avery_jackson•1mo agoProlific Poster

PSA: Check your wire nuts on old ceiling fans

Had a ceiling fan in a rental property short out yesterday in Phoenix. The previous guy used those little orange wire nuts on a 12-gauge circuit and one just crumbled when I touched it. Almost started a fire in the attic. Has anyone else run into these older plastic wire nuts getting brittle after a few years?

3 comments

3 Comments

seth_shah1mo ago

That heat in Phoenix attics just cooks those old wire nuts to death. The plastic gets super brittle after a few years of those extreme temperature swings. Replacing every single one is the only safe move, especially in an attic space.

linda_dixon491mo ago

Found an attic fan from the 90s at my moms house last summer and the wire nuts literally fell apart when I touched em. They were all brittle and cracked, just crumbled like old playdough. Ended up replacing every single connection in that whole junction box with new ones cause I didnt trust any of em. Shame how those orange ones get so fragile after enough heat cycles.

betty_kelly91mo ago

I swapped all the wire nuts in my garage last year after finding one that crumbled like a stale cracker. The new ones have been solid through a whole summer of heat.