In the article "60-Amp Electrical Service" I mentioned that in older homes, the most common fire and safety hazards in the electrical system are primarily caused by unsafe connections and poor configurations in panels and internal wiring. So, specifically, what are these problems? Based on my home inspection experience, I summarize them as follows:

1. Panels too small, unable to accommodate enough circuits: Older electrical panels often only support 6 or 12 circuits, which clearly cannot meet the demands of modern living.
2. Too few circuits, causing excessive load per circuit: If the panel has only six circuits, you often see situations where one circuit powers two kitchens; or there is only one outlet in the kitchen, with numerous appliances plugged into an extension cord; or a single circuit is connected to more than 12 outlets and light fixtures. These situations frequently result in blown fuses or tripped breakers, and pose fire and safety risks.
3. Lack of dedicated circuits for major appliances: For instance, a 40A circuit might be connected to two electric stoves, or a dryer and washer might share a single circuit.
4. Overfused circuits: This occurs when the fuse or breaker is rated for a higher amperage than the circuit wire itself. An over-sized fuse or breaker cannot blow or trip to protect the wiring in case of overcurrent. For instance, Homeowners might notice that a 15A fuse blows frequently, and replace it with a 20A or 30A one. While this stops the fuse from blowout, it may cause the wire overheated, or even burnt.
5. Multi-tapped circuits - 2 or more wires connected to one fuse or breaker in panel: This easily leads to loose connections, poor contact and overheating, which can cause fires. This usually occurs when the panel is too small, and lacks space to accommodate additional circuits added later. However, I also seen big panels with plenty of available space that still have multi-tapped circuits. This may be due to homeowners or electricians trying to save on material and labor costs.
6. Old wiring without ground wire. The wire has only one hot and one neutral wire, no ground wire. The wiring is less safe and incompatible with some modern appliances that require grounding. Many homeowners, for convenience, replace two-prong outlets with three-prong outlets without adding a ground wire. This is called "false grounding." These outlets easily mislead users into thinking they are properly grounded normal outlets, which can be unsafe under certain conditions.
7. Missing cover plates on switches, outlets, or junction boxes: In approximately 30% of the homes I inspect, I find a few switches, outlets, or junction boxes missing their cover plates. This allows fingers searching for switches or outlets to potentially touch exposed wiring, and suffer electric shock. I suspect this always happens because electricians are too busy, then forget about covers, especially after being paid.

The above points are just the tip of the iceberg. Different homes may have various electrical issues. During inspections, we've encountered many unbelievable hazardous conditions. Interested readers can find vivid samples in "Photos - Electrical Systems" section of our website: www.wintrust.ca. Depending on the nature of each problem, we provide varying levels of warning and tailored repair recommendations, which effectively prevent potential serious consequences. This further illustrates the importance of a pre-purchase home inspection.

In future articles, we'll discuss ways to effectively improve residential electrical safety.

This article was originally published in "Real Estate Weekly", Issue #134, August 04, 2007.