Thanks, that all makes sense and meshes with what I think I know.
I was just up there this evening since my earlier posts. Man, trying to figure out what they've done in the past with several minor "remodels" over the years. Cut beams (not badly done that I've seen), wires run all sorts of weird ways. I found a j-box with 5 cables. 3 romex and 2 black industrial style sheathed "round" wire bundles. The box is on top of a light, and I can't make sense of it (yet). There are 2 switches in the wall beside/below it. One switch operates nothing I can identify. The other operates the light below the box. With my handy current proximity tester, I can see the wire from the light switch going on/off. The switch that "does nothing" also matches with one of the black wires, and other than the wire from the light switch, all circuits are staying energized all the time. I had convinced myself that the box was just a circuit junction and NOT the box used for the light (wrong type anyway), and that there had to be a false ceiling there with hidden connections, but measurements don't support that. <sigh/> The only I'm going to figure it out it to take the light apart and go up from there to see what's in there. I was poking around there because I thought the black wire was part of the remaining aluminum, but checking the switch it's copper. And I wanted to use that switch to control a dedicated light circuit for the fans (light kits) in the adjacent bedroom. Anyway, that was my dead end project for tonight. The remaining aluminum circuits that I've found go to an outside light and nearby bathroom that hasn't been fully remodeled since it was built (for now, still has the "roman" tiled tub, soon to be solid concrete). Just so hard to work in that area since that is the roof slope coming down on an outside wall. Only about half of it is physically accessible, not sure how I'm going to finish that final section. I guess I'll be pulling a fish or directly repulling the runs with romex. I hate that, so many opportunities for things to go badly. So, back to the OP, I feel your pain...
I was just up there this evening since my earlier posts. Man, trying to figure out what they've done in the past with several minor "remodels" over the years. Cut beams (not badly done that I've seen), wires run all sorts of weird ways. I found a j-box with 5 cables. 3 romex and 2 black industrial style sheathed "round" wire bundles. The box is on top of a light, and I can't make sense of it (yet). There are 2 switches in the wall beside/below it. One switch operates nothing I can identify. The other operates the light below the box. With my handy current proximity tester, I can see the wire from the light switch going on/off. The switch that "does nothing" also matches with one of the black wires, and other than the wire from the light switch, all circuits are staying energized all the time. I had convinced myself that the box was just a circuit junction and NOT the box used for the light (wrong type anyway), and that there had to be a false ceiling there with hidden connections, but measurements don't support that. <sigh/> The only I'm going to figure it out it to take the light apart and go up from there to see what's in there. I was poking around there because I thought the black wire was part of the remaining aluminum, but checking the switch it's copper. And I wanted to use that switch to control a dedicated light circuit for the fans (light kits) in the adjacent bedroom. Anyway, that was my dead end project for tonight. The remaining aluminum circuits that I've found go to an outside light and nearby bathroom that hasn't been fully remodeled since it was built (for now, still has the "roman" tiled tub, soon to be solid concrete). Just so hard to work in that area since that is the roof slope coming down on an outside wall. Only about half of it is physically accessible, not sure how I'm going to finish that final section. I guess I'll be pulling a fish or directly repulling the runs with romex. I hate that, so many opportunities for things to go badly. So, back to the OP, I feel your pain...