jcneighbor wrote:
You can buy a little outlet tester for maybe $4 that will tell you whether your outlets are properly grounded. It has 3 lights and a simple guide for testing.

brewster wrote:
I once took down a drop ceiling and found an unusual splice of BX cable just hanging there: the wires had been looped together, not even twisted, and then wrapped with tape. No connector, no box. Very little copper to copper surface contact. It's amazing it hadn't melted down.

The good news is our electrical loads are way down. Even with all our new gadgets, the appliances are way more efficient and the lights use less than 25% of what they used to. I still have a 1 bedroom unit running off a single 20A breaker, and they never blow it.

Quote:

jcneighbor wrote:
I would never buy a place that had:
-2-Wire interior wiring, meaning no ground.

I've been told by electricians doing permitted and inspected work that wiring using the armor of AC cable (BX) as ground is fully legal as long as the proper connectors are used. There's a lot of misconception around about this stemming from areas with older NM (romex) cable with no ground. You'll never find that here, at least not legally done, since NM was introduced here much later when 3 conductors was required.

jcneighbor wrote:
I would never buy a place that had:
-2-Wire interior wiring, meaning no ground.

jcneighbor wrote:
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And I've always had proper steel fire escapes on my rental properties. The chain ladder is better than nothing but I'm not sure if that's legal for upper-floor rentals. (Somebody here must know)
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neverleft wrote:
brewster (and tenants) I always made sure tenants on the 2rd or 3rd floor had a collapsible/chain fire ladders. Just as an extra precaution. They can stick them under their beds or in a bedroom closet. HD and Lowes has some.

JadedJC wrote:
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bodhipooh wrote:
Quote:

foshizigity00 wrote:
as a tenant of an old building (just around the corner from this fire too!), this terrifies me as well! it's a looming fear of mine too because i know the electrical in our house is rickety at best. i dont know what else i can do but make sure our smoke alarms are installed, powered, and working properly. o_o

Or, you could move. I am not trying to be snarky, but not amount of savings is worth the life of my family. I have chosen apartments that are perhaps not as convenient in terms of location over others precisely because of similar factors. These old units in old units are downright scary. I have been in apartments where any electrical use causes lights to dim slightly, along with un-grounded outlets, and such. No amount of precaution on your part will have any effect on your neighbors. If they are plugging 20 devices into one outlet and cause a fire, all you will be able to do is (hopefully) evacuate on time and save your life... while losing all possessions.

Exactly. Another reason I was glad to get out of my historic rat trap several years ago. I've seen people run extension cords to their window AC units, among other acts of sheer stupidity. Arrrrrggggh!! Anyway, what is a "cockloft"?

I hope the bike shop isn't out of commission for too long. I'd hate to have to change my own flat tires.

bodhipooh wrote:
Quote:

foshizigity00 wrote:
as a tenant of an old building (just around the corner from this fire too!), this terrifies me as well! it's a looming fear of mine too because i know the electrical in our house is rickety at best. i dont know what else i can do but make sure our smoke alarms are installed, powered, and working properly. o_o

Or, you could move. I am not trying to be snarky, but not amount of savings is worth the life of my family. I have chosen apartments that are perhaps not as convenient in terms of location over others precisely because of similar factors. These old units in old units are downright scary. I have been in apartments where any electrical use causes lights to dim slightly, along with un-grounded outlets, and such. No amount of precaution on your part will have any effect on your neighbors. If they are plugging 20 devices into one outlet and cause a fire, all you will be able to do is (hopefully) evacuate on time and save your life... while losing all possessions.

foshizigity00 wrote:
as a tenant of an old building (just around the corner from this fire too!), this terrifies me as well! it's a looming fear of mine too because i know the electrical in our house is rickety at best. i dont know what else i can do but make sure our smoke alarms are installed, powered, and working properly. o_o

brewster wrote:
Quote:

neverleft wrote:
Investigators say the fire appears to have started in a bathroom, and an electrical outlet malfunction is likely to blame.

As a landlord this is terrifying. So many of our JC buildings have ancient wiring, I'm amazed there aren't more fires. Does anyone know if there's a website where the analyses of home fire causes are compiled?

neverleft wrote:
Investigators say the fire appears to have started in a bathroom, and an electrical outlet malfunction is likely to blame.

elsquid wrote:
Grove Street Bikes tweeted that their shop is closed until further notice due to the fire.

neverleft wrote:
Firefighters battle 3-alarm blaze in Downtown Jersey City

By Patrick Villanova | The Jersey Journal
on August 10, 2016 at 9:50 AM, updated August 10, 2016 at 10:06 AM

Firefighters have knocked down a three-alarm blaze above a Downtown Jersey City bicycle shop, Jersey City spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill said.

The fire was reported at 365 Grove St. -- above Grove Street Bicycles -- around 9 a.m. Morrill said there is still a heavy firefighter presence at the scene, located at the corner of Grove and First streets.

No injuries were reported and all occupants were safely evacuated from the building, Morrill said.

The city spokeswoman added that the fire appears to have started in the building's cockloft, but noted the cause is still under investigation.

http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... s.html#incart_2box_hudson

HeWhoIs wrote:
From the JJ comments.

** ***

"@Sound Machine Enough of this drivel. Stop reposting to keep it at the top, you mindless city hall employee.

"@Sound Machine This tool 100% works for City Hall. I'd pay money to find out who in city hall this really is."

EasyGibson wrote:
Can we take a moment to appreciate our public servants?

I was out getting coffee this morning and watched this whole thing unfold around the corner from me.
Police and firefighters were on the scene lickity split, and had the necessary streets blocked off with officers stationed at intersections directing traffic to both keep commuters moving and to let EMS vehicles through.
The firefighters were up on the roof with demo saws and hoses taking care of business in no time. It was great to watch people that knew what they were doing do it with speed and confidence. It takes some guts(read: balls) to stand on a roof right next to a flame as tall as you are and still manage to get the job done.

So yeah, that's all. Thanks to everybody that was out there taking care of business this morning. It looked like the fire was controlled very quickly so hopefully there's minimal property damage and personal loss.

All the best to everybody affected in the building. Been a rough couple years for that section of Grove St. there.

neverleft wrote:
Firefighters battle 3-alarm blaze in Downtown Jersey City

By Patrick Villanova | The Jersey Journal
on August 10, 2016 at 9:50 AM, updated August 10, 2016 at 10:06 AM

Firefighters have knocked down a three-alarm blaze above a Downtown Jersey City bicycle shop, Jersey City spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill said.

The fire was reported at 365 Grove St. -- above Grove Street Bicycles -- around 9 a.m. Morrill said there is still a heavy firefighter presence at the scene, located at the corner of Grove and First streets.

No injuries were reported and all occupants were safely evacuated from the building, Morrill said.

The city spokeswoman added that the fire appears to have started in the building's cockloft, but noted the cause is still under investigation.

video of fire-
http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/20 ... s.html#incart_2box_hudson