Outdoor light connected to outdoor spur on new build

[simplythebez]

Hi,

I purchased a new build a few weeks ago which has a cable running from a switch near the back door to a small round enclosure on the outside back wall. Agent told me it's so I can fit an outdoor light if I want to.

Bought a light and removed the enclosure outside revealing about a meter long cable coming out of the back wall. When I stripped back the outer sleeve, the wires inside were grey, brown, black and a naked copper wire. The lamp I've bought has blue, brown and green/yellow, which is what I'm used to seeing having fitted many light fittings over the years, but not much more than that.

I looked for advice and it seems brown links to brown, grey to blue and black to earth green/yellow. Naked wire goes no where. Did this and the light doesn't work. Doesn't pop the fuse or anything, but flicking the switch inside on and off and nothing happens. Could be that I've made a mistake or could be the cable isn't wired in at all, wouldn't be the first thing that hasn't been finished properly in our new build!

Thanks for reading and for any advice you can offer.

 

[DefyG]

Most likely hasnt been connected, did you check for voltage at all?
Most sparks would use brown for 'Live' and Grey or Black (Sleeved Blue) for Neutral. The unused Grey or Black made safe!
The 'Bare' conductor (cpc) is the 'earth' for the circuit and should be connected (even if the light fitting is Class 2/Double Insulated, the supply circuit should still incorporate an effective earth conductor).
Sometimes the Brown is a permanent live and the Grey or Black is used as a 'switched live' and sleeved with brown to indicate this (the other sleeved blue as used for the neutral), so think you really need a sparks to check it out properly to make sure it is what you suspect it is and protected accordingly.
Certification/notification are also to be taken into account but the sparks will be able to advise.

 

[Dustydazzler]

Bloody lazy new build developers cant even be arsed to fit outside lights anymore...

I have recently been to a new build estate near Aldershot exactly like this , just a junction box by the front & back door

£300,000 for a 2 bed house and you still need to supply your own exterior lights

what a joke

 

[radiohead]

A 3 core and earth is usually installed with brown being permanent live, to enable the use of a sensor, and the black being a switched live sleeved brown from an override switch, with grey sleeved blue as neutral.
If you talk to the agent it may be the electricians are still on site if there is further development ongoing and can pop in and connect or advise.

 

[SJD]

If I had installed an unterminated cable in an outside box, then I would have left the other end unconnected also - e.g. parked in Wago connectors in the switch mounting box. Otherwise they could be potentially dangerous (especially if someone mistook the switched live for earth!).

 

[telectrix]

i'm only a few miles from OP tomorrow morning. easy to pop round when i finish the job i'm on.

 

[pirate]

FKN new-builds...I sound like a broken record. They charge a fortune, and give you ----! Sorry, OP, but it's true...

 

[Mike Johnson]

Perhaps it's time for more legislation (Oh No) In France it's a legal requirement to have a switchable light above each external door on new builds.

 

[Gavin John Hyde]

Bloody lazy new build developers cant even be arsed to fit outside lights anymore...

I have recently been to a new build estate near Aldershot exactly like this , just a junction box by the front & back door

£300,000 for a 2 bed house and you still need to supply your own exterior lights

what a joke

My sister paid half a million for a new build house and didnt even get a tv aerial! ran the coax into the loft from every room but couldnt be bothered with the important bit...

 

[Mike Johnson]

But was it a Satellite compliant cable or just plain old Co-Ax.

 

[Dustydazzler]

My sister paid half a million for a new build house and didnt even get a tv aerial! ran the coax into the loft from every room but couldnt be bothered with the important bit...

when I worked on new build estates we coiled all the tv cables up in the lost and the developer would leave them like that.
same with phone cables just coiled up by the front door.

we did however put a light by the front / back door

the junction box trick is a relatively new scam

 

[DefyG]

My first house only had a draw wire in conduit from the TV outlet in the lounge to the attic!!

With so many options for TV/media these days (Virgin/Satellite/Internet) it is a job for the developers to 'keep up'.
I suppose a simple coax gives new owners the option of the cheapest 'free' tv with terrestrial if they so choose!

 

[Mike Johnson]

But then with FreeSat why would you choose anything else but satellite cable? No payment full terrestrial TV and lots of other channels to choose from.

 

[simplythebez]

Thanks for the comments all. I took the switch off this morning and the other end of the wire was 'loose' in the recess behind the switch. It's a double switch so ceiling light in one half of the kitchen was wired in, but nothing to the other switch. I wired that in anyway and all is good. Copied the other switch and it seems they've used brown live and black neutral, so did that on the switch and did the same outside on the light.

On new builds, totally agree. This is my second in 4 years and cost a small fortune, but so many shoddy little jobs and things unfinished. I have one of their guys round pretty much every day sorting out our snagging list. From integrated dishwasher, not even being plumbed in to a shower that turns into a shallow bath as the water didn't drain. No aerial in the loft either as someone said. Just a load of cable. Was the same in my last place too. Persimmons and then Bovis if anyone is interested. Doesn't seem to be that much in it. Bovis probably have customer service, but that might be because the new house cost twice as much!

Cheers!

 

[littlespark]

Persimmon. Pfftt

Got the “coax but no aerial” situation from an ‘07 house. Non matching doors downstairs from them changing design half way through the development (halfway through my house)

So they don’t fit outside lights anymore so that customers can choose and fit their own? What’s next?
“No... no ceiling lights, Let you get your own.... same with the switches.... and the front door!”