Update: I compared taping a motion sensor to the wall for testing versus using the actual bracket in a 1970s house with plaster walls.

The bracket won because the tape gave out after 20 minutes and the sensor fell into a bucket of joint compound, so maybe it's just me but has anyone else had a simple test go totally sideways?

2 comments

2 Comments

jennifer_fisher12d ago

My old house had this one outlet that would trip the breaker if you looked at it wrong. I tried to test it with a basic plug-in circuit tester, but the plastic was so brittle the whole faceplate crumbled in my hand. Spent the next hour picking little brown shards out of the carpet. Sometimes the test itself causes the next problem.

mark_fisher4812d ago

Wait, the faceplate just turned to dust? That's wild. I've seen old plastic get brittle but never like that. Must have been baking in the sun for decades. Sounds like the outlet was trying to warn you off before you even touched the wires. What a mess to clean up.