How Not To Change a Consumer Unit

[jameseye12]

Found this nice shiny piece of kit in a house I am currently rewiring. 1920s, original wiring, in a terrible state. This cu is a sub board from the main cu and feeds individual socket outlets. No labels, no certs, no testing, no clue, is a brief summary of the previous 'electrician'

Nice use of the RCDs there, must have kept tripping with all that perished VIR

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[shed69]

Brilliant!!! Well regs is just a guide so it's fine!!!! So when you starting Rewire then......

 

[kme]

What is going on with those neutrals? Are they booted straight acroos, and not referenced to the RCD at all? Classic

---------- Post Auto-Merged at 23:27 ---------- Previous post was made at 23:24 ----------

And what`s the story with the phase conductors tucked into the busbar connections?? :C

Looks like somebody read a very poorly translated book. Should have watched the "dummies guide to 17th edition board wiring" on metube :slap

 

[jameseye12]

Basically from the outside they've tried to make it look like a nice new up to date cu, but they've basically left the RCDS unconnected, the pieces extracted from a length of T&E link both sides of the board, add some choccy blocks and some pvc sleeving and hey presto - you can fool anyone.

Until an electrician has a look inside....

The wiring ive removed so far is well beyond safe and in a lot of places is shorting N>E. My guess is that they couldn't get the RCDs to hold in so they just made it look nice.

Apparantley the previous owners had 'lots of electrical work done' before they sold it so fooling the new occupants. They had changed most of the accessories throughout the house too. It was only when the plumbers' electrician wired up the new heating that the old wiring was brought to their attention, and this horror was discovered by myself upon starting the job.....

 

[kme]

Don`t suppose you can find out who, and report `em?

 

[jameseye12]

Don`t suppose you can find out who, and report `em?

Doubt it, previous owner's electrician. Some old guy, nearing retirement, not part P, no certs, the sooner he is out of the game the better. If It was me, I wouldnt want to be fitting a new CU to this cabling

 

[Sharpend]

Taking the positive from a dire situation. At least he has provided a decent board for you to start from. Now you've just got to cable it.

 

[jameseye12]

Taking the positive from a dire situation. At least he has provided a decent board for you to start from. Now you've just got to cable it.

Moving it anyway, this is above the dining room door, fed from a 32a MCB in another CU. Gonna stick it beside the cutout and meter in the cupboard under the stairs

 

[Doc Hudson]

Please keep us updated on how this job progresses. Any more nightmares you find and pictures of the amended CU that you will be bringing back into the realms of compliance.

Doc H.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

He must have 'trained' at the same place as the guy that did this job http://www.talk.electricianforum.co.uk/black-museum-forum/17868-here-we-go-again.html

 

[ProDave]

There's shoddy, poor wiring, but that just takes the biscuit, obviously done by somebody without even a LITTLE understanding of electrics.

 

[Steve3948]

Don`t suppose you can find out who, and report `em?

Doubt it, previous owner's electrician. Some old guy, nearing retirement, not part P, no certs, the sooner he is out of the game the better. If It was me, I wouldnt want to be fitting a new CU to this cabling

Well what do you deem close to retirement then......Just saying....

 

[jameseye12]

Well what do you deem close to retirement then......Just saying....

What do I deem close to retirement?

From what I hear it was pretty self explanatory, it was one of his last few jobs before packing up his tools for good. He obviously wasnt bothered about part p or testing and has done a really half arsed job.

 

[jameseye12]

Update of the work in progress.

Other pictures are of the other CU which feeds the CU shown above, a nice picture of the floorspace above where a CPC has been stripped out of a piece of T&E and is twisted around another bare CPC in the floor space. There is also a picture of the bell system that is still in operation throughout the house, the wooden backboxes on all the accessories, the old light switches, and the understairs cupboard where I have fitted the new CU and have started connected up the final circuits that I have finished.

More to follow as the job progresses

 

[steptoe]

personally,

I think you are just making work for yourself,

most of that looks ok, it was all working fine, wasnt it?

so whats the problem????

 

[jameseye12]

personally,I think you are just making work for yourself,

most of that looks ok, it was all working fine, wasnt it?

so whats the problem????

Do you have a confession to make, Mr Steptoe?

 

[steptoe]

Im sure I wrote next inspection wasnt due until 2014,,,,,,,, :|

 

[jameseye12]

Hmm that may be the case, but it can't be one of your jobs - its TNCS! :slap

 

[steptoe]

I didnt do the work,

I just partP'd it by post,

e.mail me a pic of your CU and cross my palm and I'll do you a remote controlled cert,

simples.

 

[jameseye12]

No thanks, you're not Part P ing on any of my work!

You stay away Mr Steptoe! ROTFWL