MetaChat - Ask MeCha: I need to fix two things at Swan's End

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02 January 2008

Ask MeCha: I need to fix two things at Swan's End Actually, I need to fix considerably more than two things... but we'll start with that many. →[More:]I'm working on the basement apartment in my house so I can get it rented out.

Problem number one: When I painted the bedroom, I found a working electrical outlet beneath some wallpaper. (What the..?!?) BUT, when it came time to put a plastic plate over it, the plate wouldn't fit properly because the outlet was protruding out of the wall. I tried to push it in a little, there were a few sparks... and the power in the house went out. I brought it back on by flipping the main switch off and then on again, but the outlet had gone dead. Can I fix it myself? And get it to go back into the wall properly?

Problem number two: I took the old dooknob off the bedroom door to paint it - I basically had to destroy the doorknob to get it off but didn't care as it was an awful old thing. Now I'm trying to put in another doorknob - and it won't fit. The hole is cut too far away from the edge for the doorknobs I have. Is it possible to buy doorknobs that allow for more depth or is the door screwed?

post by: Orange Swan at: 20:58 | 7 comments

Problem number one: Ack. If it were me, I would get an electrician to look at that outlet. When you bought the house, what did the inspector say about the wiring? I have an older house that passed inspection, but we still decided to redo the wiring recently because it was just too old.

I can't help with problem number two, sorry.

posted by typewriter 02 January | 21:03

You'll probably want to remove the existing outlet and wire it anew, for safety. What probably happened was that when you pushed it in, two wires touched that should not have, causing a short, sparks, and melting of the leads. Do this now, before you have another short, and a potential fire.

If you have an old door, you need to trawl antique shops for the right kind of knob, as there were innumerable size variations. The new standard Home Depot knobsets just won't fit unless you have a lot of woodworking skill to plug holes and bore new ones and then cover it all up so it looks nice.

posted by dhartung 02 January | 21:03

I'm with dhartung on the outlet. Just make sure the power's off BEFORE you go digging around in there again. I suspect that once the old wiring mess is dealt with, a new outlet may seat itself nicely in the wall again too.

If you cut the power, and pull out the outlet, and it looks like a terrifying mess that you can't sort out, then yeah, call an electrician, but for the most part electrical work isn't that complicated, in my opinion anyway, SO LONG AS YOU REMEMBER TO CUT THE POWER FIRST. I've had a couple of nasty experiences with getting myself too focused on that task at hand, and NOT throwing the breaker, and ending up with a nasty shock and electrical burns to show for it. But, I don't think re-wiring an outlet counts as advanced electrical work.

posted by richat 02 January | 23:57

I don't know how old your house is, but mine is quite old and has that old fabric insulated wire. The problem is the insulation is old and falls apart exposing bare wire. I've had to tape up wire in a ceiling junction box. There might not be anything wrong with your outlet, but they're so cheap to replace that you might as well. Just use the screw terminals rather than the push-in connections. It's a much better connection.

It is odd, though not completely unusual, that your mains tripped, and not the breaker for the circuit. I certainly hope your house doesn't have creative wiring as mine does. I'm fortunate that I work as an electrician/controls technician so I have no problem working on any appliances/wiring issues. The home jobs are quite simple compared to the stuff I have to work on at work...

posted by eekacat 03 January | 05:02

DO NOT TOUCH THE OUTLET!!!!!

I don't have a doorknob on the outside of the kitchen door...it turned out that I need to replace the whole mechanism (bolt, strikeplate, metal rod connecting the knobs, turnpiece, etc.) besides the knobs. I bought replacements, but haven't gotten around to installing them yet.

posted by brujita 03 January | 05:42

As an alternative to trolling about for a replacement doorknob, what about just replacing the door? (Although, if the knob is antique and non-standard, then there's probably a good chance the door will be, too).

As for your electrical problem, it sounds like you should call an electrician, or at least a friend who is handier and has wired electrical sockets before. It's really not something you should mess around with before you see how it's done (but after that, you should be able to do it yourself, as long as you remember to flip off the breaker switch first!)

posted by muddgirl 03 January | 09:41

Replacing the door is a bit of a problem as it is a non-standard size. The ceiling height in the basment is only six feet. And then there's the greater expense. So I wish to avoid replacing the door. I'll have to try checking out some shops that sell salvaged fittings. It's frustrating though. I'm going to be replacing the doorknobs in my part of the house since they are a motley and paint-splashed crew, and since I only need three for the basement I had hoped to reuse the best ones down there. Now I need to buy new ones. Oh well, I'll be happy if I can avoid buying a new door.

I think I might try replacing the outlet. I'll search for some how-to wire outlet diagrams on the web before I begin. As long as the power's turned off before I begin, it's pretty risk-free, and if I really can't fix it I'll call a pro.

Thanks!

posted by Orange Swan 03 January | 11:56

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