My grandparents live in a house that's about 100 years old. I have no
idea how old the wiring is in that house but I'm fairly certain it
hasn't been changed in 20 to 30 years.

They have two 10-20 y/o refrigerators and two 30+ year old freezers.
Downstairs they have three window A/C units running and upstairs they
have two window A/C units running. Plus things like tvs, a computer,
and lights. I'd really hate to see their electric bill.

The other day I was there and something happened that concerns me. The
A/C was on in a bedroom and we were vacuuming in the room. Some time
after that (maybe 5-10 min) I noticed that the A/C had stopped working.
Grandpa went to check the breaker and everything was ok. So I plugged
the A/C into the top outlet and it worked. I then plugged it back into
the bottom outlet where it had been and it wouldn't work.

What would cause the bottom outlet to stop working?

It has me concerned because they do the dumbest and unsafe things
sometimes. I saw them plug a three prong A/C into an adapter that
converts it to two prongs, then they plugged it into an extension cord,
then into the wall. So basically, they had the A/C running of an
extension cord. I think (not sure) that one of the refrigerators may be
plugged in that way. In the next few weeks they will be getting a third
refrigerator and I know that one will be plugged into an extension
cord. I was always taught that things like that are potentially
dangerous.

"Mike S." wrote in message
ups.com...
My grandparents live in a house that's about 100 years old. I have no
idea how old the wiring is in that house but I'm fairly certain it
hasn't been changed in 20 to 30 years.

They have two 10-20 y/o refrigerators and two 30+ year old freezers.
Downstairs they have three window A/C units running and upstairs they
have two window A/C units running. Plus things like tvs, a computer,
and lights. I'd really hate to see their electric bill.

The other day I was there and something happened that concerns me. The
A/C was on in a bedroom and we were vacuuming in the room. Some time
after that (maybe 5-10 min) I noticed that the A/C had stopped working.
Grandpa went to check the breaker and everything was ok. So I plugged
the A/C into the top outlet and it worked. I then plugged it back into
the bottom outlet where it had been and it wouldn't work.

What would cause the bottom outlet to stop working?

It has me concerned because they do the dumbest and unsafe things
sometimes. I saw them plug a three prong A/C into an adapter that
converts it to two prongs, then they plugged it into an extension cord,
then into the wall. So basically, they had the A/C running of an
extension cord. I think (not sure) that one of the refrigerators may be
plugged in that way. In the next few weeks they will be getting a third
refrigerator and I know that one will be plugged into an extension
cord. I was always taught that things like that are potentially
dangerous.


It doesn't really matter what's wrong with the bottom outlet. A new outlet
costs less than a pack of cigarettes. Go buy one and install it for them. If
they're like most grandparents, they'll argue. Lock them out of the room and
ignore them. If you're not sure how to install it, get a book from the
library. It's simple and safe, as long as you take proper precautions. If
the book doesn't help, make a list of other electrical horrors in the house,
and call an electrician.

What's with all the refrigerators? Are they hunters looking to sock away
tons of deer meat?

They are a good example of how durable and resilient house wiring is. They
probably have mixed wiring types, but it is entirely possible and probable
that some of these circuits are improperly fused and overloaded. The dead
outlet is possibly connected to a wall switch that is off or broken, but it
is possible that only half of an outlet works. I'd have that and the general
condition of the wiring checked by an electrician. They should have grounded
outlets for the refrigeration stuff and size any extension cords properly
and keep their length to a minimum




"Mike S." wrote in message
ups.com...
My grandparents live in a house that's about 100 years old. I have no
idea how old the wiring is in that house but I'm fairly certain it
hasn't been changed in 20 to 30 years.

They have two 10-20 y/o refrigerators and two 30+ year old freezers.
Downstairs they have three window A/C units running and upstairs they
have two window A/C units running. Plus things like tvs, a computer,
and lights. I'd really hate to see their electric bill.

The other day I was there and something happened that concerns me. The
A/C was on in a bedroom and we were vacuuming in the room. Some time
after that (maybe 5-10 min) I noticed that the A/C had stopped working.
Grandpa went to check the breaker and everything was ok. So I plugged
the A/C into the top outlet and it worked. I then plugged it back into
the bottom outlet where it had been and it wouldn't work.

What would cause the bottom outlet to stop working?

It has me concerned because they do the dumbest and unsafe things
sometimes. I saw them plug a three prong A/C into an adapter that
converts it to two prongs, then they plugged it into an extension cord,
then into the wall. So basically, they had the A/C running of an
extension cord. I think (not sure) that one of the refrigerators may be
plugged in that way. In the next few weeks they will be getting a third
refrigerator and I know that one will be plugged into an extension
cord. I was always taught that things like that are potentially
dangerous.

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
"Mike S." wrote in message
ups.com...
My grandparents live in a house that's about 100 years old. I have no
idea how old the wiring is in that house but I'm fairly certain it
hasn't been changed in 20 to 30 years.

They have two 10-20 y/o refrigerators and two 30+ year old freezers.
Downstairs they have three window A/C units running and upstairs they
have two window A/C units running. Plus things like tvs, a computer,
and lights. I'd really hate to see their electric bill.



What's with all the refrigerators? Are they hunters looking to sock away
tons of deer meat?

My grandmother (who lived in Waco,TX) at one point had four
refrigerators and one freezer. Two of the refrigerators (one of which
must have been a 1950s model) and the freezer were kept outside. She
did this so she could buy perishable stuff on sale and store it. I
thought it was a good idea until I grew up started paying my own
electric bills. At that point I realized she had been spending far
more on electricity to keep the stupid refrigerators running than she
ever saved buying stuff on sale. At one point I tried to convince her
of this, but at 90 years old, she knew way more than I did. ;-)

It really is sad to see posts like this especially in the middle of a
heat wave. Two 30+ year old freezers are most definitely hemmoraging
energy.

Doug

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:

It doesn't really matter what's wrong with the bottom outlet. A new outlet
costs less than a pack of cigarettes. Go buy one and install it for them.


It could matter. Some outlets are wired split, where half is served by
one pair, usually hot all the time, the other by another pair, usually
switched.

wrote in message
oups.com...

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:

It doesn't really matter what's wrong with the bottom outlet. A new
outlet
costs less than a pack of cigarettes. Go buy one and install it for them.


It could matter. Some outlets are wired split, where half is served by
one pair, usually hot all the time, the other by another pair, usually
switched.


Yeah, but he said that the bottom outlet had worked for the AC, but then
stopped, as if something had changed. Either unwittingly someone flipped a
switch that controlled the bottom, or...lots of possibilities.

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:
wrote in message
oups.com...

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:

It doesn't really matter what's wrong with the bottom outlet. A new
outlet
costs less than a pack of cigarettes. Go buy one and install it for them.


It could matter. Some outlets are wired split, where half is served by
one pair, usually hot all the time, the other by another pair, usually
switched.


Yeah, but he said that the bottom outlet had worked for the AC, but then
stopped, as if something had changed. Either unwittingly someone flipped a
switch that controlled the bottom, or...lots of possibilities.

True; things that work the way they should are pretty much predictable,
but things that break cover a whole wide wonderful world of
possibilities.

wrote in message
oups.com...

JoeSpareBedroom wrote:

It doesn't really matter what's wrong with the bottom outlet. A new
outlet
costs less than a pack of cigarettes. Go buy one and install it for them.


It could matter. Some outlets are wired split, where half is served by
one pair, usually hot all the time, the other by another pair, usually
switched.

That's what I wanted to say.

It takes only a few minutes (less time than it takes to post an article in a
newsgroup) to unscrew and pull out the receptacle to see if this is the
case. So that is what I would do first.

If the two receptacles are not wired split and one is working while another
is not, then obviously replace the receptacles. If they are wired split,
then further investigation is required (e.g. is there power coming into the
bottom receptacle).

Burnt contacts within the socket could be the problem.

Replacing the socket makes sense. As to the fridges int he cellar,
most cellars are open ceiling. Not a big problem to run a couple new
circuits. Maybe treat them to some new electric sockets in the cellar?

--

Christopher A. Young
You can't shout down a troll.
You have to starve them.
..

"Mike S." wrote in message
ups.com...
My grandparents live in a house that's about 100 years old. I have no
idea how old the wiring is in that house but I'm fairly certain it
hasn't been changed in 20 to 30 years.

They have two 10-20 y/o refrigerators and two 30+ year old freezers.
Downstairs they have three window A/C units running and upstairs they
have two window A/C units running. Plus things like tvs, a computer,
and lights. I'd really hate to see their electric bill.

The other day I was there and something happened that concerns me. The
A/C was on in a bedroom and we were vacuuming in the room. Some time
after that (maybe 5-10 min) I noticed that the A/C had stopped
working.
Grandpa went to check the breaker and everything was ok. So I plugged
the A/C into the top outlet and it worked. I then plugged it back into
the bottom outlet where it had been and it wouldn't work.

What would cause the bottom outlet to stop working?

It has me concerned because they do the dumbest and unsafe things
sometimes. I saw them plug a three prong A/C into an adapter that
converts it to two prongs, then they plugged it into an extension
cord,
then into the wall. So basically, they had the A/C running of an
extension cord. I think (not sure) that one of the refrigerators may
be
plugged in that way. In the next few weeks they will be getting a
third
refrigerator and I know that one will be plugged into an extension
cord. I was always taught that things like that are potentially
dangerous.