Call this morning

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That be kinda scary when you first find it.
It gets worse only with toaster?? If it lost utility neutral should get slot worse with I unblanced load
 
Is there a light fixture on the tin ceiling? Maybe the ceiling is getting energized from there. I agree that there is likely a compromised neutral (perhaps on a MWBC or the utility) and probably some unwanted neutral to local equipment ground bonds as well.
 
Tin ceiling makes me think this will be old K&T wiring, MWBC with lost / compromised neutral connection somewhere, possibly grounding into that tin ceiling.
 
With that intermittent contact and a lost utility neutral, I would expect any unbalanced load like lights to flicker constantly. And loads on the opposite circuit leg could burn out.
So what you probably have is a compromised but not lost utility neutral. And there must be something (like water pipes in attic or wall ?) that is effectively grounding the metal ceiling. It only takes a few volts to create sparks like that, so you are probably looking at two parallel paths that are sharing the neutral current.
 
synchro said:
Is there a light fixture on the tin ceiling? Maybe the ceiling is getting energized from there. I agree that there is likely a compromised neutral (perhaps on a MWBC or the utility) and probably some unwanted neutral to local equipment ground bonds as well.
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Your right this is what I found
f08b17b4230056f62ea17704b58be834.jpg


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petersonra said:
The real problem is that green and yellow wire. It should be green. The electrons are offended that the code now allows for such an abomination.
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Makes them spin out of control in the wrong direction… o_O

No joke, there was an “energy saver” device on the internet a few years ago that claimed to save the energy that is being wasted by electrons spinning in the wrong direction, and their device would correct that, thus saving up to 40% on your electric bill!
 
nickelec said:
Take a look at the attached video. Customer says it happens all the time but gets alot worse when they have the toaster on. This is a steam riser on a the top of a third floor walk up.

I haven't gotten there yet but my guess is a lost utility neutral //cloud.tapatalk.com/s/636d2bde33749/VID-20221110-WA0000.mp4

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We has a similar show of sparks at a dairy. IDR now if they had no EG pulled out to the machinery or the connection rusted away over the years. The metal building siding was sparking and arcing on its way to the SE panel. Neutral bond was still good at the SE.
 
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