Storage Heaters - RCD Required?

[Plan]

ive spent a lot of time reparing storage heaters and ive known the wire element type heater blow and short to earth (dead short 0M ohm live to earth).
ive also come across tennants tampering with them to get compo claims off council, but thats another story!!!!!!!

 

[hughesy]

Jason's right about a cold house, also during the day there would be no supply to the board so the faulty circuit could not be found this way.

if you talking about off peak you can over ride the radio teleswitch or even wire a temporary supply from mains board which is usually next to board for oph.

 

[wet string]

thats how id do it, unless you want to stay on job till 1am to do your testing.

 

[Spudnik]

Indeed but some tariffs have a midday boost.

If it has, you could always arrange the time for testing then.

 

[wet string]

havnt come across those yet. something to bear in mind next time i have the cover off one, with no isolator fitted, i usually pull service fuse, disconnect tails, and rig temps for testing .safest way i can think of.

 

[andyb]

if you talking about off peak you can over ride the radio teleswitch or even wire a temporary supply from mains board which is usually next to board for oph.

thats how id do it, unless you want to stay on job till 1am to do your testing.

Indeed but some tariffs have a midday boost.

If it has, you could always arrange the time for testing then.

Or in 5 minuets you could do an insulation test on each circuit.

 

[Spudnik]

Or in 5 minuets you could do an insulation test on each circuit.

Not on the heater though.

This would only test the circuit up to the point of connection to the heater.

 

[andyb]

Switch the heater on, test with 250 volts.
We're only trying to find an earth fault.