black sticky liquid??

[Dean Williams]

Hi
while testing a DB in a primary school today, i found all the conductors within the DB coated in a black sticky, tar-like goo. see attached photos. im assuming its the conductors overheating and the insulation melting. can anyone confirm this. If that is the case, i can't understand it. there are no significant heat sources nearby apart from a stage lighting DB below, which i switched on with all the spotlights on full and left it all day to see if it produced any heat, which it didnt.
any help would be greatly appreciated.
cheers guys

 

[vernam616]

With you mentioning it was a school is the cabling ran in conduit?

Once had a job where there was a greeny black goo on the conductors just like that in your photo, turned out it was a lubricant they used years back to pull cables through the conduit easier

 

[ackbarthestar]

I remember a job we did. Before the galv conduit was buried in concrete we poured bitumen over all conduit and trunking system. Now if there was conduit set in the flat roof some of the tar may have seeped into a part of it and when the cables were pulled through at a later stage had picked it up. rather than cleaning it up the installation sparks just left it as is.

 

[jimmymac]

I think it's Anti-climb paint, formaly known as Vandal grease. One of my mates is a school janitor and he's always covered in it. I bet the jani was poking around in the DB with his paint brush

 

[Dean Williams]

Thanks for all your replies. After a bit of searching today i found the culprit. as most of you said, it was.....wait for it........Bitumen.
i got into the roof space and found it had dripped down walls and was all over the place.

 

[SPARTYKUS]

A emoticon of destruction would have been nice on this one as it can come across as advice to those who dont know its conductive, flamable and eats many types of plastic even i had to check your post was siding with humour.... ive seen an apprentice turn a motor into a ball of fire before with WD40! :willy_nilly:

You know what, you're right, sorry should have made sure blindingly obvious!

Point taken darkwood. :82::82::82: