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Fuse box from hell

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 2:27 pm
by meetVA
Okay, just when bad goes to worse.
I live in a very nice apt that I've had few-to-little concerns about until this moment. It is on the historic register, in a "developing" neighborhood, is cheap and brought me closer to the Red.

But well HELL! Last night it was as though little electric demons were going through my apt rampaging every single little friggin' fuse!
First the front rooms go out. Fine, I'm a big girl, eventhough my landlord/roommate is gone for a month I can handle this. So I go to the basement, none of the fuses are blown. Fine. Try to reset them anyway. I mean this is an old building. Could be they just didn't flip.
Go up stairs. Nothing.
Okay, leave a note to see if anyone in the building can help a girl out.
Get a knock on the door. Really nice person upstairs sees my distress and decides to help out.
Turns out, there is a fuse box in the spare bedroom. SCORE. Electricity, here I come. Oh but NO. There are no spare fuses. It is 11pm at night.
That's okay. She has some upstairs. Try those. Oh now the back rooms won't work.
Sheeeetttt!!!

That's okay, I can go and get good fuses this morning. Until then I rig a line from the bathroom (which is the only room left with electrons running) to light a single lamp in my bedroom.

Oh, and guess what goes out this morning.

Does this suck or what?!

Anyone looking for a roomie for the next 2 weeks?
I'm about ready to torch the place.

Maybe I'll feel better after the hardware store. :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil: :evil:

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 3:03 pm
by diggum
Sounds like the ghosts are havin a little fun with ya.

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 3:10 pm
by Don McGlone
Put a penny under the blown fuse. The lights should come back on, and there's a possibility that what ever caused the fuse to blow will burn your place down. Problem solved!

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 3:26 pm
by ReachHigh
Are any of the outlets ground fault? the one in the bathroom should be, make sure the outlet it self hasn't triggered.

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 3:35 pm
by lordjim_2001
That's why more reason you own a headlamp. You do own a headlamp VA?

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 4:20 pm
by Rags
I doubt that if she is replacing fuses (probably ancient glass fuses) that her landlord has put a GFI as an update. I feel for ya VA, there are tons of things that can go wrong with an old house.

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 4:45 pm
by skychick
VA -- It is just one more reason to leave Cincy.

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 4:49 pm
by jstokes
I hand a Apt. that when ever it got windy we would lose power in just the bedrooms. It sucked.

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 6:13 pm
by Saxman
Aluminum foil works as well. Even better, screw a higher rated fuse into the blown fuse's spot. Good way to start a fire somewhere.

Posted: Wed Feb 09, 2005 6:42 pm
by meetVA
Update.
I replaced all 6 fuses. Front rooms started to work. Woo-hoo!
Nothing else.
Then it looks like the bathroom has been remodeled since the era of Margaret Thatcher so I tried the reset thingy and that worked. For the bathroom!
Double woo-hoo.
But well hell. The kitchen and LR are still out. Any other bright intellegent folks out there with more ideas for a poor-lil-chick like me?
The fridge still works, the stereo, the microwave, just not the lights.
I feel like I am still in the twillight zone but just not as music intensive.

Thanks all!