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#37391 04/27/04 06:47 PM
Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 1,457
E
Member
I was passing by a house I have done work at in the past few years and noticed a dumpster. I figured there was some new project going on until I saw a window in the area of the last project (a mahogany paneled billiard room) covered in plywood. This is a 12,000 sq foot multi multi multi million dollar house. I looked in the dumpster and it was filled with charred wood. After I caught my breath and my heart slowed down I made a few calls. Turns out the fire started in the room adjacent to the billiard room, the hometheater. Fire destroyed theater and billiard room and rest of basement. Total estimated damage $1.5 Million. Cause under investigation but it was not my work. Possibly rope lighting or projector.

#37392 04/27/04 08:20 PM
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 1,438
Member
Glad to hear of your alleviation! One of the guys in our company got kinda tangled up in a fire investigation... a wall caught on fire on the exterior of a million dollar home in one of the ritzy areas near LA... a hot wire in an outdoor receptacle melted & made contact with the metal yoke strap of the receptacle with was grounded, but only by a #16 piece of copper, stove-bolted to the metal box... This all occured on a rainy day & water was pooled against the wall about 1-2inches... The now "live" ground wire was in contact with the stucco mesh which, now was connecting to ground via the pooled water. The stucco wire became a huge heating element! [Linked Image]

As further investigation revealed, a previous "electrician" had wired this circuit into a 50A 240V range circuit via a j box in the attic... [Linked Image] [Linked Image]

Our guy only changed the interior recepts of the room, (to decora)... The outdoor receptacle was just a straight shot into the attic & the forementioned J-box..

Getting a call from our boss that his previous job caught fire left him on edge for quite some time! The company gave him a week off after being exhonerated! [Linked Image]

-Randy

#37393 04/27/04 08:36 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 4,391
I
Moderator
That is a heart stopper for sure Scott.

I had a movie theater I was wiring on Cape Cod burn while under construction.

We where staying in a motel across Rt 6 from the theater, at about 3 AM we where woken up by a fully outfitted fireman looking for "Bob the electrician"

I cross the road and see the place smoking pretty good, it turned out the Chief wanted to know what power was on in the building and could I cut it off. (We where running off a temp feed)

The final cause was the GC leaving heaters on over night unattended.

Bob


Bob Badger
Construction & Maintenance Electrician
Massachusetts

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