Selfridges Emergency battery test

[Lasowski101]

I am currently doing a 3 hour duration test in Selfridges for the em lighting. When I turn off the mcbs the emergency lighting does not activate. I have asked if this is to do with the central battery system but the staff will not let me and my colleague touch it. Just wondering if anyone has had a similar situation and how they got around it.......

 

[davesparks]

may be Selfridges need to employ a company that know what they are doing E.G. ADT OR CHUBB.

I think you missed the word 'avoid' out of the last part of your post!

 

[TheatreSparks]

Looking at it from a different angle, so to speak, I am wondering if what the issue is that the emergency fittings are not illuminating when the local supplies are dropped out. From what little experience I have with central battery systems I would imagine that there should be a "power failed" type relay which is normally constantly energised by the local ccts but when they fail then it closes and energises the emergency fittings. I would imagine that if there is not a local relay then the emergency lighting only comes on where there is a wider power failure than a single cct or two or even one lighting board loosing its supply.

 

[Pete999]

The control panel should have a test facility.

 

[ChrisElectrical88]

Only ever test the self contained emergency lights in pubs etc for the 3 hour duration. However I have seen them and when replacing lights, isolating circuits has caused a relay to operate and emergency lights in that area illuminate. Think you're knackered.

 

[TheatreSparks]

The control panel should have a test facility.

Reading between the lines, I think that the OP is not been allowed access to the panel.

But, out of curiosity, would it be normal to expect that on a central battery system there would be some method of detecting local supply failure? By that I mean to replicate the way that self-contained fittings are normally wired on the same circuit as the lights that they are providing replacement illumination for.

(My only experience with central battery systems is as totally separate systems where the outputs are switched on when the building is open to the public, all the fittings are illuminated in addition to local fittings so there is no need for any switch over on any scale of power fail)

 

[westward10]

A central battery system with a non maintained mode of operation will generally have sensing circuitry to activate it upon loss of the general lighting. Maintained systems don't require this as fittings are illuminated at material times, maintained systems are often operating as "floating" whereby it is the batteries operating the fittings at all times so there is no change over period in the event of power loss.

 

[freddo]

Quite often the local circuit will power the coil in an emergency lighting relay unit, this opens the NC contacts and the emergency lights in that area are off. If the local circuit loses power the relay lets go and the emergency lights illuminate fed from the supply from the central battery system. the only ones I've done anything with all output 240v all the time from the mains to all the relay contacts, if the central battery unit loses power the inverter then supplies the 240V.

The other type of system I've worked with has the same arrangement but the local circuit feeds the relay coil, the rooms switched supply feeds the relays NO contacts, the battery supply feeds the NC contacts and the common connection is to the rooms light fittings, so the main lighting becomes emergency lighting if the power fails. I've only seen this setup in listed buildings where emergency bulkheads would not look good in the property.

 

[davesparks]

If the OP is indeed testing a central battery or static inverter system then they should be testing at the unit, including battery tests with a battery tester, as well as checking any arrangements for non-maintained operation.

 

[Lucien Nunes]

Deafening silence from the OP, so while we await his return, let me show you what a *proper* mains voltage central battery control unit looks like. It's in full working order although the 120-cell lead-acid was long gone by the time we rescued it. Not sure if I've put up pics of this before, if anyone is interested I can give you a guided tour of the equipment cabinet. BTW the bulb's name is Amy.

 

[davesparks]

I'll take that guided tour!

 

[DPG]

Lovely. Something magical about that blue glow from them eh.

 

[Squid]

I think the OP wkurzył się

 

[DPG]

I think the OP wkurzył się

Me too.

 

[Pete999]

Me too.

Bit slow today, not with you

 

[DPG]

Just replying to SWD's post above. Makes sense to me. I think