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Replacing wiring

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01-01-04, 05:03 PM

fridrikr

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Replacing wiring

Hi,

I live in upstate NY in a house that dates from c. 1925. I've been replacing light fixtures while suffering with antiquated wiring for far too long. I now have to replace an overhead light fixture in my bedroom and I want to replace the wiring from the switch box to the overhead outlet.

Maybe I'm paranoid, but I'm not certain how to do this. I'm thinking of connecting the old wiring to the new wiring and pulling it through the wall and ceiling to the outlet. Do you think this will work? If not, what else can I do?

Thanks in advance,

Tom

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01-01-04, 05:20 PM

John Nelson

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Unless you have conduit, it usually does not work to use the old wire to pull new wire. The old wire is usually secured to the framing.

Pick up a few books on home wiring and you will get some great tips on how to fish new cable through finished walls. It's usually not that hard.

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01-01-04, 06:20 PM

fridrikr

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Thanks

<sigh>

I was afraid of that. Thanks for the advice.

Tom

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01-02-04, 12:40 PM

joed

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A house that old is probalby knob and tube. Very difficult to add anything to it. You should replace the entire circuit.

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01-02-04, 01:27 PM

fridrikr

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Knob & Tube?

Can you define that please?

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01-02-04, 01:38 PM

John Nelson

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K&T is the old wiring that was used when Westinghouse himself was doing it. It uses ceramic knobs to afix the wires to the side of a stud, and ceramic tubes to pass the wires through a stud. It's a technology that preceeded Romex.

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