Smoking Socket

[Sandy379]

Hi, 

This morning, I smelt burning in my kitchen.  By the fridge, on a nearby wall, is an electricity socket (unused) and the smell of overheating was coming from this.

I turned off the electricity and removed the socket.  

All of the wires were connected to the plug socket (2 red, 2 black and one green earth) but the two black wires were smouldering, about an inch away from where they joined the socket. The casing or insulation around the two wires appeared to have worn away / crumbled and there was clear 'heat' damage where the two black wires had touched (even though they are connected to the same socket fitting).  

I removed the socket and I have put temporary tape on all of the wires, including the two black, which are now tightly taped together. Having turned on the electricity again, I wanted to see if the over-heating continued. It hasn't. Everything else is now working  as it was before except the socket.  

Nothing has changed in the kitchen (or elsewhere) in terms of additional electrical items or increased loading. The house is old (early Victorian) and I'm not sure when it was last re-wired but I have not encountered any problems in the last 10 years.

Grateful for any advice on the cause and the remedy.  

Thanks

David 

 

[steptoe]

Its sounds very much that the black cables were possibly loose in the connection,

Were you using any high power appliances at the time, kettle etc,?

Taping wires together, no matter how tight you may think, is seldom a very good connection.

 

[septiclecky]

You haven't said whether it is rubber or PVC as if it is OVC it has got really hot for it to start crumbling as you say, with one green earth wire sounds like your house was wired in the early 70's if not earlier

 

[Technician]

It may be advisable to have all of the other sockets checked

behind because from your accurate description, it LOOKS as

if the damage has been caused by the current in the conductors

and not by a bad termination in the back of the socket, and you

also stated that the burning came from the socket which was

unused at the time.

We do not know yet if this is a radial socket circuit (plug sockets

in a line from the consumer unit) or a ring circuit (conductors that

go from the consumer unit and then return to it) in which case the

overheating conductors may be in just one side of it.

Another thing is the protective device.  From the age of the wiring

(Septic) it could be a re-wirable fuse and it is common to find fuse

wire larger than the correct size in the fuse holder.

Have someone in to take a look and advise accordingly.

 

[Blue Duck]

Another thing worth noting, do you know if the cables are copper or stranded aluminium? Or both? And is there any sign of any green goo? http://www.esc.org.uk/fileadmin/user_upload/documents/public/switched_on/SwitchedOn-Issue-19.pdf

 

[Doc Hudson]

Wiring regulations recommend that domestic wiring is inspected and tested every 10 years or at a change of occupancy. If you have not had a formal inspection carried out in the last 10 years then I would suggest now is the time to do it. The inspection and testing will verify the integrity of all circuits and the condition of your fuse box and the installation as a whole.

Doc H

 

[Meteor Electrical]

As you have said fixing the wires with tape is a solution but it is a temporary one at that best to get the problem sorted rather than delay it as the problem could create more hassle for you in the future.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

You must not leave the cables like that as they most likely are a ring circuit and you now have broken the ring and this could cause further overloading. Can you at least put a connector block on so the  2 reds are connected together and separately from that the 2 blacks are connected. There should be 2 greens, but these may be both under 1 sleeve.

More than likely this fault was caused by a loose neutral connection, its fairly common.