from MSN money.....
Knob and tube? Time to rewire Knob-and-tube wiring was the main method of electrical wiring from the
1880s through the 1930s, lasting even into the 1950s. Back then, a single outlet per room was common, and the average household's few appliances didn't collectively suck much power.What concerns insurers is the strain that today's power-hungry appliances place on older wiring. Knob-and-tube wiring typically doesn't have a ground, and you're not supposed to use modern three- hole outlets unless the ground is functional.
Problems getting homeowners insurance Fuse boxes, which often accompanied older wiring, pose another problem. As a safety feature, the fuses have thin slivers of metal designed to "blow" when too much electricity courses through them, shutting off power. But homeowners occasionally try to beat the system and keep the electricity flowing by sticking pennies, which are much thicker, into the fuse sockets. Doing so makes the wiring inside a house's walls hot -- so hot that the house could catch fire.
Good luck convincing an insurance agent that you would never try this.
Some regular carriers will cover you without making you tear out all your knob-and-tube wiring. They can live with it running between a wall switch and overhead lights, assuming you've otherwise rewired with grounded outlets for power-hungry appliances such as microwave ovens, TVs and hair dryers.
The bad news: Paying for those upgrades, plus a new circuit breaker, costs thousands of dollars. So "affordable" insurance doesn't necessarily come cheap.
Bottom line: Most carriers consider extensive knob-and-tube wiring a fire hazard and won't insure a house that has it