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

pc1966 said:

Tripping / entangling in the cables on the floor is quite an immediate threat to anyone going in to read the meters or do any work!

The photo is not good enough to check things though, might be floating Henley blocks, but looked like tape to me. Also not much sign of grommets on trunking, and to the right just below vertical conduit there are some wires that might be taped or bare, or maybe just a trick with the brown live crossing the blue and G/Y.

Also a suspicious lack of G/Y earths around the wall of meters, etc, but maybe part of trunking?

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In my experience it's not uncommon when you have an area that's not one person/organisation's responsibility - you should see some of the mess in phone distribution cabinets
I would lay the blame on meter "fitters" - or rather their employers. Clearly inadequately trained (particularly in the aesthetics of a good job), and not given the right amount of time & incentive to do it right. So one person comes along and c.b.a. to refit the trunking lid properly, the next guy comes along and c.b.a. to refit it at all - especially if after a few meter changes the cables no longer lay nicely. And so it goes - each time someone comes along, sees a mess, it's not his responsibility to fix it and he doesn't have time anyway, and you end up like this.

And of course, there's a problem with division of responsibility. I assume the DNO is responsible up to that metal fuse box on the right. Energy suppliers, either directly or delegated to a meter operator, are responsible only for the tails to their meter - but not for that shared trunking. It could be argued that the building's responsible person isn't responsible for that trunking either since they aren't allowed to "fiddle with the mains supplies".

But as for those joined tails, I'd point my finger at an electrician told to do something with the supply up to the flat. The meter looks like one of the originals (or at least an older one), and I suspect those tails originally went up the side of the meter like they do with the one next to it. I wonder if originally there weren't switch-fuses and these have been added over time - hence the mish-mash of stuff on the left and right walls ?

This hot mess

Never seen that type of supply cable before for the flat above, seems to be a SWA type but the outer jacket is hessian ribbon wrapped round.

From the way it seems to be leaking compound, it's PILC with a bodge seal made in a piece of conduit with red and black PVC singles spliced on. I.e. those are not the cores of the cable itself emerging from the bush. I'm curious as to the colour of the insulation underneath the blue tape that covers one of the unsheathed cores of what might be SWA disappearing into the floor.

A little one but worth sharing. Report came in that the "heater switch" wasn't working and cracked. I went across with a new FCU assuming the obvious loose connection / poor quality FCU / over fruity heater causing an overheat. Transpired that the installer perhaps didn't double check the flex for the heater - it was inserted too far and screwed down onto the insulation, thus resulting in it only really making contact with a few strands, thus causing the HR joint.

As an aside this circuit is a weird one. I watched the conversion of this room from toilet to kitchenette being done by partitioners about 4 years ago (Management wasnted the whole job done by the one supplier without getting us on site guys involved). They were decent enough guys. Transpired there wasn't really a 'proper electrician' on the job though. That said the guy 'doing the electrics' was decent to talk to - and looking at the circuit this hangs off today he did actually make a generally good job - all terminations were tight and cables were dressed really well - but it shows how important training is. The RFC in here (which arguably may have already existed) was sitting on a C32 MCB with no RCD - by rights it really should have had one back then (massive serving hatch allowing the sockets to be used outside for a start)

Sounds like a case for a double bootlace ferrule, especially as it was flex.

Mike Johnson said:

Sounds like a case for a double bootlace ferrule, especially as it was flex.

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It was terminated in the new FCU with my OCD perfect bootlace kit.

Found this lovely on an EICR recently

Plumbers attempt at wiring the heating controls, same for the room stat downstairs 2.5mm t&e with CPC used as return live

Going by the scorch mark on the cylinder insulation, he's not great as a plumber either!

aahahahahahaha this thread is hilarious!!

Littlesparks genny thread got me thinking of this little treasure I found the other day.

ferg said:

Littlesparks genny thread got me thinking of this little treasure I found the other day.View attachment 94537View attachment 94536

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WIDOWMAKER!

Only seen one in my life.

WOW,
the only time I have ever seen it done was a member of my family.
his theory was that it was ok because he knew what he was doing and nobody else would touch it.
it was difficult to educate him because he knew the danger but argued it was not a real risk because only he would touch it and he knew what he was doing.

ferg said:

Littlesparks genny thread got me thinking of this little treasure I found the other day.View attachment 94537View attachment 94536

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Should have reversed L+N in one plug and made him plug them both into that double socket.

Initially I though that was an "electric shock safety" poster next to it for irony.

No Baldric, it is not like silvery or goldly only less shiny....

Found this today and apparently the circuit wasn't linked anymore. Megger says different! I am going to have to get myself some of this slimline armoured cable.......

Aside from all the obvious issues, yes that is T&E just buried in the ground, no ducting, to supply a 16A commando socket!

Owner - "That's just an old connection, it's not live any more"

Me - "Um, I beg to differ"



Then we had this little gem of a snake mating ball,

Circuit 1 is feeding two separate 2.5/1.5 T&E radials into a 32A MCB
Circuit 2 is feeding a RFC on a 40A breaker wired in 2.5/1.5 T&E. I must have missed that lesson when doing RFC's. I seem to be missing the page in BS7671 & OSG about it too....

I have a strange wanting for a greasy fry up for tea tonight as well. Not sure why......

Raptor0014 said:

Owner - "That's just an old connection, it's not live any more"

Me - "Um, I beg to differ"

View attachment 94639View attachment 94640

Then we had this little gem of a snake mating ball,

Circuit 1 is feeding two separate 2.5/1.5 T&E radials into a 32A MCB
Circuit 2 is feeding a RFC on a 40A breaker wired in 2.5/1.5 T&E. I must have missed that lesson when doing RFC's. I seem to be missing the page in BS7671 & OSG about it too....

I have a strange wanting for a greasy fry up for tea tonight as well. Not sure why......

View attachment 94641

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I'd fail the EICR just based on the carpet alone!

Looks like someone has been on a date night!

At least they kept the Hager MCB clean.

DPG said:

I'd fail the EICR just based on the carpet alone!

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There is no carpet. That’s the chipboard flooring

Raptor0014 said:

There is no carpet. That’s the chipboard flooring

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Ah yes. Must be my eyes!

They did well to fit that Hager breaker those boards are unique to SB6000 devices I can see it is linked direct to the rcd at it doesn't fit the busbar.

The wall paper is what stood out for me. Lovely.

westward10 said:

They did well to fit that Hager breaker those boards are unique to SB6000 devices I can see it is linked direct to the rcd at it doesn't fit the busbar.

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Everything is linked to the RCD. This is what happens when you allow your mate from the pub to fit a new CU for you. But he knew what he was doing as he’d wired some plugs before for them.

I posted this pic in a different thread. Long story short was called out to a loss of power and found this which had been overloaded and decided to start melting, resulting in the damage you see to the board here as well as a melted RCD and MCB



So at the time I made a temporary fix to restore some power for them but made it clear the board needed changing. Much discussion then ensued as I point blank refused to change it without doing a full EICR to establish the condition of the electrical installation and ascertain why that had suffered that damage. When I made the temp fix the tests I did said the cabling etc was intact so something else was amiss. I had my suspicions that the circuit was just pulling way too much and the 40A MCB had finally been cooked, in turn causing an issue for the 63A RCD.

Any went back today to do the EICR as I'll be changing the board in a few days. I found out the reason why this had happened fairly quickly.

The main, melted DB, fed the following:

3 x 6A Light circuits
1 x 3A Smoke detector circuit (shows the age as it was a 3A 60898 which I haven't seen before)
2 x 32A ring circuits
1 x 40A cooker circuit
1 x 32A shower circuit
1 x 16A immersion heater circuit
1 x 40A circuit to feed a sub main.

Sub main 1 fed by 16mm T&E (which is hanging off the 40A circuit)

1 x 6A light circuit
1 x 40A shower circuit
2 x 32A socket circuits
1 x 16A Immersion heater circuit
1 x 32A sub main in a garage

Sub main 2 fed by 16mm 2 core XPLE & a 10mm CPC (which is still hanging off the 40A circuit in main DB)

1 x 6A light circuit
1 x 32A socket circuit
1 x C16A circuit for a welder
1 x C16A circuit for a compressor
1 x C16A circuit for a table saw

This used to be two properties which has been knocked into one. Sub Main 1 was the original main supply for the second house and still has the cutout next to it. But it has been disabled and meter removed.

I also have never seen a neutral fly lead like this from the RCBO!



So another discussion has now ensued as I've walked off the job for now.

I told the client they had three options:

1. Get the DNO/Meter company to reinstate that cutout and have two supplies/bills

2. Get the DNO to upgrade to a 3 phase supply

3. I can remove the circuit for the sub mains out of the main CU, put in a henley block to split the tails. Run a set to the new main DB and then run a set to 63A fused isolator. From the isolator I would then run the supply to the sub mains but they were under no illusion this was a sub optimal solution and would still require careful management of electric use as they could still blow the main cutout but hopefully the isolator would trip first.

I also found this, which they were still using



So I've updated the quote to include option 3 as that's the only way I'm changing the board for them now.

There's a fair few other issues too. But most I can resolve in one go.

What beggars belief is that someone thought it was a good idea to run those two sub mains from a 40A MCB in the first place!