100 Amp Fuse Removed

[podwin]

Hi,

I am not an electrician, but know a little, such as you should not touch the 100 AMP fuses in houses, is that correct?

I have a business, it is in a semi detached house, it is an internet company so quite a few computers.

Next door is a hairdressers. About a year ago the old lady from next door had to arrange with me a time the electric could be cut off as she was having some electrical work done. When these houses built (or had electricity installed), one cable came off the road and was split between the properties, after the 100 AMP fuse. This seemed odd to me, but was told it was normal "back then".

The houses are old, when we bought the property it still had lead wiring!

Anyway, the split is in the hairdressers, so pulling their fuse cuts off my electric also.

Yesterday, new owners of the hairdresser are having electrical work done, and our supply gets cut without warning at around 5 pm.

I go next door and this electrician is confused, and actually said "I shouldn't really remove this" among other things.

I was annoyed at the time, but even more so because the alarm system has been crying "Tamper". The second time he cut the electric off the alarm went dead so it looks like the battery backup has been damaged,

One of our PCs will not turn back on, the heating seems to be on all the time, which I don't understand as I have check the timer.

So, my queries to you experts are:

1. Can doing this cause damage to electrical items?

2. We have a large bank of solar panels on the roof, will current from these have a bearing on issues cause when this fuse is removed?

3. The guy seems like an idiot, should I report him? Is what he did illegal?

Thanks

Martin

 

[wozz]

1. Not in my opinion same as a power cut

2. No

3. He should have let you know, but without seeing the set up it may not have been really obvious, not brilliant but not a hanging offence. You may also find if you need to have electrical work done your electrician may need to do the same. The set up either way doesn't sound great are you metered separately?

 

[ProDave]

Where to start with that one?

Just about the only need to pull the main fuse is for a consumer unit change when there is no other means of isolation.  We electricians may or may not be allowed to pull it. Some DNO's have procedures in place to authorise electricians to pull it, others don't.  The fact the guy said he shouldn't pull it suggests he's in the latter category.

What you need, is to get the DNO to modify the installation so that you both have separate fuses for both properties, and ideally isolating switches as well. Only the DNO can do that work, and they will charge you for it, but it sounds like a price worth paying in your case.  With a lot of old installs like this, they just leave it alone until someone makes a big enough noise about getting it upgraded.

And how easy you find it to get upgraded depends a lot on who your DNO is.  Also if your energy supplier is not your local DNO then that's another level of complication and sometimes ignorance you have to battle through.

Sounds like some UPS's would be a good short term purchase.

I doubt pulling the fuse did any damage, but now you and next door know the situation, you need to have words to ensure they KNOW not to disconnect you unless absolutely necessary, and only after notifying you.

 

[podwin]

OK, thanks for the info.

I do have two UPS' for important stuff, and they did their job, but staff desktop PCs and other general use PCs do not have UPS'. It maybe worth getting some small ones.

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

The alarms giving the Tamper warning after a power disconnection is most probably because you have not had the alarm panel batteries regularly maintained.

removal of the fuse...

random power cut...

genuine overload fault causing the fuse to blow...

would ALL give the same symptoms at the alarm panel.

100A shared fused supplying two domestic properties probably wouldn't be too much of a practical or convenience issue... 

but suppling two businesses sounds a bit dubious...

I would think either yourself or the hairdressers should have organised a new supply arrangement when the businesses were established. (out of curiosity are you billed as a domestic consumer or as a business??)

But the bottom line is that removing a single phase supply fuse to a property is in essence no different to any power cut. 

I would just wonder if it is actually a single phase supply shared between the two of you?

Or is is a three phase supply which just happens to split in the next door property..

and the bloke pulled the wrong fuse rather than a shared fuse?

And whats the earthing arrangment..?

you say its an old installation so I assume its not a combined neutral earth set up (TNCS)..

But as you mention your problems with the PC's and heating system...

you can get some nasty voltages between the phases if a neutral goes AWOL on TNCS (PME) 

supplied properties...

Its not uncommon for houses to have appliances damaged with an open neutral fault  

What work was the guy next door doing??

Can you get a photo of the incoming supply fuses, meters & earth connections??

 

[podwin]

Thanks, that is all very interesting even if I don't fully understand it all.

We are are ltd company, and hence billed as a business. The Solar panels can actually provided some income.

Before us, our place was a Post Office for a good 30 years.

As for next door, I don't know their billing arrangements, but may try and get a photo.

Alarm co are coming tomorrow, as they service the system every 6 months. They are thinking it could be a blown internal fuse, but the panel is saying all sorts like "Reset Devices" and "Call Service".

They are having a refurb next door, but they have a flat for rent also, so he may have been splitting their supply in two, and having two separate consumer boards.

I'll ask next time they are there.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

The loop between houses was fairly common in the 30's, it seems unusual though that the fuse next door also supplies yours, normally yours would be connected to the cable before your neighbours fuse. In saying that though, nothing suprises me. There are some pics here somewhere, that were posted of a looped supply just like yours.

Was the computer that has crashed running an old operating system, most for the last few years can handle a power outage.

I agree with above about the alarm blowing a fuse .

If it was a different electrician next door to the first guy he would not have known you were fed from the same fuse as them.

Locked to prevent being resurrected (again)