home wiring thread

[amdskip]

Friend just purchased a 31 year old house. The lights sometime flicker constantly on all the circuits, totally random. Any guesses to the problem?

 

[Sluggo]

I guess that a large appliance (fridge, AC unit) is starting up, and the house has a minimally sized main circuit.

What do I win?

 

[Evadman]

You probably only have a 60 amp panel. Update it.

Also, you are probably getting a decent voltage drop when something starts up (like a compressor motor in your refrig) and you notice the lights flicker.

 

[aidanjm]

Originally posted by: amdskip
Friend just purchased a 31 year old house. The lights sometime flicker constantly on all the circuits, totally random. Any guesses to the problem?

poltergeist?

 

[amdskip]

No, it's not like a large appliance starting up at all. This is a flicker for up to a minute at a time. I think the panel is larger than 60 but I am not 100% positive on this.

 

[Evadman]

Is it the entire house, or limited to one circuit?

 

[Sluggo]

Originally posted by: amdskip
No, it's not like a large appliance starting up at all. This is a flicker for up to a minute at a time. I think the panel is larger than 60 but I am not 100% positive on this.

It could possibly have a bad connection at one leg or the ground where the power company's wires connect to the electric meter.

If the whole house has an issue it can most likely be traced to the main circuit, or an issue with the whole neighborhood's circuit.

 

[amdskip]

Every light in the place does this. I'm contacting an electrician friend of mine to take a look but I just wanted to see if anyone here knew anything.