cables behind architraves/doorcasings

[wood fitter]

I just cut through another live wire while undercutting a doorcasing for a wood floor installation. It was just behind the architrave.

The house (1970s) had just been rewired.

The lightswitch was touching the arch, does this mean its ok to run the wire behind the arch?

 

[Badger]

i wouldnt have thought so personally as it should have been rerouted to the top of the switch box direct in a straight line to the ceiling/floor depennding wether upstairs downstairs or the landing 2way on the landing itself.

 

[ProDave]

I have seen this many times. Something you expect in an old house, but really should not have been done in a rewire as that should have been done to current regs which require cables in safe zones, and that clearly was not.

 

[wood fitter]

It was in a hall, downstairs, switch is for bathroom light. Cable runs down from switch (via doorcasing) to below suspended floor.

So the permited zone is just the width of the lightswitch verically or horizontally?

The cable veers around 40mm outside the width of the switch (into the doorcasing)

---------- Post Auto-Merged at 22:22 ---------- Previous post was made at 22:20 ----------

Thanks, I thought so.

Thanks for the quick responses

 

[Doc Hudson]

I just cut through another live wire while undercutting a doorcasing for a wood floor installation. It was just behind the architrave.The house (1970s) had just been rewired.

The lightswitch was touching the arch, does this mean its ok to run the wire behind the arch?

No it is not ok to run behind architraves or skirting board due to the possibility of the problem you have encountered.

Doc H.

 

[Evans Electric]

No ... its not one of the recognized zones , but it occurs a lot , as Prodave said .

You could find older , original wiring ,possibly rubber, within the door casings and as said, after rewires too.

You'll have to check first Woody , you find it a lot in the hallways, strappers and stuff going up to the landing and again up behind another architrave to the loft.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

Its also found a lot in older Victorian houses where doors swung against the room for privacy, but nowadays have been rehung to swing against a wall so the switch has been moved from one side of the frame to the other by hiding the cable behind the architrave. It was not correct then and still is not now.

 

[SteveT]

I once found a 6mm T+E feeding a cooker had been run in a channel gouged out behind the door-stop, the pins of which were hammered in on the very edge. I had removed the door-stop with a chisel (as you do!)very lucky not to have gone straight through said cable.

As our LABC say's built by an RAF builder (Rough as Fu*k)

 

[Technician]

Like the acronym... ROTFWL

 

[wood fitter]

The spark says its ok to run cables behind the architrave because the architrave offers mechanical protection, and its protected with a 30ma RCD, and that I shouldnt cut the architraves too deep. What's your opinion?

Is there a detector that will pinpoint a cable location?

I have something but its triggered by wires up to metre away and therefore useless.

 

[Evans Electric]

I think your sparks is wrong , Woody, there are zones for cables and hiding them behind architraves is'nt one of them TBH .

I suppose he'd recommend a gas pipe in there too !! If you can't kill the chippy one way . try another.

Shouldn't be in there Woody, end of story.

 

[steptoe]

The spark IDIOT doing the wiring says its ok to run cables behind the architrave because the architrave offers mechanical protection, and its protected with a 30ma RCD, and that I shouldnt cut the architraves too deep. What's your opinion?Is there a detector that will pinpoint a cable location?

I have something but its triggered by wires up to metre away and therefore useless.

tell him he is a complete and utter wazzock, (I cant use other language on here!)

ask him if he is a 5 day F'in wonder , cos he sure as hell aint a spark!

do you want to get him to ring me?

hes a K N 0 B

 

[wood fitter]

It did strike me as odd that he states a piece of architrave could offer mechanical protection against nails and screws etc.

Perhaps its just because I'm a chippy but when I see a piece of wood I think "I'm gonna nail that wood and if that don't work I'm Gonna screw it".

 

[steptoe]

mechanical protection to me would mean a piece of earthed metal.

 

[chrisg1979]

No its not ok, I recently went to a call where during a (very) recent install the spark had fogotten to run a switch wire to the back room. In order to avoid damaging plaster he ran it behind the door frame and skirting boards and that's the way it stayed UNTIL the homeowner replaced the door, then bang!

Poor workmanship imo.

 

[ProDave]

No its not ok, I recently went to a call where during a (very) recent install the spark had fogotten to run a switch wire to the back room. In order to avoid damaging plaster he ran it behind the door frame and skirting boards and that's the way it stayed UNTIL the homeowner replaced the door, then bang! Poor workmanship imo.

Yes, it was VERY poor workmanship to hang the new door with screws that were too long so they went right through the door lining and out the other side. :innocent :coat

 

[wood fitter]

Yes, it was VERY poor workmanship to hang the new door with screws that were too long so they went right through the door lining and out the other side. :innocent :coat

You mean like 25mm screws through 18mm of door lining?

 

[ProDave]

You mean like 25mm screws through 18mm of door lining?

Note the smilies. It was meant as a joke, not a serious criticism of the carpenter.

 

[rugbymacc]

http://www.wiringdigest.com/images/cable-zones.jpg

if the switch is tight up to the arch then there is always a possibility you'll find a cable there......

good practice >>> no (however we don't know the constraints the electrician had to work to)

 

[Doc Hudson]

The spark says its ok to run cables behind the architrave because the architrave offers mechanical protection, and its protected with a 30ma RCD, and that I shouldn't cut the architraves too deep. What's your opinion?Is there a detector that will pinpoint a cable location?

I have something but its triggered by wires up to metre away and therefore useless.

Any person saying such things can in no way consider themselves to be an electrician. They are lacking any understanding of basic cable routing. It would be like you suggesting that any non solid door can be a fire door, as long as it fills the door hole it must offer fire protection!

Doc H.