"Metspitzer" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 30 May 2011 19:47:28 -0500, The Daring Dufas
wrote:

On 5/30/2011 6:10 PM, RBM wrote:
wrote in message
...
Do they make a circuit breaker panel that will mount in an old fuse
box? I have a friend that wants to get an old house ready to rent.
The house is small but it is really nice. Here are two pictures of
the fuse box. It has a GE cover that is listed at 150A. The box
measures 14.5 by 24 by 3.75. No markings on the service entrance
cable that tells what size the wire is.

He wants to just remove the old guts and update it to circuit
breakers. The bottom left fuse block is hot on both sides even with
the fuses removed. In the extreme lower left there is a fuse block
that is not being used.

Since he is an old friend, I offered to have a look at it for him,
but I really don't know what to tell him short of tearing the house
down and start from scratch. I know that is not what he wants to
hear. The insulation on the wire looks so brittle I don't want to
touch it. The house is in rural Georgia.

http://imgur.com/NP8xV&UucAD
http://imgur.com/NP8xV&UucADl

--
O'Neil to General Hammond:
For the record Sir, I wanted to blow it the hell up.

** It's hard to tell, but those conductors look like #2 aluminum, which
would only be good for 100 amp. I don't think you're going to find
anything
to retrofit breakers into that cabinet, but there aren't that many loads
in
the panel, so it wouldn't be too hard to replace it altogether. You will
have to cut about 8" of wall out directly above the panel, to get the
cables
out and into the new box.


Oops! On second thought, looking at the neutral, it could be aluminum. :-)

TDD
I am pretty sure the wire is aluminum. The insulation almost looks
like cloth, but I can't be sure. I am sure it is old.

Thanks everyone

** I think it's a cloth wrapping over rubber