Am i permitted to perform a periodic?

[Jabbajaws]

Hi All,

im C&G 2330 Level III qualified, with the 17th Edition but im not presently a scheme member, due to being really poor. I don't have my 2391 but aim to do so when l can afford test equipment.

My question: Am I permitted to perform a periodic, using calibrated 17th Edition approved test equipment, such as a multifunctional meter, despite not being a scheme member?

I understand the need for the requirement for sparkies to be assessed under a scheme providers in order to issue EIC and MW certificates, because more often than not, the installation is altered in some way and understanding that alteration is necessary, in case it affects the rest of the system. (Something Joe Bloggs, the DIYer wouldnt even think about.)

My arguement is that a periodic is an inspection of an electrical installation, taken using measured readings and visual indicators. The installation itself is not altered because of the periodic.

So am l allowed to do one or not? Feedback needed...Ta :wink5:

 

[Electricalserv]

Yes you can.

 

[nickblake]

YEs but what i will say is do it properly (not saying you wont ) dont cut corners there are to many 5 minuit periodics out there ,also dont be tempted by these we'll pay you £50 per test it takes time to do a proper periodic not 5 minuits some periodics in a 3 bed house say can take all day but on average between 4 and 6 hours depending on the size of the CDU that will also point you in the right direction of what you should be charging

 

[Electricalserv]

YEs but what i will say is do it properly (not saying you wont ) dont cut corners there are to many 5 minuit periodics out there ,also dont be tempted by these we'll pay you £50 per test it takes time to do a proper periodic not 5 minuits some periodics in a 3 bed house say can take all day but on average between 4 and 6 hours depending on the size of the CDU that will also point you in the right direction of what you should be charging

A proper full periodic no corners cut can take alot longer than 6 hours if we all be honest. Every accessory inspected & tested. Its very easy to get bored and just go to the last accessory on a circuit and thats that.

 

[KFH]

Agree with above but consider your need for professional indemnity insurance. If something goes wrong after you have done an inspection whether you have got it right or not they will be looking for someone to blame. Probability of something going wrong is very low, unless you have lots of cat 1s but that is what insurance is for.

 

[nickblake]

A proper full periodic no corners cut can take alot longer than 6 hours if we all be honest. Every accessory inspected & tested. Its very easy to get bored and just go to the last accessory on a circuit and thats that.

totally agree thats why i said on average and also said all day

 

[LlandrilloSpark]

I always allow a full day for PIR, I like to take my time, after all your signing to say the installation is satisfactory/safe, if you rush it then you might not find the obvious dangers

 

[nickblake]

totally agree too never book more than one in having said that if you have a group of houses exactly the same layouts DB then it can be quicker

off the subject look after John he's a good lad going to make a stompin spark when he gets qualified

 

[Jabbajaws]

Thanks Guyz for all the valuable advice. I do take everything into account everything regarding the need for a detailed inspection, which l am in total agreement with.

I think that time and care should be taken when doing a PIR. Any obvious faults that are discovered at a later date could not only come back to bite you in the posterior legally, or if a death occurs, worse case sceanrio is probably gonna be a manslaughter charge.

Im often moaned at for being too safe and slow, but l know im gonna live a bit longer if l do.

Thank you for the insurance advice, KFH. Regarding that, is that the only insurance l would need for a one man band, so to speak? Or is there anything else that l would need legally to be able to perform just PIRs alone.?

 

[telectrix]

Public liability in case you break the bog coz. the only way to reach the CU is by standing on it, and professional indemnity in case you cock up a pir. both for under £200/year if you shop around.

 

[Silly Sausage]

Every accessory inspected & tested.

On a Periodic you only need to inspect 10%?

Anyway, interesting to read that a lot of you guys will spend a day doing a house.

A few years back I was working for a certain East Yorkshire testing company and I'd get sent out to PIR banks over night. (Then I'd have to be up at 7am every day to do another 4 or 5 PIRs spread all over the North) One particular bank in Bury, absolutely huge place, about 5 floors, 30 foot ceilings, hell knows how many DBs, I reckon it would have taken me nearly 2 days just to fill in circuit details for every board before any testing. After having done 2 or 3 inspections during the day my head's getting a bit fried now (early evening) I ring my employer up 'This is totally out of my league, it's got to be 2 or 3 man job' they say 'do what you can'. I spend another hour or so writing cct details then give up and go home (apologising to the staff who stayed late)
A couple of weeks later they give me the same job, on my own again, that's when me and them parted company.
You think PAT testing is a scam.................

 

[Des 56]

Good post Archy
The realities of this countries regard for electrical safety described in real world terms
What a farce it is

 

[IQ Electrical]

Good post Archy
The realities of this countries regard for electrical safety described in real world terms
What a farce it is

Relax Des, some of us run a good, tight, technically sound testing & inspection operation, as usual, it's the idiots and cowboys that make the headlines.

Archy, the detailed inspection percentage should be decided by the inspector, based on the type of installation, it's use & operation, frequency & quality of maintenance and the external influences to which it is subjected.

To that end, there is no set percentage of detailed inspection, we would normally start off at a minimum 30% varying up or down depending on subsequent findings.

Electricalserv, the idea of a 100% inspection fills me with horror, the idea of sampling is to vastly reduce the chances of introducing faults into an existing installation while maintaining a balance with a view to getting a representative indication as to any damage, deterioration or defects that the installation may be suffering from, all as per 621.2.

 

[Silly Sausage]

Oooo...another one for you.
We, I mean 'they', also did bookies overnight, which was OK actually because there was no one there so you turn everything off etc etc.
Any road, I'd go and pick up a bag of keys during the day on Monday from bookies head office somewhere, sign for them, then do 3 or 4 a night Monday to Friday morning, no hanging about on this job.
A few weeks later I'm on a huge PAT job down south with another lad from this company and he tells me this story about another test 'engineer' who'd also been doing the bookies, filled in all his certs etc, got paid for the work. A few weeks later after this guy had done his 'testing' (said with huge amount of sarcasm) the bookies rang up work asking 'When's your engineer going to come and pick the keys up?' Need I say more?

 

[IQ Electrical]

Oooo...another one for you.
We, I mean 'they', also did bookies overnight, which was OK actually because there was no one there so you turn everything off etc etc.
Any road, I'd go and pick up a bag of keys during the day on Monday from bookies head office somewhere, sign for them, then do 3 or 4 a night Monday to Friday morning, no hanging about on this job.
A few weeks later I'm on a huge PAT job down south with another lad from this company and he tells me this story about another test 'engineer' who'd also been doing the bookies, filled in all his certs etc, got paid for the work. A few weeks later after this guy had done his 'testing' (said with huge amount of sarcasm) the bookies rang up work asking 'When's your engineer going to come and pick the keys up?' Need I say more?

Amazing, I wonder how many thousands of his circuits remain untested!!

Did this company have the word 'Power' in it's name?