[RidgePole]

My 45 chrome is a little over a year old as well, and it’s also still slippery unless I have grip on. (I wonder if their chrome coating has changed since then- people don’t seem to be having the same problem now!) You definitely don’t want to become dependent on grip, but you might want to try a few out to see if there’s a combination that works with your chemistry and your pole just to even the playing field between practice at home and practice at the studio.

[RidgePole]

If you can pull the wiring out far enough, the rating should be stamped on the plastic sheathing.  You can also check somewhere that the wiring is exposed, like an attic or crawl space.  There's a chance the wiring in the attic is a different rating than the wiring at the fixture itself, though, so beware of that.  Most builders will use the same wiring throughout the house, but a previous homeowner could have switched it out.  You know- stuff happens.

[RidgePole]

I’ve had my chrome X-Pert for almost a year and have the same problem. It gets several hours of use per week but is still super slippery unless I really warm it up, which I don’t always have time to do. Out of desperation, I tried giving the pole a light coating of hairspray, and (hooray!) it makes it just sticky enough that I don’t slide off. I spray it on, let it mostly dry, and then dab off any big globs or drips with a microfiber towel. I don’t know if it’ll damage the finish over time (it seems to wipe off fine when I clean the pole), but it can’t be any worse for the chrome than sandpaper.