In my humble opinion, I think it is worth putting a few holes in the walls and repainting. The knob and tube wiring is probably safe if it has not been disturbed, but there are a lot of benefits to rewiring (or you wouldn't be writing this, right?). If you're interested, here's my "minimal damage" attempt:
I have a 70-yr-old house and was able to do a lot of rewiring without too much demolition. I drilled 1-inch holes just above the baseboards underneath each outlet and switch. That allowed me to feed a long 1/2" auger bit down at an angle to drill holes through the bottom headers and into the basement. It took about a day per room to then feed the wires up to each of the switches, sconces, and outlets. There were no lights in the ceiling, which made it easier.
I chose to drill above the baseboards because mine are stained (not painted) and it would be difficult to repair them if I split them. If you are thinking about pulling the baseboards off anyway, then the drilling to the basement would be easier (assuming you have a basement and are working on the 1st floor). I'm hoping my upstairs rooms will be even easier if I drill down from the attic. I may be able to do all the work without any holes in the walls.
I have a 70-yr-old house and was able to do a lot of rewiring without too much demolition. I drilled 1-inch holes just above the baseboards underneath each outlet and switch. That allowed me to feed a long 1/2" auger bit down at an angle to drill holes through the bottom headers and into the basement. It took about a day per room to then feed the wires up to each of the switches, sconces, and outlets. There were no lights in the ceiling, which made it easier.
I chose to drill above the baseboards because mine are stained (not painted) and it would be difficult to repair them if I split them. If you are thinking about pulling the baseboards off anyway, then the drilling to the basement would be easier (assuming you have a basement and are working on the 1st floor). I'm hoping my upstairs rooms will be even easier if I drill down from the attic. I may be able to do all the work without any holes in the walls.
