[angelamarcos]

Help! I live in an old condominium with fixtures from the late 1950's. Maintenance is non-existent because all of the apartments are owned by different people and rented without any contract. We have to live here for a couple of months and are worried for our safety (fire hazard), burning/ruining any more appliances if we plug them in, and maybe getting a high electric bill? The outlets are scary; they ruined a small am/FM GE radio after listening to it for one hour only, it won't turn back on; the iron over-rapidly over-heats and we have burned holes in two cotton shirts, a pair of shorts, and a pair of dress pants got scorched, all on the lowest setting. I once plugged in a small two prong beater and when I turned the power switch on, it sparked red and blue inside; I immediately disconnected it and put it away in storage. All the power outlets are full of dust, and cause a spark whenever a plug goes in, even from the power cord to my laptop, cell phone re charger, the coffee maker, whatever. Are we going to get a high electric bill? Are more small appliances in risk of getting burnt? Are there some precautions we should take to prevent a house fire? A neighbor in the building who tried to fix an electric shower head said it would be fixed by replacing a simple wire on the inside, and we ended up having to pay for a whole new one because the replaced wire didn't work; he didn't charge us for the install work but said it was caused by the old electrical wiring and bad outlets, and showed me that all the metal surfaces (inside outlets) were blackened, under a lot of dust; sometimes we have to pull really hard to retrieve something that is plugged in. Other than moving because we would have already if we could, does anyone have any advice.
Thank you very much.

[tkrussell]

You should not be worrying about a high electric bill, you need to be more concerned about the appliances getting burned out.

You need to hire a qualified electrician to troubleshoot and repair the problem causing the appliances to burn, as this is usually caused by abnormally high voltage which is usually caused by a loose neutral connection.

I found a loose neutral connection that caused a fire in a condo, the problem was a loose bolted connection in a multi-meter pack, way beyond the ability of a DIY'er to find and/or repair.

While you have an electrician on site, have the wiring and devices checked.

[hkstroud]

neighbor in the building who tried to fix an electric shower

Where are you located? Are you in the U.S.

If not, are the appliances 120 volt?