nicely fried - 9.5kw shower, not certificates for the job

[buzzlightyear]

just got back from a customers ,hoping it a nice job and it was ,customers saying I cant push the isolator to the off position .
off comes the isolator wow that isolators fried ,so 6mm cable in and terminals tight has a ducks a88,now for the shower 9.5 kw .
now what about the rcd for it ,nice new bath room , wait a minute a 50amp so where is the rcd for this none .
looking at the 50amp no rcd, no rcbo and mem board and a wylex mcb . customer when was this fitted 3 months ago . so no test certs .
the customers says a bloke who comes to the local pub ,he does elcertics & plumbing came recommended and done a lot of bath rooms
so any test certs, why . if he does not test it then he is non compliant ,with who ,building control .so me and the customer had a chat about it .

 

[telectrix]

13A mains sockets should use the same method. There would be no more risk of loosening connections when pushing the sockets back then.

they won't loosen if you fit them right in the first place..

 

[DPG]

they won't loosen if you fit them right in the first place..

Cheers Tel

Five words etc

 

[Des 56]

davesparks

It is a switch, it should be capable of being switched on and off regularly, that's the whole point of it being there.
What's the point in installing an ugly pull switch in a bathroom if you can't even use it? They obviously aren't any use for safe isolation as they can't be readily locked off.


They are there for purposes of maintenance not as continuous load carrying means of switching

For the likes of some disabled showers,they even advise against doing so in the manufacturers user instructions,for showers without a start solenoid they cause it to make and break whilst carrying full the load ( its no wonder they regularly fail in the manner they are used)
My advice would always be given that the purpose of the switch is a means of isolation,any other use is likely to reduce the life significantly irrelevant of whether a pull cord looks ugly or not

 

[freddo]

13A mains sockets should use the same method. There would be no more risk of loosening connections when pushing the sockets back then.

Bring back the Tenby Pilot range!

 

[Snailspark]

Does the cable run through any insulation? A 9.5kw shower should be fed with 10mm cable if that’s the case due to the thermal affects.
A common problem with modern showers using 6mm cable - they just can’t take the power captain!

 

[davesparks]

davesparks

It is a switch, it should be capable of being switched on and off regularly, that's the whole point of it being there.
What's the point in installing an ugly pull switch in a bathroom if you can't even use it? They obviously aren't any use for safe isolation as they can't be readily locked off.


They are there for purposes of maintenance not as continuous load carrying means of switching

For the likes of some disabled showers,they even advise against doing so in the manufacturers user instructions,for showers without a start solenoid they cause it to make and break whilst carrying full the load ( its no wonder they regularly fail in the manner they are used)
My advice would always be given that the purpose of the switch is a means of isolation,any other use is likely to reduce the life significantly irrelevant of whether a pull cord looks ugly or not

It is a switch, you are even calling it a switch, if it is not for switching then why is it there at all? If it is just for maintainence why don't they have a means of locking off so that they can actually be used as an isolator?

How is the user supposed to switch the appliance off when they are not using it?

 

[Bobster]

It is a switch, you are even calling it a switch, if it is not for switching then why is it there at all? If it is just for maintenance why don't they have a means of locking off so that they can actually be used as an isolator?

How is the user supposed to switch the appliance off when they are not using it?

I think their description are as a shower isolator at point of sale though right? Haven't baught one in a long long time. There is a functional switch on the shower unit itself.

This brings another question though, are people getting out of the shower and pulling the shower cord rather than pressing the button on the shower unit?

If they are using the button on the shower, the isolator "shower switch" shouldn't be breaking or making a circuit with any load.

I see this most in control panel isolators, an people the majority of the time using the wrong colours.

Black and grey isolator handle, is only designed to take the operational current of the control system. Not to be used to switch off or on under load.

Red and yellow, can be used as a functional switch to disconnect or connect the control system on load. An as such will be rated appropriately for this.

 

[davesparks]

I think their description are as a shower isolator at point of sale though right? Haven't baught one in a long long time. There is a functional switch on the shower unit itself.

This brings another question though, are people getting out of the shower and pulling the shower cord rather than pressing the button on the shower unit?

If they are using the button on the shower, the isolator "shower switch" shouldn't be breaking or making a circuit with any load.

I see this most in control panel isolators, an people the majority of the time using the wrong colours.

Black and grey isolator handle, is only designed to take the operational current of the control system. Not to be used to switch off or on under load.

Red and yellow, can be used as a functional switch to disconnect or connect the control system on load. An as such will be rated appropriately for this.

I don't know what they are actually sold as, I think the crabtree one is listed as a 50A pull switch.
I can't say how other people use appliance switches but I always switch off on the appliance then switch off the isolator, whether it's the shower, cooker, washing machine etc etc.

 

[buzzlightyear]

it a isolator not a switch ,to isolate the feed if thing goes t88T up in case of emergency or maintenance
advise customer just use the push switch on the shower ,because it a bristan shower the push switch has not got any neon light to show that the power is on like some triton ones .

 

[telectrix]

the problem using the shower control to turn on, with most showers , you're then standing under freezing water till it warms up. that's why most peeps use the pull switch to switch on, then get under shower when it's hot.