Consumer unit not 17th edition edition

[binky]

Spooky!

Out of interest has anyone ever encountered a burn't wooden board, or even the the old back boxes they used to bury in walls?

 

[steptoe]

or the wooden channelled trunking with cloth singles,

 

[Andy™]

Spooky!

Out of interest has anyone ever encountered a burn't wooden board, or even the the old back boxes they used to bury in walls?

few years i was called to a house with sockets not working. found this. no idea of the cause, but both legs if the neutral completely burnt away. and still no fire

 

[binky]

****** all plastic to set fire to and nice fire-retrdent plaster wall, that's why? :slap

 

[intamixx]

I've been to the property and had a look at the gas and water bonding.  I lifted
up a few floor boards in the kitchen and under stairs cupboards and found the
gas and water earth bonding.  The gas bonding runs under the floorboards to the
outside gas meter and the inlet water pipe is bonded.  I have attached pictures
of what I found for both gas and water.
Mentioned it to the electrician, but they won't change the report.

Please see pictures of the consumer unit with the lid removed.
I notice that the left side contains a 30mA circuit breaker.  Does this mean all the RCDs are effectively covered by this?
On the right side is a Time delayed RCD 100mA Trip.

 

[Andy™]

so he wont amend his mistake... maybe a picture of the earthing to gas & water along with the 'report' to his scam provider... who will probably file it in the 'complaints' / shredder pile...

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

This is why the bonds are meant to be accessible.  Somewhere on the report. It says something like cables under floors, above ceilings etc not inspected.

All a bit if a farce anyhow as there is a plastic joint just after the water bond

 

[binky]

but lots of bonds are under floors in the age pf property I work in. Normally involves liftng a few boards in the understairs cupboard and having a look.

So basically you have a 16th edition TT set-up, as long as the breakers are suitably rated for the cables, and there are no circuit faults, I see no immediate reason to change the board, other than it's a bit old.

 

[poni]

but is the mains water pipe not isolated from the bonding cable by the PVC push fit joint on the water pipe ? 

 

[intamixx]

Found a view of the front of the house showing the gas bonding going under the floor boards.  Not sure how they missed this.

 

[Rob_the_rich]

but is the mains water pipe not isolated from the bonding cable by the PVC push fit joint on the water pipe ? 

Hi poni, see my post

 

[SPECIAL LOCATION]

Found a view of the front of the house showing the gas bonding going under the floor boards.  Not sure how they missed this.

The answer is in post #17 I think....

The electrician was Part P and in there for an hour.  I have paid 95 plus VAT. 

As has been said....

Part P has NO relevance to inspection and testing.....

You need Inspection and testing qualifications and experience..

Not installation training, which may not include much practical work or on site experience.

1 hour is NOT enough time to do the job properly!

Rough ball park timescales I estimate for a domestic PIR with no prior documentation available is half hour per circuit plus another hour for for the CU and bonding investigations.

Generally half a day minimum...  up to a full day for larger properties or more anomalies.

opcorn    

 

[steptoe]

The answer is in post #17 I think....

As has been said....

Part P has NO relevance to inspection and testing.....

You need Inspection and testing qualifications and experience..

Not installation training, which may not include much practical work or on site experience.

1 hour is NOT enough time to do the job properly!

Rough ball park timescales I estimate for a domestic PIR with no prior documentation available is half hour per circuit plus another hour for for the CU and bonding investigations.

Generally half a day minimum...  up to a full day for larger properties or more anomalies.

opcorn    

I done a 2 bed semi last week in under 2 hours onsite, (plus office time writing up, obviously)

but,

I had done the same property 2 years ago and had all the relevant paperwork to refer to,

the readings I was obtaining were virtually identical, and I knew the positions of all the accessories, and the remedials I had previously carried out,

absolutely nothing had changed in the property, which is in itself an anomaly.

 

[ProDave]

I am upset,  disappointed  & disgusted with this comment.  You can not make a statement like this without knowledge of exactly what was asked for and the purpose of the report, you have not even seen the full document.  You may not value yourself much but i and many others worked dam hard to get where we are today, with the cost of the test equipment, software time taken in travel , inspection & writing up i think that is a very fair price. The hundreds of hours previous work experience is what  you are being paid for. We would not do that one that cheap. A one off inspection is £180 +vat.

Sory but £45 an hour is over priced, hence ther ripping you off comment.

Okay I am in a cheap part of the country and I charge £25 per hour.  My garage mechanic that looks after our cars charges £27 per hour. You think YOU have a lot of equipment invested in and to maintain!!!!!

 

[ProDave]

This is why the bonds are meant to be accessible.  Somewhere on the report. It says something like cables under floors, above ceilings etc not inspected.

All a bit if a farce anyhow as there is a plastic joint just after the water bond

BUT this is a TT install, and being bonded to that nice burried lead incoming water pipe will help a LOT.

I would leave that on as a "secret earth" and add another vivible bond to the house pipework.

 

[Andy™]

but is the mains water pipe not isolated from the bonding cable by the PVC push fit joint on the water pipe ? 

the internal pipework is irrelevant if its not extraneous. its the incoming pipe that is if its conductive and therefore (almost always) extraneous

 

[poni]

the internal pipework is irrelevant if its not extraneous. its the incoming pipe that is if its conductive and therefore (almost always) extraneous

does it not also exposed to touch, inside the equipotential zone (keeping exposed-conductive-parts and extraneous conductive-parts at substantially the same potential)

is this not why we need to bond it as it enters the zone?

if its isolated from the outside by the PVC joint then it not extraneous, is it?

 

[Andy™]

any conductive pipe entering a property is most likely extraneous and will need bonded and point of entry (no idea why its always the outgoing side of the stoptap / meter though, personally i think it should be on the incoming side)

exposed to touch inside irrelevant. any conductive part fully inside cannot be extraneous. its the same as touching a door handle or conductive handrail etc. and you dont bond them

 

[poni]

any conductive pipe entering a property is most likely extraneous and will need bonded and point of entry (no idea why its always the outgoing side of the stoptap / meter though, personally i think it should be on the incoming side)

exposed to touch inside irrelevant. any conductive part fully inside cannot be extraneous. its the same as touching a door handle or conductive handrail etc. and you dont bond them

I think that is what I meant, by exposed to touch, where it enters the zone, and not under the floor board's outside the zone,  and not just any old bit of conducive part (please don't take us back the dark old days of the 15th ed,, having to bond window frame's, door handle's and dog leads)