Why does my electric keeps tripping

[Tan1992]

Hi, I'm hoping you can help me as I it's driving me insane!

So my electric keeps tripping when I plug my dryer in, now I know it's not a faulty dryer because it's the 3rd we've tried and it worked perfectly fine at a friend's for a week. My partner plugged a drill in last night and it tripped but worked after resetting the fuse board. The fuse board has an rcd if that helps any?

I have just un plugged everything and then tried plugging dryer in and it still tripped, whyyy is it doing this? I've tried it in different sockets, even a different room and still the same turn it in wait a few seconds and the whole electric has tripped.

Any help would he great appreciated. Tia

 

[littlespark]

an rcd socket is what it sounds like... an rcd built into a regular wall socket... so that oinly what is plugged into that socket is protected by the rcd.

An rcbo is basically an rcd built into a circuit breaker. The entire circuit is protected, but not the rest of the installation.

An rcd mainswitch is fitted into your distribution board and that one rcd protects a group of circuit breakers. You may have one that protects all sockets in your house, or you may have a spliut board, where there are two rcd 's covering half the house each.

It would be helpful to know what you have in your house, and what your friend has as well. From there we can maybe suggest some fault finding procedures

 

[Tan1992]

Could just be a faulty RCD. Had one myself last couple of weeks that was tripping under 9mA
Or
It could just be that the accumulated earth leakage currents on the system is excessive for the RCD and that no particular item is faulty!

I did have a dryer that was working fine until it broke but it was 10 years old so can't grumble. But that would mean the circuit isn't being overloaded right?

an rcd socket is what it sounds like... an rcd built into a regular wall socket... so that oinly what is plugged into that socket is protected by the rcd.

An rcbo is basically an rcd built into a circuit breaker. The entire circuit is protected, but not the rest of the installation.

An rcd mainswitch is fitted into your distribution board and that one rcd protects a group of circuit breakers. You may have one that protects all sockets in your house, or you may have a spliut board, where there are two rcd 's covering half the house each.

It would be helpful to know what you have in your house, and what your friend has as well. From there we can maybe suggest some fault finding procedures

an rcd socket is what it sounds like... an rcd built into a regular wall socket... so that oinly what is plugged into that socket is protected by the rcd.

An rcbo is basically an rcd built into a circuit breaker. The entire circuit is protected, but not the rest of the installation.

An rcd mainswitch is fitted into your distribution board and that one rcd protects a group of circuit breakers. You may have one that protects all sockets in your house, or you may have a spliut board, where there are two rcd 's covering half the house each.

It would be helpful to know what you have in your house, and what your friend has as well. From there we can maybe suggest some fault finding procedures

Thanks for the reply, I have one rcd in my house and my friend has a split with 2.

 

[Ziggie]

Just unlikely but my least favourite thing is a freezer. While you unplugged everything - did you unplug fridge/freezers.

most of your sockets will be on a ring.
Did you try upstairs as well as downstairs as they are often on separate ring circuits?

Another circuit - could be an outbuilding e.g. garage.

 

[Tan1992]

Just unlikely but my least favourite thing is a freezer. While you unplugged everything - did you unplug fridge/freezers.

most of your sockets will be on a ring.
Did you try upstairs as well as downstairs as they are often on separate ring circuits?

Another circuit - could be an outbuilding e.g. garage.

Hi,

Yes I unplugged the fridge freezer and turned all upstairs off too as well as the loft. I have disconnected the outside sockets from the fuse board at the junction box.

 

[Ziggie]

Another thing that may be easy to try.

I had a socket RCD near a freezer and it tripped when I used a drill and it tripped the main RCD for the house.

replaced socket with a non rcd one and used the drill plugged into an extension cable with an RCD plug into the same socket.

all worked fine and no RCD tripped.
If you happened to have an extension cable with an rcd , it might be e we orth trying.

 

[Mike Johnson]

Hi,

Yes I unplugged the fridge freezer and turned all upstairs off too as well as the loft. I have disconnected the outside sockets from the fuse board at the junction box.

You say you "turned all upstairs off too as well as the loft", but did you unplug everything?

 

[Electrics]

I know type AC rcd's (if you have one) can nuisance trip with leakage from modern appliances. Just throwing that out there as another suggestion although it's probably not that.

 

[Tan1992]

You say you "turned all upstairs off too as well as the loft", but did you unplug everything?

Yes sorry that's what i meant

 

[Tan1992]

I know type AC rcd's (if you have one) can nuisance trip with leakage from modern appliances. Just throwing that out there as another suggestion although it's probably not that.

Not sure what that is ?

 

[Mike Johnson]

There are different types of RCD some more sensitive than others, a quick pic of the offending RCD will show what type it is.

 

[Electrics]

Not sure what that is ?

EDIT: incase wrong, edited for now

 

[Mike Johnson]

Can someone help this guy: https://www.electriciansforums.net/...kitchen-oven-wiring-spur.191979/#post-1676598 I don't have sufficient privileges to answer on the DIY Forum, but he thinks he may push too much power from the ring main into his fan????? He also has an over 2Kw oven off a spur from the ring main??????

 

[telectrix]

Can someone help this guy: https://www.electriciansforums.net/...kitchen-oven-wiring-spur.191979/#post-1676598 I don't have sufficient privileges to answer on the DIY Forum, but he thinks he may push too much power from the ring main into his fan????? He also has an over 2Kw oven off a spur from the ring main??????

sent him a pm. could be his cooker circuit is dedicated as original was hard wired.

 

[freddo]

I would recommend contacting another electrician to do some more testing.

Faults like this can sometimes be difficult to find, but they are very very difficult to find without having the correct test kit and knowing how to use it. An insulation resistance tester is almost essential for finding why an RCD is tripping, it's the first tool I reach for every time I get sent to RCD tripping issues.

As mentioned earlier the fault could be elsewhere on another circuit and not a fault with the dryer. An RCD close to tripping can be taken over the edge when high loads like dryers and vacuum cleaners are switched on.

RCDs can sometimes be faulty but from experience all the faults I've seen have been RCDs not tripping when they should.

 

[OnlQQker]

My sister had this issue a while back.
Ended up being an outside light on a fused spur wired into the ring main.
It was letting water in!