> >As a bonus,
> >the wiring for the lights is so old it's that 'pipe with 
> wire and a bit 
> >of insulation jammed down it' stuff, whatever it's called.  
> I've seen 
> >it before, but never a 'live' one.
> 
> That sounds like MIMS cable, mineral insulated metal 
> sheathed.  Very expensive stuff which is used where a cable 
> must be fire resistant. 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineral-insulated_copper-clad_cab
> le  Always amazes me that the conductors don't touch either 
> each other or the sheath when you bend it, dosen't seem to 
> have a lot of clearance and it's only crumbly white stuff 
> holding it in place.
> 
> Regards
> 
> Mike


MIMS sounds about right.  This is like the great-great-great granddaddy of
that stuff.  Instead of being supplied in one piece, you assembled it
on-site.  So you laid down the copper pipe, put the wire into the
insulation, and slid it in.  My father once pointed out you could save time
& money by leaving out bits of the insulation here & there, after all, the
inspectors could only inspect the ends...  

You normally see it buried under newer stuff, sometimes 2 or 3 generations
(cloth coats, rubber coated, PVC etc).  Common in houses built around WW1,
not sure when it was superceded.  A bit like data centres, you can tell
their age by what type of wire is on the bottom.

Maybe Jinx has got some in his roof, he can bury that in his garden.  Or
sell the copper (6 months too late).

Tony

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