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 !

 

[wallygerk]

hi long time viewer first time poster had a good one the other day had a call out from an old boy said the builder he employed was filling up his bucket at the outside tap got a nasty belt.


turns out roland had got in and the old boy decided to stuff wire wool into the air brick not noticing the chewed up 2.5 legs of the kitchen ring dont know how he didnt get a beltbut at the other end of the wire wool is wrapped around the copper tube going to the outside tap. which was joined onto the kitchen cold feed with a plastic elbow.

 

[Konrad]

I leave it without the comment.

 

[gdtrelo]

I had a call to check out a lighting fault on a transportable building (construction site locker/change room). Tried the switch first, the lights (there were about 5 or 6 fluro light fittings) did not come on. Had a look at the main switch board in the hut, none of the circuit breakers were tripped, operated the test button on the lighting circuit RCD it worked ok and reset ok. Next I isolated the power at the main switch board and removed the cover of light switch (a double pole 2 way switch, a rocker type not a toggle type, some of you may have twigged already... ) it was wired with the neutral looped at the switch. checked the continutiy of the switch action, that was ok, Powered up the circuit to test if there was a voltage at the switch, that was ok. Where to next? Power off, needed some steps to reach the closest light, as I looked down the other end of the hut and just behind the last 4 lockers I could see the the top of another exit door. Went down the end and sure enough to fit more lockers in they had blocked the end exit door. I moved the lockers to reveal the other 2 way switch. The locker had been pushed up against the switch and the switch was neither on or off it was stuck half way. Normal 2 way switches will always be one or the other position but because it was a 2 way double pole switch one of the poles must have switched and the other not. Anyway flicked the switch (checked that it had not been damaged) switched on the power and all was ok.

 

[JVB]

Had a good one just before Xmas.
Customer phoned stating she couldn't get hold of her usual handyman and that her wall lights weren't working.
when I arrived she informed me that a handy man had wired and install 2 new wall lights 6 months ago, he couldn't get them to work correctly they kept flickering so he advised the customer he would send an electrician, 6m later still no electrician.

On closer inspection I could find no joints for the feed or sw so I started quizzing the customer, turns out there had been a 3rd light which hadn't been required on an adjacent wall behind a large picture.
after having some fun with a hammer and chisel I found all the cables in terminals blocks and just plastered over, no box, no tape no protection at all, and to top it the nail for the large painting had missed be about 20mm

 

[DNS]

I'm just about to tackle almost exactly the same problem at a house I have just renewed the kitchen, typical Asian ( I'm not being racist) "CAn you just have a look at this while your here" Can you just put these new lights up in the hallway" .....All of the wall lights in their conservatory are not working, plus the outside lights which on inspection, get a feed from the switch for the wall lights. Trouble is, there is no live feed to the switch, the wires are there but no feed. It probably is meant to come from a cieling rose in the dining room. but I'm not going any further until the kitchen's finished. Turns out the HANDY MAN who installed the lights some time ago is just a friend of the cleaner lady.....apparently they did work briefly.......worms and can ...comes to mind

Had a good one just before Xmas.
Customer phoned stating she couldn't get hold of her usual handyman and that her wall lights weren't working.
when I arrived she informed me that a handy man had wired and install 2 new wall lights 6 months ago, he couldn't get them to work correctly they kept flickering so he advised the customer he would send an electrician, 6m later still no electrician.

On closer inspection I could find no joints for the feed or sw so I started quizzing the customer, turns out there had been a 3rd light which hadn't been required on an adjacent wall behind a large picture.
after having some fun with a hammer and chisel I found all the cables in terminals blocks and just plastered over, no box, no tape no protection at all, and to top it the nail for the large painting had missed be about 20mm

 

[Stroppy]

Who will be the first to spot the problem in this emergency light? (and its not the lack of appropriately coloured sleeving)

 

[markc123]

the beautiful earth connection....thats how ure supposed to connect them isn't it?

 

[paul wannell]

Re: Tell us about your faults !

i found one today, room stat and immersion heater db timer both went at same time, ( different circuits timer is 1 chan so only controls immersion) nothing blew rcd fine but timer and stat both dead! checked power to stat and immersion when on boost all fine. before i order expensive timer can anyone think of maybe a common cause, im out of ideas.

 

[Stroppy]

Yes its the earth thats missed its target. Not quite as dangerous as it first appeared, though, as the earths from both cables are running down one bit of sleeving, and have been beautifully twisted together all the way down, so at least there was earth continuity past this fitting. I never thought I'd be slightly pleased to see twisted together earths!

 

[Stroppy]

Sleeving, schmeeving...

 

[Engineer54]

Wasn't that long ago, there wasn't any such thing as earth sleeving... Careful dressing of the bare earth conductors was the order of the day!! lol!!

 

[Stroppy]

Seriously?

 

[11kstanton]

I leave it without the comment.
View attachment 16336View attachment 16339

View attachment 16337View attachment 16338singles without mechanical protection, almost definatley not an RCD CU, cant wait to get some pics uploading on this forum for you guys you will defo have something to say

 

[edrobbo8]

Found this which used to house a connection for a grill unit in a commercial kitchen, the kitchen is tight for space so the grill is on a shelf above the hot plate which is on for around 12 hours a day, used to fry and cook most things!

Not only did the box melt, the cable melted and it has started to melt the insides of the grill.

They want it repaired, but I said that unless the grill is moved, it will do the same thing again in a matter of time!

 

[Stroppy]

Replace it with a metal box and pyro cable, at least it will take longer to melt!