A warning about old electrical boxes before you start a kitchen demo

Last Tuesday, I was taking down a backsplash in my 1950s house in Springfield, and I found a metal junction box with cloth wiring that was totally crumbling. It was tucked behind the tile, and I almost drilled right into it. Had to stop everything, call an electrician, and it cost me $350 to get it fixed safely. Has anyone else run into something like this during a remodel, and how did you handle it?

2 comments

2 Comments

rowank6919d ago

My neighbor in Oak Park found the same thing last year. It's crazy how many old houses have these hidden surprises, like mila_mitchell said. Makes you wonder what else is hiding in the walls.

mila_mitchell19d ago

Yeah, my uncle's a contractor and he says he finds that cloth wiring all the time in old bungalows. It just turns to dust if you touch it. He won't even let his guys demo a wall without checking for boxes first. Your $350 sounds about right, honestly. Could have been way worse if you'd hit it.