Dodgy trade pictures for your amusement! - 1 Million Views!

Darkwood · Mar 21, 2015

Right ... Just been nudged to set this up by Paul.M and sounds a good idea following recent threads I've done in the Arms..

Rules....No Offensive material... edit if required before posting as this is the public arena.
Anything to do with the trade or in and around it ...H&S pic's welcome.

[ElectriciansForums.net] Dodgy trade pictures for your amusement! - 1 Million Views!

I've posted this a few times and this is at a mates house following a kitchen refirb several yrs ago.

mg_smile:

Dustydazzler · Jan 11, 2022

The sad thing is the original board was probably quite neat and tidy before all the cavity wall insulation was pumped into the walls and then followed by all the wiring additions and lash ups

James · Jan 11, 2022

If they are polystyrene balls, the whole cable installation is scrap.
if they are polypropylene then it is just the thermal effects you have to consider.

Raptor0014 · Jan 11, 2022

James said:
If they are polystyrene balls, the whole cable installation is scrap.
if they are polypropylene then it is just the thermal effects you have to consider.

I am told it’s polypropylene. It was only done in Dec so I’d hope it was to modern standards. But I’m not sure how I could prove one way or the other.

Client is going to check with the company that did it. I hope they have good insurance that will cover removal and a possible rewire if it’s the former.

lozarus · Jan 12, 2022

An important reminder on safe isolation - no matter how simple the job. Replacing emergency light fittings:

Isolated CCT at DB. LNE terminals all checked between and confirmed safe to work on.

Note the grey T&E with taped up ends also entering the enclosure.

It would have been easy to assume this was dead, or at least connected to the circuit just isolated that feeds the luminarie (in singles)

Nope.

Fed from an entirely different circuit, still live with tape over the ends. I assume a previous worker found it, couldn't trace it and left it with tape over. Very poor show.

The second photo shows my repair once I'd traced the circuit and made good - just to explain in pictures what I'm probably not doing very well with words.

Volt stick came in handy here. Obviously testing the luminaire with my contact Fluke probes - but it's hard to probe something that's been cut flush with tape wrapped around it....

This is the sort of stupid stuff that kills people.

Raptor0014 · Jan 12, 2022

To add more info to the post I made yesterday.

I have a 100A cutout (confirmed as 100A by DNO as they put in an isolator for me in Dec) which feeds in to the property on 16mm tails (25mm to meter and 25mm to isolator then 16mm in)

This leads to a upfront 80A 30mA RCD. Which feeds the main board.

Then there is a feed from the RCD to a Henley block which feeds the board below and that has a 80A 100mA RCD switch and the sockets, cooker and 1 of the showers is on this board.

Then there is a second set of tails jammed into the top of the 100mA RCD feeding the third board on the bottom left which has a 40A 30mA RCD switch.

I’ve put the first pic on again to make it easy to see what I’m describing.

timhoward · Jan 12, 2022

Raptor0014 said:
To add more info to the post I made yesterday.

I have a 100A cutout (confirmed as 100A by DNO as they put in an isolator for me in Dec) which feeds in to the property on 16mm tails (25mm to meter and 25mm to isolator then 16mm in)

This leads to a upfront 80A 30mA RCD. Which feeds the main board.

Then there is a feed from the RCD to a Henley block which feeds the board below and that has a 80A 100mA RCD switch and the sockets, cooker and 1 of the showers is on this board.

Then there is a second set of tails jammed into the top of the 100mA RCD feeding the third board on the bottom left which has a 40A 30mA RCD switch.

I’ve put the first pic on again to make it easy to see what I’m describing.

That's going to be a fun one. Are you putting in new 25mm flexi tails?

Raptor0014 · Jan 12, 2022

timhoward said:
That's going to be a fun one. Are you putting in new 25mm flexi tails?

Yep.

So got to battle with the insulation balls and then I’m putting the complete lash up into one board.

brianmoooore · Jan 12, 2022

Not obvious why there are insulation balls in the CU. There are at least eleven cables that we can see are surface mounted into it, so why is there a hole into the cavity?
The insulation company could argue (quite correctly, if it's an external cavity wall), that there shouldn't be cables in the cavity. The cavity is not built to provide an easy path for sparkies.

DPG · Jan 12, 2022

brianmoooore said:
Not obvious why there are insulation balls in the CU. There are at least eleven cables that we can see are surface mounted into it, so why is there a hole into the cavity?
The insulation company could argue (quite correctly, if it's an external cavity wall), that there shouldn't be cables in the cavity. The cavity is not built to provide an easy path for sparkies.

Fully agree. Never a fan of running wires in a cavity wall. How many houses have meter tails waiting in the cavity waiting for someone to drill through them for an outside tapc etc . No safe zones, no RCD protection etc.

Raptor0014 · Jan 12, 2022

brianmoooore said:
Not obvious why there are insulation balls in the CU. There are at least eleven cables that we can see are surface mounted into it, so why is there a hole into the cavity?
The insulation company could argue (quite correctly, if it's an external cavity wall), that there shouldn't be cables in the cavity. The cavity is not built to provide an easy path for sparkies.

There was a hole I could get my arm in at the back of the board. Why I don’t know as only the tails where in it.

This was inside the cavity as I was having to rummage around to dig rubble out as it took me almost 2hrs just to run a new set of 25mm tails.

You can just make out in the far end of the pic my ball chain from my cable rods. That and the ferret cam saved me battling further. Without the cam I’d have never got them up due to the rubble in the cavity.

Raptor0014 · Jan 12, 2022

DPG said:
Fully agree. Never a fan of running wires in a cavity wall. How many houses have meter tails waiting in the cavity waiting for someone to drill through them for an outside tapc etc . No safe zones, no RCD protection etc.

Majority of property’s have the tails ran through the cavity. I don’t think I’ve been to a property where the tails aren’t just ran up the cavity from the meter cabinet to the CU.

brianmoooore · Jan 12, 2022

Raptor0014 said:
Majority of property’s have the tails ran through the cavity. I don’t think I’ve been to a property where the tails aren’t just ran up the cavity from the meter cabinet to the CU.

Not one that I'm responsible for! The only way I've ever run tails or cables in a cavity is straight in one side and out the other, with a sleeve around them. The only exception is for exterior wall lights, where I might run down at an angle from the ceiling cavity inside. The cable will still be enclosed in conduit, though.

Raptor0014 · Jan 12, 2022

brianmoooore said:
Not one that I'm responsible for! The only way I've ever run tails or cables in a cavity is straight in one side and out the other, with a sleeve around them. The only exception is for exterior wall lights, where I might run down at an angle from the ceiling cavity inside. The cable will still be enclosed in conduit, though.

I was referring more to how it's done by the DNO/Supply companies.

brianmoooore · Jan 12, 2022

Never known the DNO or supplier to take tails any further than the meter or isolator (if fitted). Tails out to the meter box are the domestic electricians responsibility.

nicebutdim · Jan 12, 2022

brianmoooore said:
Never known the DNO or supplier to take tails any further than the meter or isolator (if fitted). Tails out to the meter box are the domestic electricians responsibility.

One issue is where services come in to new builds. Our meter box is on the outside of a kitchen wall, with tails coming across that room to CU in utility room. I can't say for certain, but it's very likely that tails run through cavity up to ceiling height.