Tell us about your faults!

[kung]

Hi ALL
Just thought id put this one up for all those faults we find.
heres one to kick it off !
Domestic RCD tripped and wouldnt reset cause was a blown low energy light bulb.
There you go now for yours !

 

[Sandra023]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Wat is that for ?

 

[scotsparky]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Got called out to a house where: they were getting shock from shower while standing in the bath, the rcbo for kitchen circuit constantly tripped out, and some lights glowed a little even when switched off.

On investigating inside CU I found I had no voltage between L & E, although still had 240 between N & E and L & N. In the end I concluded that I had a live incoming earth (TNS supply)! Seemed to me this had to be the result of 2 faults on supply side - one to break the earth continuity back to sub-station, and one nearer the property to connect the live supply to earth - otherwise sub-station fuse would have blown.

I disconnected earth, put in earth rod an connected up as temporary TT, and told customer not to touch the earth until DNO had been as I couldn't think how I could disconnect it. Just glad I hadn't touched the earth as it was live back to sub-station fuse!

btw - DNO did find 2 faults - one each side of the front garden wall

I have a simmilar one but its only 95v between N and E

DNO have "checked" it but that will be a set of drummonds and said as its a TN-C-S they cant see andy chance its there fault.

 

[baldelectrician]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Heard of one or two that were tnc-s with the n-e link missing inside the cable head

Did they check that?

 

[Kamikaze]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Found these beauties at a “Special School”. The company which carried out the installation went bust last year. We were too expensive for the original install but not too expensive to rewire it all….lol

 

[sparkinlee]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Not so much fault, as terrible design in the first place...

Was taking apart an old installation as part of rewiring using the same light switch positions etc. Couldn't work out the two-way switching for the landing as live and neutral were brought to both 2-way switches... in the end I traced it out as:
L to L1 of both switches
N to L2 of both switches
light fitting connected between the commons of the two switches.

Functionally it worked, but of course it meant that in one of the 'off' configurations both pins of the bayonet fitting were live! Fortunately I was working all this out with the circuit off.

Was this just a bodge by someone, or was there ever a time when this was an accepted way to do 2-way switching?

 

[Kamikaze]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Not so much fault, as terrible design in the first place...

Was taking apart an old installation as part of rewiring using the same light switch positions etc. Couldn't work out the two-way switching for the landing as live and neutral were brought to both 2-way switches... in the end I traced it out as:
L to L1 of both switches
N to L2 of both switches
light fitting connected between the commons of the two switches.

Functionally it worked, but of course it meant that in one of the 'off' configurations both pins of the bayonet fitting were live! Fortunately I was working all this out with the circuit off.

Was this just a bodge by someone, or was there ever a time when this was an accepted way to do 2-way switching?

It’s called the “Carter system” and this method of wiring has been outlawed since 1923 for obvious reasons as you have found out. The Americans used to be very fond of it. Proving that they are mental!

 

[sparkinlee]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

It’s called the “Carter system” and this method of wiring has been outlawed since 1923 for obvious reasons as you have found out. The Americans used to be very fond of it. Proving that they are mental!

1923?!? I didn't realise what I was replacing was that old!

 

[Guest123]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Now here's an old one.

The make is 'Revo', and the only info I can find on the web is some info dating back to the early 50's, it's certainly the oldest one I've ever come across.

Also, the twin & earth used in the ring final was blue sheathed!!!. The light was VIR singles with cloth sheath and not a cpc in sight.


Anyone have anymore info on this unit???


Cheers.

 

[Jurassic Sparks]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

I have seen those C/U before and yes the 50s is right, lots of council properties used them and schools and garages, not sure about the cable colouring though that is odd unless it was a local council specificiation
I have seen older than this
much much older
in the old days you had 2 consumer units on for the 5A lighting circuits with a fuse inside and an external lever like a circuit isolator and another for the 15A radial circuits
often wired in then metal tube as singles
I still have my old training manuals in the attic I might have to scan them up and post them here for a laugh, they might even be useful
I have also seen a pre war system with fuses in the neutral and live supplies and big screw in fuses horrible horrible

 

[Jurassic Sparks]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

I used to work for a big company well work may be too strong a word for it lets say I was there every day, well they had loads of these 4 inch fans for kitchens, control rooms loos print rooms etc and the damm things used to fill up with fluff
I found a very very quick way of cleaning them
simply get a CO2 extinguisher from our stores that is due for recharge and shoot that through it
the safety officer said its a bit irish but i cant fault yer logic as you cant start a fire that way and it makes sure the ext company do recharge them and not stick a label on them
mind it was funny when my boss had just cleaned his car and I shot half a tonne of fluff all over it, but this method leaves no DNA so to speak by the time he worked out it had coem from the fan I was having a cuppa and the extinguisher was resting in the corner
he thought the fan had unblocked itself??
then they got rid of me but thats another story

 

[Guest123]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

I have seen those C/U before and yes the 50s is right, lots of council properties used them and schools and garages, not sure about the cable colouring though that is odd unless it was a local council specificiation
I have seen older than this
much much older
in the old days you had 2 consumer units on for the 5A lighting circuits with a fuse inside and an external lever like a circuit isolator and another for the 15A radial circuits
often wired in then metal tube as singles
I still have my old training manuals in the attic I might have to scan them up and post them here for a laugh, they might even be useful
I have also seen a pre war system with fuses in the neutral and live supplies and big screw in fuses horrible horrible

Now you mention it, I have seen the units you describe....large black units with a lever on the side & ceramic fuses. Also have come across the old wooden units with the fused neutrals.


It was an ex council property by the way.

 

[Jurassic Sparks]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

it just occured to me that these older fuseboards contain asbestos!!!
you need to dispose of it correctly when you replace the unit
if you click this link you can downlaod free a data sheet
do it properly and you will live to a ripe old age
do it wrong and its not a nice way to end your life as I have seen with older sparkies and plumbers
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/guidance/a33.pdf

the site also gives guidance on other asbestos related items

 

[Jurassic Sparks]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

here is a link to the entire site
Knowledge is power
HSE - Asbestos: Asbestos essentials

give a man a match and you warm him but for a few seconds
set a man alight and you keep him warm for a lifetime

 

[TinyT]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Had a good one today.

Called to a domestic property to install a switched spur in a pool plant room for a pool cover.

Try to isolate the plant room ccu, cant, even with all the (un-labbeled) mcb's off. Work out that it is fed straight from the henly blockes, via a 6mm swa that had made of into an adaptable box, with just the red and black cores coming through a 20mm hole in the box, not double insulated. The sub-main was not protected by an mcb!?!

So, i install a 2way ccu with rcd main switch and a 32amp mcb for the circuit, also put in 25mm tails and 16mm g/y from blocks.

Then i procede to carry out my tests. 0.002M ohm between Live and Neutral!! I know the must be a join somwhere because when the cable leaves it is 2 core and when it arrives at plant room its 3core. I come to the conclusion that there is proberly still i load connected. Tracing the cable back from the plant room i see it goes in to the kitchen, under the kickboards. I find a ccu behind the units, you can just about get into it.

Open it up and find what must be where my cable joins. 2core feeding the rcd main switch, with an earth which is 1.5 or 2.5 coming from the armouring (cant see it though, units in way). No swa's glanded in correctly, just stripped back.

My 3core is connected straight in the load side of thr rcd main switch, yellow core to the earth bar. Also out the load side of the rcd is a 6mm single feeding a 32amp mcb of a cooker. Again no swa's properly glanded.

Im going to re-wire a swa from the ccu installed straight to the pool plant room. Not to sure what to do with the old feed which is still supplying the cooker though???

Ive got pics but ot sure how to up-load them?? on my i-phone. DIY at it's worst.

Sorry about spelling and punctuation.

 

[sparkinlee]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

Here's something I found yesterday. Went round to a house to size up what was required to run power to the end of the garden, and went to have a look at Consumer Unit to check spare ways available etc.

Looking in the well used cupboard under the stairs found the meter in this condition...



...lower cover missing, and no obvious sign of it fallen down the back.

Decided I would put some strips of insulating tape across the live terminals as a temporary measure. As I did that, the live tail to the CU fell out! At least it wasn't the live from the supply...

Tightened all the terminals, covered with tape, and told the owner to call the DNO!