On Sun, 22 Aug 2004 22:19:25 +0000, Matthew Durkin wrote:

My Sister has just bought an old house pre-20th century house. We've found a
couple of mains cables running from the fusebox that have a lead sheath
(they looked just like the modern plastic ones until I scratched the paint
off and they revealed shiny lead.
Not sure yet where they run, but my hunch is the lighting circuits.
Getting them out will be very difficult (especially for my sister!)
What current would these be normally rated at?
Could they be dangerous - how can I tell?
Is there any way of safety testing them?
Any other comments?
Thanks,
Matthew

Wow - I saw some lead wiring 25 years ago and it was totally knackered
then. As someone else said, it's rubber insulated and the rubber perishes.
In theory it shouldn't be a shock risk as the sheath should be earthed
(but who can be sure) - but could definately be a fire risk (and a shock
risk if the earthing has failed).

Whilst it's *possibly* not going to blow up tomorrow or if it does,
it *should* just blow a fuse, do you want to take a known risk that
could have dire consequences?

Best get it looked at asap and definately turn the circuit off at the
fuseboard now. At the very least, do kill the circuit while people are
asleep or out of the house.

I'm not a qualified electrician, but I have some experience of diy wiring
(which I do by the book) and I've seen and occasionally replaced some
historical stuff.

Let's put it this way - I would *not* leave it on unsupervised with my
baby daughter in the house (ie, I might turn it on to prove what it
feeds, but only after getting everyone away from the area and taking
precautions myself). Sounds parnoid, but fire can start unseen and spread
fast, esp. if the wiring is under the floor or in the loft with lots of
dry flammable dust etc.

It would be safe to assume that the rubber has perished by now and what
you will probably have is hard brittle rubber tubes (or worse, crumbs)
being the only thing that is insulating anything from anything else.

WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT POKE IT, MOVE IT OR DISTURB IT IN ANY WAY - If it
has deteriorated, then it's likely to break down further and you'll get
a short (or electrocuted if the earth on the sheath has failed).

Mind you, if it does pass out as safe after inspection, you'll probably
have a world record!

The current rating - bit outside my limited experience, but IIRC 5A was
common at this sort of era for lighting circuits. Any seasoned
sparkies care to comment?

Best check the fuseboard too - does it look like an antique too? If so,
replace it at the same time.

Well - that's what I would do anyway, (I did say I'm not qualified :-o )


Best wishes,

Timbo