On Wed, 12 Aug 2009 14:52:26 +0000 (UTC),
wrote:

Also I wonder how many house fires they might end up causing if a few
hundred amps is put through ancient wiring for 12 hours without a break.

At a rough guess, zero. If you try to put "a few hundred amps"
through the wring of any house I've ever lived in you will get
something along the lines of "phut", "bang" or possibly "click" and
the lights will go off. If you're lucky the utility fuse won't be the
one that went.

Guy
--
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk/urc | http://www.nohelmetlaw.org.uk/
"Nullius in Verba" - take no man's word for it.
- attr. Horace, chosen by John Evelyn for the Royal Society