On Sun, 29 Mar 2015 04:56:23 -0700, "Claude Balls"
wrote:

How's the best way to find out if there's any wiring that might be overheating inside a wall?

I have something like that.

Once in a while I get a short whiff of an oily smell, and I have oil
heat. But a couple times, including this morning, while I was sleeping
the smell seemed to go on for an hour. I think that's because one can
have a whole dream that seems like an hour, but it only takes a couple
seconds for the dream. When I woke up maybe there was a smell, but a
minute or so later it was gone.


For the last few months, I have been waking up once a week or so between 4-5am smelling what smells like cigarette smoke. Today it was more like hot wood - like when a dull saw blade starts burning the wood. As soon as I wake up, there's no smell. It's not like it's coming thru a window - more like right next to me. No one else has smelled it and since the smell was always gone right away, maybe it's a dream, but never heard of having a smelly dream.

One time, it smelled like electrical wires burning. I went to the
bathroom and when I came back and was 15 feet from the head of the bed,
I look at the high intensity light, and could tell that the smell was
coming from it, which is less than 18" from my nose when I'm sleeping,
and not the heating duct like I had thought.

Noses vary widely from one person to the next. Other senses do too,
including the abiltiy to remember smells and pain. Not just to remember
sensing a smell or having pain, but according to people in another
group, they can actually remember the pain or the smell. OTOH, one or
two said they couldn't remember a sight or a sound, but I can.

Anyway, first time I smelled it, I took it seriously and checked all the electrical in the house. All looked OK. No smell at any outlets, cords, electronics, appliances, no hot cords, etc. Most everything is off at that time. No one uses any hot hobby tools, only thing that burns is gas stove and water heater - both fine. No smokers in the house or neighbors. Garage is fine.

Already checked for rat-chewed cables in the attic, pulled covers off receptacles, cb panel, traced all exposed wiring, etc.

Maybe a remote thermometer or IR thermometer, or whatever you call it.
?? Point at the wall and move it alnong to all the electric boxes.
Shouldn t' be any hot spots.