A comment in another thread suggested this one to me.
Every few years, every code we can imagine is revised. New codes are written. Rules and requirements are added - the codes never get smaller.
Is this the way to achieve safety?
While each change is argued to increase safety, each additional burden is also an argument to not build anew.
For example ....
My home was built in 1940. One could argue that it can't be TOO electrically deficient, having worked for this long. They were generous; 3-120v circuits and 1-240v for the water heater. A total of 4 duplex and 2 single receptacles in the place. I expect one could completely duplicate this home's wiring today for less than $500.
To build my place today - same size and features - would require considerably more expense; I doubt the place could be wired for less than $5000. That's quite an increase, all due to code changes.
Apply these changes down the line to all the other trades ... and I think it's obvious why there are so many 1940-era homes around, and why no one knocks them down and does it over.
As a result, these code changes have had the unintended effect of ensuring that old homes will continue to be used, and not replaced until there is no possible way to carry on using them.
So my question is this: Have we made a wrong turn on the road to safety?
