My Wall Caught On Fire!---A Classic *Mangia*

[Mike AA]

Hey Aignam, I was just looking through the Chit-Chat and found this thread. Just wondered how this was coming along. Get it fixed or looked at? if not Then I've got a comment, coming from an electrician ( apprentice with enough hours to really be near master but not enough written down) One major part I can tell you is that having a 20 amp fuse or breaker on a circuit for a bedroom or anything besides your laundry room or kitchen or bathroom receptacles is risk of fire because that wire is normally only good for max 15 amp. Calculating the computer power supplies at 400 watts and drawing 10 amps each is incorrect, the wattage listed is on the secondary, your computers will probably only really draw about 2 amps each if running with the monitor. I did a load test on my system with many other things on the same powerstrip, my amp meter only showed about 2 amp. You could easily run all the items you listed on the circuit and it wouldn't over load it. I run more in my room with no trouble at-all. As everyone else said you MUST get this checked out. It wouldn't take a good electrician much time to rewire this problem. Many electricians will give you a free estimate. You don't necessarily need a "certified" electrician, actually they're called Licensed and thats the only way you can be called an electrician, is if you're licensed, but thats just terminology.

Aluminum wiring is still used today for wiring, It is often used in the main power wires coming into your house. Aluminum does expand and contract but the devices made for use with aluminum wire are designed to compensate and are designed NOT to easily corrode and there is also a DE-OX compound used to prevent corrosion/oxidation.

Pending local codes you could fairly easily rewire the whole room with new boxes, wire and devices (receptacles and switched) for fairly low cost and some little time and effort. Also there is now a device called an Arc-Fault breaker required in many states, if you have breakers installed you can install one of these in place of the breaker feeding your room and if it detects arcing it will shut off before causing trouble.

Didn't mean to be long winded but we fix these problems or problems very similar literally daily.

-Mike