I consider myself a decent guy, not stupid but neither a genius when it comes to DIY...
but knob and tube with plaster walls has me stumped.
It seems to the untrained/naive person (me), that running romex from the existing outlets and light switches can be done from the baseboards and not require destroying every plaster wall in the house, run the wires down to the circuit breaker box and have a more confident person that I know connect them.
After watching MANY renovation realities shows and chuckling at people making blunders - I now get to chuckle at myself and actually see that even though the people struggle-they at least get their projects done. I have not had much of any success in even hanging an entry door on the garage due to the door being tilted like a windmill-yeah I think Don Quiote came by and tilted... eesh.
Anyway, I would just like to hear from people that have tried to replace knob and tube themselves- were they able to finish the job themselves or if they had to do it over would they have bit the financial bullet and paid a licensed - permit getting pro. This seems to be the right solution to get the permits and have the job done- leave the plaster mess for us to deal with and as such...
any electricians willing to give a quote on a 720 square foot house near Fenton Mi?
Thanks

If you have no or little electrical experience then this is not a DIY job for you. That much rewiring does require a permit and most electricians will see no merit in having an unskilled homeowner "help".

It's not a big house so I would get a few quotes and save up to do it correctly.

quote:

Originally posted by Jaybee:
If you have no or little electrical experience then this is not a DIY job for you. That much rewiring does require a permit and most electricians will see no merit in having an unskilled homeowner "help".

It's not a big house so I would get a few quotes and save up to do it correctly.

And since its not a big job you may find an electrician willing to work with you as in he will do all the wiring and you can be the helper. Truely amazing all the tricks you can learn while performing that important task. And chances are the electrician will not feel threatened with the newest competition on the block. Good luck.
And I agree just to much to learn about upgrading from K&T. Impossible to type the Readers Digest version.
Besides in most locals, not obtaining permits result in job down time, fines and loss of homeowners ins. should your carrier catch wind of the work.
PS, who would ever want to sleep in a house wired by a novice anyway?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: CommonwealthSparky,

Has the line from the pole to the house ever been up graded and a new panel installed? If not that needs to be done first so they will have a place to run the wires to.
A real electrition will have the tools and know how to run the wires with very little damage to the plaster.

Yes JoeCaption... had the new weatherhead and and circuit breaker box installed 3 years ago.
I tend to be stubborn and suffer because of it when it comes to mechanical or most any thing that is like science... apply knowledge with common CENTS and an average lay-person SHOULD be able to achieve a level of competency that may not rival a professional-but the end result should be acceptable and pass inspection. With knob and tube-it seems clear as mud to me as to how many receptacles I can put in one junction box, how far apart should a receptacle be from another and the real clueless part I have is-how to determine what amp the wire is suppose to have, and what gauge it should be- does it require a different breaker depending on amp etc etc etc.
Physically speaking it seems any one can place wires through walls or floors, ceilings or attics ... connecting the wires to grounds and light fixtures and receptacles - yes it seems like anyone can do that.
Just as easily as anyone can make one little mistake in connecting a wire or not tightening it properly can cause a calamity too.
Bottom line here is- I have zilch confidence and incomplete knowledge to attempt this detail on a critical system in the house.
Thanks for your input

quote:

Originally posted by Jaybee:
If you have no or little electrical experience then this is not a DIY job for you. That much rewiring does require a permit and most electricians will see no merit in having an unskilled homeowner "help".

It's not a big house so I would get a few quotes and save up to do it correctly.

Appreciate your voice of reason Jaybee. As you can see in a reply of mine below to Joecaption- my stubborn approach to most things... that I can do this or that has to have limitation. I will likely moan and groan a little bit more and kick myself for not being able to do it myself before calling in the troops. Money is tight- who knew huh?
My forte` is in teaching/playing golf so maybe I can find a zapper that wants to bopp golf balls in barter. Hmm, in addition to being stubborn, I'm also a dreamer and comedic-wannabe too.
Thanks for the common cent$

CommonwealthSpy
PS, who would ever want to sleep in a house wired by a novice anyway? [/QUOTE]

that is a significant question to wit I can only say- I was kicked out of the witless protection program... they found out I had wit.


I've seen recently that indeed homeowner insurance companies really have disdain for knob and tube for a reason... who likes those companies anyhow?
The people that put the knob and tube here in the way back era of the 1930's or so were not however novices-then. The electrician that did the weatherhead and replaced the fuse box with a circuit breaker panel said the knob and tube was OK... at least but it still makes me sleep warily.

I will repeat my plea for a local qualified electrician with a heart for the economically challenged to do the job right, make a fair profit, not a killing off us and move on to other and many more issues here too.
Thanks again for everyone's input.

nose around the yellow pages and see if somebody will work for/with you on this, then. you may find a new electrician who is willing to have you spool wire, cut some holes, and run gofer to cut the labor down.

nastiest problem with KnT is that there are running splices in the wall all over, covered with rubber and cloth electrical tape. IMPHO and I am not a licensed electrician, you would do yourself a wonderful money-saving service if you were to get a remote-indicator two piece breaker finder kit. and a pad of graph paper. and a packet of colored Sharpies.

every circuit you have, start by plugging the sender in an outlet, find the breaker for that circuit, and shut it off. now scope out every outlet, switch, and light in the house, and mark down which ones died with that breaker, using a unique color for each.

repeat until you are out of breakers.

once an electrician verifies a couple of them him/herself, that set of charts will save you a lot of diagnostic hours before rewiring. and anything that shows a trace of KnT when they open a junction box up will define an entire circuit needing rework.

and frankly, I'd abandon the whole existing mess on each KnT-involved circuit and fully repull. there is a concept known as "last guy to touch it gets sued," and I'm sure the pros will follow the shotgun approach here.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: swschrad,

No one on this board has a bigger disdain for insurance companies that I. But it is a fact of life that you best carry different types of insurance.
And in these parts the premiums triple if your abode has K&T supplying power to devices or fixtures.{On new homeowner policies}.
And while I agree those electricians in that day were top notch, that work could be from 80 years ago. Let us also remember the rooms had a light and maybe one outlet. So that circuit ran all over the house. Then add to the mix all the Joe Handymans in that time frame till now adding who knows what where. So you see where this is going. And also the problems mentioned by others compound the problems.
Electrician work performed to the 2012 NEC guidelines is paramount. I also can agree the the present K&T is OK, no more, no less going with your electricians opinion. Piece of mind is impossible to apply a price tag too. Hope you do find someone to work with you as it is always a joy to see a homeowner striving to do things correctly.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: CommonwealthSparky,

quote:

Originally posted by gnomad56:
Yes JoeCaption... had the new weatherhead and and circuit breaker box installed 3 years ago.
I tend to be stubborn and suffer because of it when it comes to mechanical or most any thing that is like science... apply knowledge with common CENTS and an average lay-person SHOULD be able to achieve a level of competency that may not rival a professional-but the end result should be acceptable and pass inspection. With knob and tube-it seems clear as mud to me as to how many receptacles I can put in one junction box, how far apart should a receptacle be from another and the real clueless part I have is-how to determine what amp the wire is suppose to have, and what gauge it should be- does it require a different breaker depending on amp etc etc etc.
Physically speaking it seems any one can place wires through walls or floors, ceilings or attics ... connecting the wires to grounds and light fixtures and receptacles - yes it seems like anyone can do that.
Just as easily as anyone can make one little mistake in connecting a wire or not tightening it properly can cause a calamity too.
Bottom line here is- I have zilch confidence and incomplete knowledge to attempt this detail on a critical system in the house.
Thanks for your input

True anyone can do it. But doing it to NEC standards and passing electrical inspections is not the same. I also agree most of the work is commonsense. As in neatness counts.

quote:

Originally posted by CommonwealthSparky:
No one on this board has a bigger disdain for insurance companies that I.

I don't know, if you are including Workmans Comp insurance in that field then I think I can give you a run for your money in the disdain department.

Those money grubbers may be #1 on the list.