What's blowing my electrics?

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What's blowing my electrics?
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GrahamH

Joined: 23 May 2015
Posts: 523

Posted: Wed Sep 14, 16 10:46 am Post subject:

Yes DP, time served spark needs to upgrade when new editions come out by the one day C and G course. Each edition is updated by several versions named by the colour of the cover of the regs. So for example, 16th edition, brown. So after a few years there will be red, yellow green versions of an edition.
New editions only when major changes take place....15th to 16th was mainly differences in earthing.
I had my gas certificate also, commercial not domestic. That changed to an exam every two years.....I know of several older guys who retired rather than take an exam....any exam.

onemanband

Joined: 26 Dec 2010
Posts: 1473
Location: NCA90

Posted: Wed Sep 14, 16 4:09 pm Post subject:

dpack wrote:

onemanband wrote:

dpack wrote:

.......... the cheap ones are often badly designed inside and use thin metal bits in the plug sockets which are very prone to overheating the equally low grade plastic bits.

Another bane of my life. I appreciate I abuse my leads - splattered with concrete, used in the rain and chucked around - but they don't make 'em like they used to. I've had 'heavy duty' extension leads go wobbly-socket within 2 weeks. Price does not seem to guarantee durability - I have found the cheapish Wickes enclosed extension leads to be the most hard wearing.

best ones i have ever had were 110v big kango leads with the commando plug and socket each end replaced with good quality rubber 240v parts

not a standard solution but very long lasting and safe.

Best one I had was a non-brand open reel that someone gave me - already well used. I got about 5 years out of it. Spool was a rubbery plastic so didn't break. Eventually the sockets gave out, it was also a bit short

and a bit mishapen.
Funnily enough (or not) my Faithfull (that's the brand, not my pet name for it) extension reel has began playing up today. When it really annoys me it will meet the same fate as the others - pick axe through the middle - and it will annoy me no more.

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Wed Sep 14, 16 4:38 pm Post subject:

Nick wrote:

your insurance company require a valid safety certificate to insure your house.

Sadly it's my mothers' house. If it were mine, I wouldn't let him anywhere near it. Fortunately, he lives in France and doesn't like coming back to the UK, so I'm hopeful that he won't want to do it. I know he got sparked at when he messed about with it. I only got away with a qualified boiler engineer because he'd just had an operation (so I know the gas is ok, fortunately) He doesn't give a damn about any sort of regulations. The consumer unit was replaced January when I had the solar pv put in. The previous was mounted in a plastic sandwich box to keep it dry in a damp cellar!

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46235
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 12:09 am Post subject:
ummmm

Nick

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 34535
Location: Hereford

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 7:10 am Post subject:

dpack wrote:

ummmm

Careful. He's about to shout at you for living in a death trap simply so you don't offend your fil.

frewen

Joined: 08 Sep 2005
Posts: 11405

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 8:05 am Post subject:
I'd lie through my teeth and say that my child nearly exploded themselves with the electrics and in a mother fit I paid someone to do a whole house rewire. But that's about as sneaky as I get.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46235
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 9:40 am Post subject:

Nick wrote:

dpack wrote:

ummmm

Careful. He's about to shout at you for living in a death trap simply so you don't offend your fil.

i won't shout.

shhh

oh so quiet

and then

appliances are a major culprit as most folk have a reasonably decent supply system. if the house wiring is appalling the stats favour the wires and plugs.

etc etc

ps and you can get zapped directly as well as choked and roasted.

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35935
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 10:03 am Post subject:

frewen wrote:

I'd lie through my teeth and say that my child nearly exploded themselves with the electrics and in a mother fit I paid someone to do a whole house rewire.

But that's about as sneaky as I get.

That's not a bad plan, actually. At least I know what plug sockets we have are all wired properly and the fuse board is up to scratch, because it was certified for rental. Unlike Cuckoo's place, which turned out to have a bloody great nail jammed in the bakelite fuses because the outside wiring to the greenhouses kept tripping and the easiest way to stop it was to reverse live and neutral. I'm not sure if it was my Dad, or The Boy Who Does The Heavy Work ... Pa learned his wiring in the signals between 1939 and 1945 and whilst that sort of thing is suitable for getting the tanks across the Rhine ...

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 1:11 pm Post subject:
Unfortunately, he's actually here at the moment, so I can't. The decision does not rest with me, as its Mum's house. I'm hopeful of having support from the Actual Electrcian on Monday. There going off somewhere tomorrow, so things should be (comparatively) safe now. Mum will be happy to do whatever the electrician suggests, although she can't see why it might need rewiring.

NorthernMonkeyGirl

Joined: 10 Apr 2011
Posts: 4630
Location: Peeping over your shoulder

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 1:29 pm Post subject:
Perhaps ask the electrician to snap a few horrifying photos you can send to your mum?

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 2:09 pm Post subject:

It'll be fine once I've had the guy in. He will tell me what needs doing, and mum and I will pay for it between us. I just need someone to tell me what needs doing. Properly. Stepfather will despair of us, of course, but there isn't really much he can do if someone's already on it. Mum is quite happy to get stuff done once it's been deemed necessary, but beleives stepfather when he says he can do it. So until I have some actual advice, I can't really force it. (She doesn't think it will will need rewiring, as the wiring was done 5 years ago 'so the wires are all new, darling'. Guess who did it!?)

john of wessex

Joined: 18 Jun 2007
Posts: 2130

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 5:33 pm Post subject:
Have you got PME Protected Multiple Earth? If you have an 'overhead' supply the poles should indicate if it can be fitted. When I lived in the back & beyond we could not have it fitted and we got more troubles with the RCD tripping than you would get in the big evil city

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46235
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 5:58 pm Post subject:

the spark should be very firm about it considering how you have described it.

if there is anything to be done (

sorry ) they will almost certainly insist on doing things properly if they are to do anything, including (probable especially including ) the stuff done 5 yrs ago by family as iirc doing some bits but leaving anything dubious makes them liable for that as well as their own works.at least the solar stuff and cu should be ok and a new cu is a good start for keeping stuff going while anything dodgy gets replaced.

if you get a chance tell the spark what you have told us regarding the history of the wires and ask them to give a price for a full and proper job .

once you have a price run that past us and i will have a try to work out if it is reasonable for the work required

Hairyloon

Joined: 20 Nov 2008
Posts: 15425
Location: Today I are mostly being in Yorkshire.

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 6:00 pm Post subject:

wellington womble wrote:

(She doesn't think it will will need rewiring, as the wiring was done 5 years ago 'so the wires are all new, darling'.)

It should not need rewiring then: 5 years in no age at all for wires. I think modern wiring should last pretty much forever.

Quote:

Guess who did it!?

I haven't a clue, but whoever it was, don't let them near it again.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46235
Location: yes

Posted: Thu Sep 15, 16 6:08 pm Post subject:

Hairyloon wrote:

wellington womble wrote:

(She doesn't think it will will need rewiring, as the wiring was done 5 years ago 'so the wires are all new, darling'.)

It should not need rewiring then: 5 years in no age at all for wires. I think modern wiring should last pretty much forever.

Quote:

Guess who did it!?

I haven't a clue, but whoever it was, don't let them near it again.

modern cable/sockets etc should last at least 20 yrs, the problem is there is a good chance the way the wire has been routed, protected from damage, circuited, earthed, deinsulated and terminated is likely to be a bit off, all of which trump the age of the cable.

thinking of earthing is there any secondary bonding for the plumbing etc ?

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