Tell us about your faults!

K

kung

Hi ALL
Just thought id put this one up for all those faults we find.
heres one to kick it off !
Domestic RCD tripped and wouldnt reset cause was a blown low energy light bulb.:D
There you go now for yours !
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

This thread is for showing bad situations we have found so we can all be amazed at the stupid things some so-called electricians do. If you want help with diagnosis of a particular fault you would be better off starting a new thread.
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

couple of years ago, went to a new build estate. all houses ( about 30 of 'em) had intruder alarms fitted as they were built, all by the same alarm company. the actual alarm wiring appeared fine with one exception on all houses. the donkeys had wired from a 6A MCB direct to the alarm panel in 6core alarm cable!!! they had doubled up on the cores, praps they were concerned with volt drop
 
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5e0536f1-395e-a423.jpg


The other trades I were working with today starting shouting "sparky.... Powers tripped out"

So I went to investigate and found this, didn't even trip the fuse in the extension real, just blown a big hole in the flex!
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

I once got called out to a shower problem. The client had a quote from the distribution network operator of £500 to install a shower supply and decided that what would be best in this situation was to disconnect those green and yellow wires which were attached to the water stop tap and gas meter pipes and re-route them to the shower because and this were his words and not mine “They weren’t doing anything!”. And then was astounded that it still wouldn’t work. Living proof that evolution can go in reverse. :rolleyes:
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

This job is at a hotel, where some Lithuanian handymen have moved three consumer units, and probably the service heads. I'm impressed that the place has not burned so far, but not so impressed regarding the number of crimps I am about to order... close up of jointing system with tape is particularly sick. Close up of service head is lovely too.

0173.jpg0178.jpg0178.jpg
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

Yep that's about right for Eastern European sparks. Went to a rewire that they did once. Everything wired in 3 core & E including the ring, well it was a ring once but they decided that two radials of the one MCB would be better and whilst we're at it lets leave the ring ends bare in the loft. 6.6kW hob wired of the ring in guess wahat , yep 3 core and earth. Also no earths connected anywhere and half the sockets wired L-N reversed. Lights taken directly, well diagonally from a socket to the switch. Shower pump left on the ceiling plasterboard and a fan wired in but no ducting at all. CU left hanging on the wall with one fixing screw.

Cheers,
Lofty.
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

The result of someone not tightening up the screw on the RCD to the bus bar enough.
Customer reported occasional random RCD trips but only called when they noticed a buzzing from the CU
the bus bar has gone a nice silver colour on the end and when i removed it it is properly fried. View attachment 3045View attachment 3046
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

I have one ear bigger than the other, my parents don't, i'm just wondering if any of you have any ideas?

p.s. Don't ban me for randomness, i'm going to start a serious question in a minute!
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

I was happily working away in a kitchen today, fitting some new units and a bit of tiling ( i do other work as well) when the neighbour calls round, seems she was told that I am an electrician, could I take a quick look at the adjoining house she has just bought!!
sure says I
its a newish house 12 years old, coming out of the wall is a 4 way extension lead?
go the other side and its in the bathroom??
it then enters another wall into the back of a spur????
the spur at ground level is fused at 13 amps, a little unusual, but its marked shower!!!
yep the shower is fed from a fused spur on the ring main
I thent ake a look at the newly fitted shower room (polish builders)
the shower is a 9Kw wired in 1.5mm flex
there is an exposed light fitting inside zone 1 and below 2.25
weird or what
then I try the shower switch mounted on the ceiling only to find its a 6A light switch!!!!!!
so I pull the fuse out and tell her not to use it
then I check the origional bathroom
once again its been tiled nicely all very flash
another electric shower has been fitted, wired through a 6 a light switch to the ring main? WTF
the origional pull cord is by the side of the shower and below 2.25
the light fitting is exposed and in Zone 2
and it gets worse
low voltage lights badly fitted with no hoods
and then I check the C/U
its an old one with a 100A main isolator a 6A mcb for lights a 32A MCB for the cooker and a 32A MCB for the ring
thats it
it seems the house was tarted up for sale by the owner and they used Polish tradesman
it had been on the market a while and this lady had just purchased it as ready to rent out??
I then checked the smoke detectors
they are overdue for replacement as the built in batteries fail after 10 years
seems Part P is not seeping through In Tewkesbury
I left the lady to go and speak to the estate agent, frankly I would not like to be on the end of that conversation
I will take a few pictures when I go back to rewire the house
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

Got a call from a letting agent to quote for sorting a problem out in a house they have just let to a tenant. Situation is there is a wall switch in a bedroom but no actual pendant. However, in the bathroom which is through the wall from the bedroom there is a shaver light with a pull cord switch and in order for the pull switch to work the wall switch in the bedroom needs to be turned on!
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

Went to a house to connect a cooker circuit, told cable already in 6mm T&E fine, went to the board not connected fine just cable there marked up all fine. Explained to the customer no more ways in the board she said dont worry just disconnect the lights downstairs as she never uses them?. Went to another house lights upstairs keep blowing the fuse, later found dad had connected the outside flood lights to a jb srewed to the gutter with T&E so when it rained the water rushed through the JB.So many stars out there to help my bank balance.
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

I fount this which was fitted by a guy claiming to be an english spark this. 9.5kw shower .no rcd no 3pole switch, used a spur instead. O my god. He took the water supply from the toilet supply. So if u shower and the toilet is flushed u get no water. I cant wait to phone the guy up and try to hire him. The shower blew up today as the lady was in it
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

Did a board change yesterday and the customer said the cooker switch is a bit wobbly. Took the face plate off because the polarity was wrong anyway and found out why it wobbled! Image0132.jpgTake a look Q¿Q
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

Called out on sunday rcd tripping on ring main . Water had collected from condension from felt in the attic dripping on J/B fixed to wall plate
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

PhilRance1950 said:
Called out on sunday rcd tripping on ring main . Water had collected from condension from felt in the attic dripping on J/B fixed to wall plate
Click to expand...

Tell your customer they need to attend to the ventilation in the loft - with proper ventilation there should be no condensation. People these days seem to think you need to stuff the loft full of insulation and block all holes to the outside - result is sodden roof timbers and sarking felt, leading to severe problems a few years down the line.
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

lol, I was on site today and one of the Polish lads came in with a 13amp extention lead with a pendant light fitting wired into the reel through a drilled hole, needless to say it was soon disconnected.
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

Hi,

I have an electrical DB, with 100A 3phase main ELCB, that works fine when all breakers are ON.
I get a problem when I switch OFF a breaker (32A), and switch it ON again. The ELCB trips, I try
that a few times and then it works fine again. This happens with 3 of the 15 breakers that are
in the DB. Any idea why?
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

new to this and could not find any easy way to post - so here goes - my shower switch has melted the cabling and I replaced it with another 45a switch (main wall outside bathroom). The replacement has now also melted after 4 months. I have now purchased a 50a double gang socket and was wondering if I needed to change my circuit breaker - hager 32a at present. My cooker circuit breaker is 40a. The shower is 7.5kw. thanks
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

great one never seen before. guy locally asked me to check out his supply to small garden gazzebo type shed. he had lights in it .he was saying the supply cable was to short.as i allway check out stuff im a bit of a mug .but allway try to help people.as i installed the rcd outside socket i was happy to help.

when i got there found he had some how got 3 core swa 2.5 lashed up to 2 x13a plugs.one on each end of the swa cable .the far plug he had inserted in to a 4 way cable extension socket .leaving the free plug end of that on the floor[live plug]. this guy is a banker and was really not conserned in any way.but to his credit he gave me a free hand to sort.i got the pics and will show my nic/eic guy next year.
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

carolmcg said:
new to this and could not find any easy way to post - so here goes - my shower switch has melted the cabling and I replaced it with another 45a switch (main wall outside bathroom). The replacement has now also melted after 4 months. I have now purchased a 50a double gang socket and was wondering if I needed to change my circuit breaker - hager 32a at present. My cooker circuit breaker is 40a. The shower is 7.5kw. thanks
Click to expand...

Are you operating the shower by using the switch? ie turning the shower on and off using this switch rather than the shower itself?
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

lamps next to bed pulled bed forward to get to socket and discovered both flexes in to 1 plug with a 13 a fuse.
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

I did a job recently at Fabrice Muwamba's, yes the Bolton Wanderers player. He said that his watch cabinet in his bedroom didnt work. On inspection took the socket off the wall pulled the cable and it just came out of the wall not connected to anything. Honestly, I have whitnesses:rolleyes: Turns out he had some work done previously by another builder and they installed these 2 sockets either side of the bed but just didn't bother connecting the to anything haha!
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

Came across a similar one about 20 years ago, I went to a empty house a bloke had just bought and had to check why the lighting wasn`t working now the power had been reconnected, it turned out that the previous owner had replaced all the lighting switches and ceiling roses but had not connected them to the old VIR cabling, and then told this bloke that it had all been rewired !
 
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Re: Tell us about your faults !

glynnis said:
Must be american, their black is the "HOT" wire!!!
Click to expand...

I did wonder...! I wasn't sure if I was seeing it correctly, but it did look a little dark at the bottom there.

I was also concerned that the main switch was on and the CU was open - Safe Isolation anyone? Maybe some one had pulled the main fuse, isolated it before this CU.
My attention was also pulled to the barrier-looking-like section at the bottom and wondering if it was a barrier or if it was a wiring diagram. If it's a barrier it's a little erm, jammed into the bottom of the CU isn't it?
 
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