Some are downright scary. The house came with a giant petri dish of West Nile virus. Attempts at draining it have been made, none of them particularly successful so far. We keep plugging away at it. The future of the petri dish has yet to be determined.
This week's major project though focuses on the attic. Not so scary you say? Ah, but you don't realize what lies beneath.
(Insert shocking Psycho music here)
Old knob and tube wiring. Having it isn't necessarily a problem, but in a big old drafty house you want WAY more insulation than this. Before the insulation goes in we need to fix everything that needs fixing in the ceiling because finding it under the new insulation later would prove a bit challenging. All of the current cellulose insulation needed to be pulled out and put aside to expose the old wiring. An electrician is coming out this week to bring the wiring and the boxes up to code.
He has a list of other items throughout the house to correct as well. The former resident was a bit of a do-it-yourselfer. At some point he must have taken a Creative Wiring 101 course at the hardware store. Luckily he left the push button switches alone.
8 comments:
Yikes, scary is right!
That is a large petri dish .... I have mosquito fish I could send you some. Good to get that wiring fixed before adding more insulation. Interesting what you find in old houses.
I love those push buttons. We had those in my elementary school.
Around where I live, there are companies that pump out cesspools and perhaps septic systems. I don't know the capacity of the trucks, but they might be able to handle pumping out the pool. I don't think I'd want the contents of the pool drained into the yard, myself, rather hauled away to wherever they take this stuff.
p.s. It costs me about $100 to have my cesspool pumped out annually.
Yes, I know I should have a septic system. I'm waiting for the town to put in sewers, which should happen in 2-3 years, instead.
Nice to see you up and posting again. Hope your internet stays on.
I was told once that no matter which house you buy the biggest idiot in the world was the former owner.
I think do it yourselfers should be retitled do it overs, well at least in my house they have been.
Good Luck with your house! I'm sure you know she is worth it.
OMG I have not seen push-button switches since I was a kid. I think they were in our grade school!!!
I am glad you are blogging this. It will be good for your scrapbook in later years. You are smart to take care of the electric.
You're right - - that pool is a scary thing to have in the open air near your house.
Our house still has the push button switches. Love 'em!
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