random sockets stopped working

[andyc209]

Please can someone help me solve a problem in my house - basically random sockets around the house have stopped working - all in garage, one upstairs and three in the kitchen. This happened a few weeks back then two days later they all worked again. Now they have gone again although a surge protect adaptor is showing power when plugged in (green light is on) but when i turn a lamp on that i plug in it does not work. Then strangely the gas cooker ignition started working again for about 15 minutes then stopped again. I have a small fuse box with a pull out fuse for sockets, lights, cooker and heating so i assume it cannot be the fuse as all the other sockets work. Has anyone any ideas? I bought a digital multimeter from B&Q which says it can test up to 600 volts AC/DC - will this help me test each socket?
thanks for any help.

 

[telectrix]

forget the multimeter. they can prove to be dangerous if used incorrectly and i wouldn't trust the insulation on the leads as far as i could throw a sumo wrestler.

there are several possible causes for your problem, sounds like a poor connection , coud be the fuse board, and, without appearing to be an alarmist, you are in serious danger of a fire. ffs get a qualified spark in to fix it. saving a few quid is not worth the risk.

 

[Marvo]

I agree with TEL, don't start dismantling anything and using a B&Q tester, for your purposes it would be much safer to test your sockets with a known good appliance such as a small lamp or hairdryer.

Could possibly be a phase down or faulty neutral but if the fuses and circuit breakers are all okay then you're going to need an electrician to check your installation.

 

[telectrix]

could be almost anything , even a bad tail connection or suppliers fuse connection breaking down under load. whatever it is, it needs a spark with the right test gear to investigate the problem

 

[andyc209]

thanks for the replies - if i pull the fuse out on the fuse box and kill the entire socket circuit can i at least look for any loose wires on the 'dead' sockets?

 

[telectrix]

if you want to do that, then switch the lot off with the main switch in the fuse board. you never know if some lemon in the past has connected a socket onto the lighting , cooker or any other circuit. or got the polarity wrong so that by pulling the fuse, you have cut the neutral and not the live.

 

[i=p/u]

you could look for loose connections but if they aint been touched before , very unlikely, this is the cause, you need to be dam sure the circuit is isolated because tricity can be very unforgiven

 

[andyc209]

just out of interest then, how can i get a loose connection all of a sudden?

 

[Marvo]

It does happen and it can cause burning when the contact becomes poor. It's really not something you want to be repairing yourself, if it is a simple problem the cost of an electrician should be minimal.

 

[mickys86]

Is it really a bad idea to get someone in? Sounds like your out of your depth and you do not have the correct test equipment.

 

[telectrix]

corrosion caused by damp,old cable stressed and snapped, nail or screw through cable in floors or walls, tired old fuse carriers.

 

[andyc209]

oh deffo looking at getting someone in now - thanks for the help.

 

[telectrix]

what's your location. a forumm member may be near to you and you won't get robbed

 

[andyc209]

live in Biddulph - stoke-on-trent - ST8 if anyone is nearby? As with many these days not awash with cash so would need an idea of a price if poss

 

[telectrix]

about 20 miles from me. i'd be happy to call and have a look. £35 covers up to 1 hour. should either have it fixed in an hour unless it's something serious.

 

[andyc209]

sounds fair to me - but are you sure coming all that way - will pm you details, cheers

 

[Liamsparks]

Top banana doododododod! Case closed

 

[Cj24]

How did u Get on tel?

 

[telectrix]

have to wait and see whatr the fault is. don't wait up.

 

[spatz]

I also have to agree with tel, you deffinateley have a loose phase connection and yes if it happens to be within range of any thing flamable you have a serious risk of fire so take the multi meter back and put the money inyo hiring a sparks for the day to sort it.

 

[72-van]

I agree with all our learned sparks
cheap multimeter on AC range = chocolate fire gaurd..

handy for continuity on car electics and the like though .

Well done teletrix for sorting out the issue

72-van

 

[telectrix]

job sorted. client confidentiality prevents further comment on an open forum.

 

[72-van]

Damm it would have been interesting to know what the issue was ...

but i respect the mans right to privacy

 

[telectrix]

ok, briefly. poor N connections in 2 sockets, cable discoloured and insulation overheated. ring continuity lost by a builder's bodged extension wiring, so all sockets in house were fed with 1 leg of the ring.

 

[steamboatwilly]

ok, briefly. poor N connections in 2 sockets, cable discoloured and insulation overheated. ring continuity lost by a builder's bodged extension wiring, so all sockets in house were fed with 1 leg of the ring.

Yesssssssssssssssssss......I had a secret fiver on a dodgy neutral. Had a few of those myself and they can go intermittent (heat?).

 

[72-van]

The important thing is its fixed the house and household are safe and the guy didnt get hurt using an iffy multimeter which would not likely have been gs38 compliant.

respect to the telectrix man

 

[steamboatwilly]

respect to the telectrix man

Absolutely....and great to see the forum delivering value!

 

[Marvo]

....and the guy didnt get hurt using an iffy multimeter

He may have avoided multimeter pain but Telectrix's invoice would have made up for it though.

Just kidding Tel thanks for the update, sounds like it all went pretty straight forward.

 

[andyc209]

Tel was a top man! Was a real eye-opener when he found the dodgy socket right by my 4 yo's bed OMG. Still amazed though as to what you can find in a house years after moving in, shocked the dodgy extension never came up on the building report for the mortgage. Spoke to someone who knew the previous owner and he confirmed he was a builder but no electrician but he has amazed it looked like he had cut corners as he said he was a top bloke and spent ages building the place. Going to get Tel back to sort out the feed to the extension soon.

Main point is - once i had explained the 'The Boss' what the problem was its amaxing how it still is somehow my fault even though the place was built three years before we bought it and she had told me what the problem was well before Tel even set foot in the house!! Women!!

 

[72-van]

Andy by the sounds of it you were very lucky indeed ..

The moral of the story here is if your not 100% sure what your playing at then call in a Pro ..which is what your builder should have done in the first place.

Also morgage surveys would only have found this out by doing a full PIR

Might be wothwhile for your own peace of mind to get the tel man to do one for you make sure there are no more hidden nightmares

72-van

 

[malcolmsanford]

Tel was a top man! Was a real eye-opener when he found the dodgy socket right by my 4 yo's bed OMG. Still amazed though as to what you can find in a house years after moving in, shocked the dodgy extension never came up on the building report for the mortgage. Spoke to someone who knew the previous owner and he confirmed he was a builder but no electrician but he has amazed it looked like he had cut corners as he said he was a top bloke and spent ages building the place. Going to get Tel back to sort out the feed to the extension soon.

Main point is - once i had explained the 'The Boss' what the problem was its amaxing how it still is somehow my fault even though the place was built three years before we bought it and she had told me what the problem was well before Tel even set foot in the house!! Women!!

Top man andy for posting back and the thumbs up for our Tel, he is a top lad. Be nice for him , as I'm sure you will anyways, to recommend a good lad to nearest and dearest, friends and colleges, as a good lad is hard find these days, and when you do find one let others know.

Oh just to ask was he OK without the zimmer frame??:angel_smile:

 

[telectrix]

i'll get you for that, malcolm. LOL> zimmer frame my arse

 

[malcolmsanford]

i'll get you for that, malcolm. LOL> zimmer frame my arse

Listen mate whatever you and your lass get up to in the privacy of your home is your business........ but come on, on an open forum

 

[telectrix]

Lol.....

 

[steamboatwilly]

Might be wothwhile for your own peace of mind to get the tel man to do one for you make sure there are no more hidden nightmares
72-van

I'd have to agree with that....

...the PIR not the zimmer frame stuff...

 

[vaughant]

Well, fair play lads it just shows how a bit of experience and good fault finding techniques are all important.
I`ve never dabbled in domestic stuff,although I did rewire my own house and found some real horrors,like a junction box buried into the wall which left me very confused as I couldnt isolate my fridge no matter ring main I isolated ,unless I turned the whole system off by the 100a switch.
Turned out someone had decided to wire a socket in from an old lighting point when the extension was done,I`d guess that there was a wall light or something there previously and someone thought,"ohh,power!!!".
Could have been nasty as my house didn`t have earthed lighting circuits (1970`s Swansea House,pretty common by all accounts!!!) and should the fridge have an earth fault the RCD wouldn`t have tripped and could have gone live etc.
Don`t panic either,I`m 17th edition and 2391 trained!!!