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#152221 04/14/04 11:21 PM
Joined: Oct 2000
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Quote
I got the attached pics from Jay Rogers at the oldhouseweb.com forum. They were taken at the 1930ies cabin he bought recently.

He says that the service is 60A and there's some knob&tube as well as other wiring from later additions. he wants to have anything redone and a new 100A service. Most of all he wants to move the panel, since the old one would end up right above his future bath tub...

greetings from Austria

Ranger (Texas_Ranger)
[Linked Image]

[Linked Image]

[Linked Image]

#152222 04/16/04 11:46 AM
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,143
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Well, it might be old, but at least it's clean... no double wired terminals, triple tapped conductors & the like.

#152223 05/13/04 12:40 PM
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,438
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This give me flashbacks when we went on vacation with friends to a cabin in the local mountains (Big Bear,CA) It got down to the low teens F. at night when we were there.. My friend brought a couple "room heaters" (1500W each).. I spent some time trying to hint that the old electrical system probably couldn't handle running both of them, if even one..
We all hit the sack and about an hour later I'm awoken by this seriously annoying "buzz" coming from outside... I threw some clothes on to try to get rid of whatever insect I thought was out there.. When I came across the old panel... Seems Mark (my buddy) had both heaters going full blast from the same circuit & the Wadsworth circuit breaker was making the wierdest sound I'd ever heard!(almost like that cicaida sound) It stopped once i removed one of the heaters from the circuit.. This was only one of all of 3 times I've come across Wadsworth breakers or fuses... 25A + whatever else ran through that 20A circuit for I'm guessing an hour before it started making the racket & I turned off some of the load.... Just curious if Wadsworth is supposed to be in the FPE/Zinsco junk pile if I do come across it again..

-Randy

#152224 07/12/04 09:50 PM
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 812
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DougW,


You said tht it was clean electric wise, but if the homeowner puts in their new bathtub, and doesn't move or replace the fuse panel, the panel will be even cleaner, and the water will be shock cleaned, literally.


Is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?
#152225 07/17/04 10:29 AM
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 812
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Sorry for the second post, but...

quote:
---------------------------------------------
“Most of all he wants to move the panel, since the old one would end up right above his future bath tub…”
---------------------------------------------
LOL!! Major remodeling. Are you serious?

Sorry, but I don't know how do the quote thing.


Is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?
#152226 07/17/04 11:12 AM
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 597
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Randy,

Up here in Minnesota, I've seen a lot of Wadsworth 60A fuse centers, but only a few CB centers.

In my early contracting days, on occasion, I would wittness an arc on a 15 or 20 A 120 v branch circuit protected by a Wadsworth breaker. . . The plasma arc was memorable each time, a robust bark, a chunk of metal vaporized, and I wouldn't have to reset the breaker. Ahh, the convenience of NoTrip® design. [Linked Image]

The fuse centers, on the other hand, have only degraded from the usual corrosion or overloading issues. The fuse center hardware was/is a solid performer IMO.

Looking at Jay Rogers' two pics above:
  • Assuming the Wadsorth subpanel is a four plug fuse unit
  • Why isn't the feeder to the Wadsworth subpanel tapped off the bus lugs on the bottom of the main fuse block?
  • There is no ground apparent between the CH panel and the Wadsworth. Is it safe to assume the subpanel neutral is bonded to the enclosure?


Al Hildenbrand

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