Finally got the old keypad in that 1970s split-level to stop giving false alarms after three hours of tracing a single frayed wire behind the baseboard.

Anyone else have a trick for dealing with that old cloth-covered alarm wire that just crumbles when you touch it?

3 comments

3 Comments

Yeah that old cloth wire is a nightmare. I've had luck with a heat gun on low to soften the insulation before moving it.

reese1241mo ago

Heat guns just bake that old insulation into a crumbly mess.

carter.gavin1mo ago

Honestly thought the heat gun thing was a bad idea for years after a couple disasters. Then saw @williamm82 mention using it on low and gave it another shot. The key is keeping it moving and really low heat, just enough to warm it up. Totally changed my mind on old wiring jobs, makes it way less likely to crack. Still gotta go slow but it beats picking out little bits of cloth all day.