Ceiling fan install in a 120 year old house nearly got me

I was swapping a light fixture for a ceiling fan in a place out near Lancaster, PA last month. The junction box felt solid but when I pulled the old wiring out, I found knob and tube still live and tucked behind the insulation. I got shocked through my linesman pliers, nothing crazy, but it made me stop and reroute the whole circuit to a new box with a proper brace. Now I always open the wall first on anything older than 1950. Anyone else run into surprise live knob and tube on a simple swap?

2 comments

2 Comments

alicea261mo ago

The real problem was the wiring, not the box, and opening the wall wouldn't have saved you from a hidden live line behind insulation. Sometimes you just get lucky with old houses, and a bit of caution plus a voltage tester is all you really need.

grace_hunt841mo ago

Three houses ago I had the same thing happen on a bathroom light swap near Philly, felt the tingle right through my screwdriver. @alicea26 makes a fair point about the voltage tester, but I still think opening the wall is worth it, even if it feels like overkill most of the time. Old knob and tube is a straight up coin flip, and I'd rather find it before I'm holding a live wire.