Bonding....

[Southcoast2015]

HI Guys,

New member here.

I've had a look round on here a few times, and now I have a question that you may be able to help wit.

Doing some work for a customer and I noticed that the main incoming gas pipe is bonded as it enters right alongside electrical supply.

The water on the other hand isn't bonded, I've had a look and it enters in the corner of a dining room, it's boxed in (stopcock can be accessed through small door in the boxing in)

It rises up about 6ft to a plastic speedfit connector so the rest of the pipework is insulated from the incoming pipe. The nearest socket is the other side of the room, so you couldn't ever really touch anything that may become live and this pipework at the same time, unless you were knelt on the floor with your hand inside stopcock access hole and had something on extension lead in your other hand???

I've did long lead test between pipe and MET and there's 1 Ohm there, Given that this ready is fairly low for something that isn't bonding and the fact that know one could ever touch it  and something live - Would you guys bond this?? The run would mean floorboards up in 2 rooms upstairs, potentially tiled bathroom floor too and maybe a section of ceiling in the dining room to get the 10mm over to pipe.

Thanks in advance

 

[Southcoast2015]

Will need to learn how to edit posts on here - Spelling is terrible!

 

[Andy™]

well if its 1 ohm, then id say its failed the non extraneous 22K test so it needs bonded...

and the fact the nearest socket is other side of room is irrelevant. if its extraneous, then it needs bonded. this is very clear in 7671. maybe have a read of it again

 

[Southcoast2015]

Hi,

Thanks for reply, I know the regs say it should be done - I was just wondering if anyone had ever deviated on this sort of thing and if so - under what circumstances.

Just seems like a ridiculous amount of work for something that is almost certainly never going to produce a risk.

 

[Essex1]

Welcome.

it needs bonding mate. This is quite clear and if there is a lot of pipework you cannot see you can not really say whether there is not a risk elsewhere.

Can you not take the cable around the perimeter of the property?

 

[Southcoast2015]

No it's in the middle of the house.

I have tested central heating pipes and they bonded probably at the boiler which is in the loft (not looked at this yet) 

 

[NozSpark]

The central heating pipes will all be earthed by the circuit CPC and the gas bond.

What type of pipe is the incomming water service supplied by?

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

I don't believe you should enter a deviation as 'It was too much work/cost'  ;

 

[Southcoast2015]

The supply pipe is sheath wrapped so haven't looked closely enough to see what's made out of but it is metallic,

 

[Southcoast2015]

Yeah I agree about not making deviations based on work/effort needed, I'm just making sure I've thought of everything 'outside of the box' before I commit to having to pull someones house apart 

I was just thinking along the lines of.....The bond should be in place within 600mm of consumer's side of pipe work (obviously) - if consumer's pipework was all plastic then there would be no need to bond, the fact that the pipework in question runs (boxed in) 6ft up the wall before entering a plastic speedfit connector (and there are several more after that also) means that the risk is minimal, I was just interested in other people's thoughts on it. If it needs bonding then it needs bonding.

I just know I wouldn't pull my house apart to do it under these circumstances.

 

[Andy™]

if consumer's pipework was all plastic then there would be no need to bond, .

erm... the pipework in the house being plastic is irrelevant. if the pipe coming in is extraneous, it needs bonded, end of. maybe get a refund on your short coursE?

 

[Southcoast2015]

Not sure there's the need for sarcasm, so if supply pipe to stopcock is metallic and everything after the stopcock (consumer's) is plastic, where would you bond? bearing in mind that the bond is supposed to be with 600mm of supply side??

 

[Andy™]

if its metallic, then its most likely extraneous, therefore must be bonded. if you cant put it on consumer side because its plastic then you will need to put it on supply side

then you could also have the complete opposite - plastic feed in but all copper inside which might not be extraneous and might not need bonded at all

 

[Rob_the_rich]

Would it be easier to replace all exposed extraneous metallic pipework within the boxing with plastic pipe, including a plastic stopcock? If the metallic water pipe is already sheathed, then it could be assumed that it is not introducing a potential into the floor (assuming concrete and plastic sheathing, is this the case?) If there is a short piece of metal exposed above the floor, a piece of plastic waste water pipe could be siliconed in to cover it.

Just trying to think of alternatives.

Is it PME?

 

[Southcoast2015]

It would be easier to change the plumbing than it would to run this cable.

It's TNS

If it was mine I'd screw the access door shut and call it an enclosure requiring a tool to access

 

[binky]

ok if pipework in house is copper, you could cross bond at boiler and pick up water that way - test boiler to stopcock first.

 

[Southcoast2015]

Stop cock won't have continuity as far up as boiler because of plastic speed fit connectors.

 

[Rob_the_rich]

I hope this is all part of the pre-work survey, and you haven't already changed the CU

 

[Southcoast2015]

It's not a CU change, just something I spotted whilst looking around, it's only minor bits I'm doing

 

[Evans Electric]

So  lets see,  This pipe cannot be touched because its boxed in .   Does it present any danger I ask?

There no point trying to bond the rest of the pipework because of Speedfit couplers.

Theres a bond nearby on the gas ...eh ?

Hmmmm !