My Little Call Out Tonight

[Manator]

I do not do domestics, but everyone in our village knows I am an electrician so tonight I get a phone call.

Smoke coming out of the consumer unit and they cannot get an electrician out.

I get there to find that EON had been out to fit a rec2, The main tails going into the consumer unit were not tight so they had overheated in the terminals.

Whilst there I noticed danger notices on all the sockets in the kitchen. The guy had stuck a socket and see type of tester in the sockets and found a fault with the earth. I put my proper tester on and found a voltage of 159v, tracing back with socket covers off I found at least 3 or 4 earths out of place, all had been sleeved about half of their full length, and I eventually found the suspect socket, re-tightened the connections and fixed the dangerous sockets. :slap

Whilst there I said to the owner, it looks like a plumber has rewired this, he laughed and told me the company that rewired it do plumbing and electrics and are registered under part p. I was left wondering if they were full scope or part, and guess what no certificates for a rewire done 2 years ago.

 

[ProDave]

Par for the course with both the DNO's guys and the plumbtrician both falling way short of expectations.

 

[apprentice87]

I would be making EON pay for a new consumer unit....

john..

 

[batty]

I thought it was tails into consumer unit that had overheated not the ones in the Isolator so maybe nothing to do with EON.

 

[Sidewinder]

Did EON replace or disturb these tails if they are into the consumer unit when they were fitting the REC2, if they could have then they are responsible for checking, this is in the "meter changers" guidance, thus something they should be complying with.

 

[Manator]

They will by default disturb the connections into the consumer unit. They should after fitting the isolator check all connections, and that includes those within the consumer unit. The client told me that they never removed the CU cover.

 

[batty]

I think this is the problem with today's main switches. They just don't seem to grip the cables to well. I always use nylon glands on metal consumer units but that is not an option on plastic. I have never tried the hager jobbies I would imagine they improve things a little bit .  The old main switches with two screws per terminal were a lot better.

 

[Sidewinder]

Well M, down round here WPD fit the REC2 before the meter, so, they would not disturb the CU connections, however, not sure what happens elsewhere.

 

[Manator]

This one was fitted after the meter and before the CU. Neat job to be honest, and I like the fact that he at least tested the sockets afterwards which highlighted a fault that would have otherwise gone unnoticed.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

I always use nylon glands on metal consumer units but that is not an option on plastic.

I would be interested to know how you do this, keeping both L & N  through the same hole in the enclosure ?

 

[batty]

I would be interested to know how you do this, keeping both L & N  through the same hole in the enclosure ?

Quite easily they have a 32mm knockout and you can quite easily get 25mm tails + 16mm earth through a 32mm gland. Although sometimes I may put earth through a separate gland although I think maybe you are not supposed to do that.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

Ok, not seen that method, cant think of a reason why the earth cant be separate. I had  a sparky recently  tell me i shouldn't be putting a vibration loop (ahh, have to put that in the when i was an apprentice thread) on the earth cable next to  earth clamps due to emf it could produce  :steptoe:  

 

[Manator]

Although sometimes I may put earth through a separate gland although I think maybe you are not supposed to do that.

Not a problem!

 

[steptoe]

Not a problem!

I have been told I shouldnt do that, even with an earthed metal enclosure,

the thread is on here somewhere, complete with pix.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

I have been told I shouldnt do that, even with an earthed metal enclosure,

the thread is on here somewhere, complete with pix.

I do remember the discussion but not the outcome. Who's going to find the thread please ?

http://talk.electricianforum.co.uk/topic/22728-eddy-currents/

http://talk.electricianforum.co.uk/topic/9617-eddy-currents/

Just read through the two threads i linked but they  are not in relation to the earth