Advice required please urgently

[sparky b]

O.k, have you tried LG tv on a different ring and/or different ariel socket?

 

[steptoe]

Right.Unplug ALL the other aerial leads into and out of the loft box, so you have JUST the tv plugged into the mains, the loft box plugged into the mains, and just ONE coax cable plugged into the loft box, that being the one that feeds the aerial down from the loft box to the offending tv. The ONLY thing plugged into the tv must be the aerial lead from the loft box, no scart leads, hdmi leads or anything else, no DVD players etc.

Does the RCD trip?

If yes, then in all probability the tv AND the loft box are faulty.

If no, the RCD does not trip, then start plugging the other cables back into the loft box, ONE AT A TIME, i.e the aerial feed into the loft box (from the sky box in the other room) then any other outputs to other tv's.

Then tell us which cable being re connected causes the trip.

If still no trip, re connect, again one at a time, all DVD players, freeview boxes etc.

If you can, sketch out a detailed drawing of ALL the tv's, sky boxes, freeview boxes, amplifiers, splitters etc so we can fully understand the installation.

or better still, bypass the loftbox completely by using F-F connectors on your TV and antenna connectors, (I assume they are F type),

then if that is OK introduce the loft box,

then as ProDiddy suggests, ONE item at a time to we eliminate the culprit or not as it may be, may just be a combination of lots of little leaks.

or perhaps cross leaks from different sides of the board, I know you say this has been cured, but its not always just so simple.

 

[ProDave]

HiYes I have and the rcd doesn't trip. 6 other TV's in the house all plugged into loft box also work ok. So maybe the lg is faulty, i could take it to a friends house and see if it pops their rcd (quite big to get in a car tho) but if they don't have a loftbox is it a true test? Of course if it pops rcd without a loft box then it says a lot....

.

AS my previous post, you need to do that test. 6 other tv's means 6 other potentially faulty items that could introduce the voltage to the aerial socket that upsets this tv, and with that many tv's we really could do with a sketch of how it ALL is wired up.

That still wouldn't explain this high reading that he was very concerned about, or perhaps the tester is wrong from what some if you guys say the high readings are almost expected.

I think you should ignore this "high reading" I don't think that is related to the tripping.

 

[steptoe]

HiYes I have and the rcd doesn't trip. 6 other TV's in the house all plugged into loft box also work ok. So maybe the lg is faulty, i could take it to a friends house and see if it pops their rcd (quite big to get in a car tho) but if they don't have a loftbox is it a true test? Of course if it pops rcd without a loft box then it says a lot....

That still wouldn't explain this high reading that he was very concerned about, or perhaps the tester is wrong from what some if you guys say the high readings are almost expected.

I don't have a problem paying anyone to help, my grievance is mentioning extra money when it's to do something he's already told me was built into the price in advance to cover 'these types of scenarios'.. Especially when he doesn't seem to even understand it, he was blaming everything he could from remote control light (which is on light circuit not ring) to 6 was surge protectors, the rcd plugged in the garage socket for the lawnmower and i think the unplugged kettle got accused at one point too.

sorry if I sounded negative to you Robbio,

not intended, and I suppose things like this grate on me a bit,

if this guy was a proper spark then prob he should be able to tell you within half an hour to an hour what your problem was, if its your fault then pinpoint it or narrow it down, not just general blame.

sounds like yet another F'in 5WW,

sorry to all the guys on here trying to do it right,

either that or an idiot like I have in my firm.

this is just **** poor service.

get apache to go take a look, bet he could sort it out.

 

[batty]

Perhaps its wired by the same **** that did a job that needed a cu change due to it nearly catching on fire. He had put a spur in the loft for the tv booster and wired the neutral and earth the wrong way round ok till I tried to RCD protect circuit.

 

[Manator]

Ok i have just speed read all of this thread. The fact that a new install (cu replacement) has resulted in you not having full functionality of your electrical installation is cause for concern. There is no excuse for any electrician to leave you with any problem that would cause you a nuicance. Regardless of previous posts and the intentions behind them, I feel you have cause for concern. Any electrician worth his salt could show you that the installation meets all requirements and is within the maximum values as stated in the wiring regulations. The inept way you describe the tester as a seperate identity, shows that you have not done basic checks on the electrician who carried out the works for you, most Part P compliant electricians are allowed to test and inspect their own works, and issue the required certificates.

This I must say is not your fault, there has been a total lack of information passed on to the consumer about any regulation that they are expected to follow, and I must point this out at this point, YOU the person ordering the works have full responsibility, and YOU are the first person who is charged with any non compliance , not the electrician who did the work.

To me it looks like you have been fleeced, which is not uncommon, any fault can be traced within a couple of hours by a fully trained competant electrician, it looks like the guy you employed, probably because he was cheaper, is not competant, and now you are paying the price.

 

[Robbio]

All i knew is that i needed a new fuse box based on age, safety etc and that i need a part p guy to do it legitimately... Sadly my mates dad could have done this in his sleep but without part p i kindly rejected his offer.

Ironically this company were not the cheapest, i hired him based on locality and allegedly being part p approved,,, my big bad move was not asking him for proof of qualifications first. My alarms bells started ringing early on, so i watched him like a hawk, had it not been for my ideas and input and running around the house he would probably still be fitting the panel, let alone testing

One of the most recent comments to strip all the cables from the loft box, test and reintroduce was already on my list for tomorrow, i was hoping to avoid as it's not the most comfortable job in the itchy loft of insulation but i agree its totally needed now and on the agenda for tomorrow a.m.

Sorry if the thread had been hard to follow, im not hiding anything just listing everything would take ages and due to some of my testing already I've been able to rule certain things out..

I will post the results of my testing tomorrow..

For info, that tv works fine with any other devices plugged in, been on it with the pc and xbox all week..

 

[sellers]

it sound to me like you have had a bad spark do a bad job.

These sparks with limited knowledge will change your consumer unit all day long but as soon as something tricky pops up they go running. This would probably take one of us about 30mins to find with the correct equipment.

The high reading is a red herring here i beleive. Its an old wives tale that zs reading over 1ohm are a cause for concern. You can have a reading of 1.16 on a b32 mcb. 6.18 on a b6.

I reccomend you try a different TV as I presume its the tv at fault and your aerial is giving the fault an earth somewhere along the lines.

With all these TV's and DVD's etc all sharing a common aerial it only takes one of these to be a class 1 appliance and you've got an earth path.

Get a well know electrician in, get him to do an IR test on the TV Plug to coax outlet and see if there is any insulation breakdown (a low reading)

---------- Post Auto-Merged at 23:46 ---------- Previous post was made at 23:44 ----------

how much did this Consumer Unit change cost?

 

[steptoe]

Im thinking now,

are all your TVs, xboxes etc all on the one RCD.?

can you give us a list of what circuits are on what RCDs,

ie,

RCD1

cooker

sockets kitchen

lights upstairs

RCD2

shower

sockets house

lights downstairs

etc......

have they been labelled up for you,

it may just be too much leakage on one RCD,

or even a dodgy RCD,

a ramp would sort this out,

then a leakage meter to define the problem circuit, and further to the actual item with the greatest leakage.

 

[Manator]

Any Part P registered electrician has a complaints procedure, as a homeowner you have this right to complain. A competant electrician should be able to identify all faults by proper testing procedures.

Another requirement I have had to fullfill is that any inspection carried out as a third party has to be in a language that all can understand.

Saying that a reading is one, but gets larger as you go along the circuit,means nothing, other than my experiance telling me what "may" be wrong, but without absolute readings I like others will jump to conclusions.

My suggestion is to use your rights and make sure that you are happy with what your electrician has left you with.

 

[steptoe]

Any Part P registered electrician has a complaints procedure, as a homeowner you have this right to complain. A competant electrician should be able to identify all faults by proper testing procedures.Another requirement I have had to fullfill is that any inspection carried out as a third party has to be in a language that all can understand.

Saying that a reading is one, but gets larger as you go along the circuit,means nothing, other than my experiance telling me what "may" be wrong, but without absolute readings I like others will jump to conclusions.

My suggestion is to use your rights and make sure that you are happy with what your electrician has left you with.

it seems that he has got 'joe from the pub'

not exactly true I know OP, but legally for all intents and purposes it is,

but more importantly,

for your electric to work that is exactly what it seems like,

you really need to get a decent/proper spark in to have a look,

I would hazard a guess that depending on exact location etc you could well have a fairly definitive answer for

 

[philbas]

What area of North Yorkshire are you in, It's big county?

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

He didn't test all the sockets, only a couple after the issues, with a plug in light up device. He didnt test any before starting work.

Well that speaks volumes!!!

Plug in light up tester..

They have very limited value for circuit testing..

http://www.esc.org.uk/pdfs/business-and-community/electrical-industry/BPG8_10.pdf

no contract' date=' not sure on his quals either..

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Seems to me I'm in a stronger position to question him before I pay , thats why I came to your forum, you guys clearly know what you are talking about.

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my big bad move was not asking him for proof of qualifications first.

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[/quote']

These various snippets keep popping up along the discussion...

Your big bad move was NO formal contract..

and by the sounds of it not using an electrician who is a member of one of the approved contracting bodies...

(who will have a complaints procedure you can follow and bring third party into the evaluation of if theres IS a real wiring fault or plug in accessory problem)

Your stronger position..

Agreed if you have not yet paid him..

I would suggest you withhold a portion until you have received BOTH electrical certificates and Building regs compliance certificate.

Guinness

With all that has been posted I still stand by most of what I said in Post 8..

 

[ProDave]

I reccomend you try a different TV as I presume its the tv at fault and your aerial is giving the fault an earth somewhere along the lines.With all these TV's and DVD's etc all sharing a common aerial it only takes one of these to be a class 1 appliance and you've got an earth path.

That's what I thought, but a few pages back the OP did a test where he connected an earth lead from a radiator to the aerial socket and it did not trip.

What's needed is a PAT test on the tv (with the aerial plugged in) to see what leakage there is. Any competent electrician could do that, using his megger if he didn't happen to have a pat tester with him at the time.

And better check the water pipes are bonded, perhaps if not, that's why the radiator earth test didn't trip the rcd (or all plastic piping for the central heating)

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

Reverse polarity in plug or socket of loft amp.

 

[kme]

If the TV is LG, it`s very likely to be DI - two core supply.

Older sets had "floating" chassis - you could actually get a shock off `em when plugging in an aerial cable.

The OP has managed to get one of the (ever more prolific) wannabesparks, who don`t know the job as they should.

Go to a reputable firm, if the issue is a wiring fault, you may be able to pass their cost along to either the sparkee (loosely) or testee (also....). If an appliance fault - your problem, i`m afraid.......

KME

 

[ProDave]

I'm still waiting for the OP to do those tests (unplug and re connect one cable at a time) to tell us exactly what causes the trip, and the sketch of how it's all wired.

 

[monkey5]

the high reading on sockets probably just a loose terminal dont think itll cause the trip but would have thought the "tester" would have know that or at least tried it!

---------- Post Auto-Merged at 13:42 ---------- Previous post was made at 13:41 ----------

I'm still waiting for the OP to do those tests (unplug and re connect one cable at a time) to tell us exactly what causes the trip, and the sketch of how it's all wired.

and how much they were charged!

 

[m4tty]

Nice signage on your van monkey. Was it expensive? Looks like it's been wrapped?

 

[monkey5]

Nice signage on your van monkey. Was it expensive? Looks like it's been wrapped?

WAS nice! unfortunatly this is my old van which i drove into a ditch and wrote it off:coat , i have a white caddy at present and uming and ar ing whether to get it redone or buy another yellow one to stand out like before.

the bonnet and rear doors were wrapped because the yellow respray(done before i bought it) wasnt too good on them so after talking to a mate in the signage trade, came up with the idea of wrapping and covering it.

cost