grommets and earth Sleeving are so over rated

LastManOnline · Nov 28, 2021

nicebutdim said:
In IE are domestic cable drops run in conduit and bushed into boxes as they are in NI? Strange how an item that is essential in one part of the UK, would take half an hour to find on a van floor in another part.

Yes. They are. But in chased walls only. In stud walls conduit rarely used. Grommets are often used in those circumstances, but not consistently

ipf · Nov 28, 2021

LastManOnline said:
I can appreciate that what I stated sounds like heresy to some. But I have never, ever seen a t&e cable damaged due to lack of a grommet. I have many times encountered problems resulting from unsleeved earth's and from live and neutral cores coming in to contact with the metal box for various reasons. Add to that the number of problems resulting from accessory screws nicking a live conductor. But problems resulting from lack of a grommet? Still have to experience that.

Whose to say the black cable wasn't 'nicked' whilst installing? ?

One side of wall......

........going through to the other......

littlespark · Nov 28, 2021

2nd and 3rd pic showing the black mark on the box where the fixing screw has nicked a live.
Countersunk screws shouldn’t be used.

ipf · Nov 28, 2021

littlespark said:
2nd and 3rd pic showing the black mark on the box where the fixing screw has nicked a live.
Countersunk screws shouldn’t be used.

Well spotted....we have ourselves a detective.? ?

littlespark · Nov 28, 2021

Come across it all too often.

“I was just doing a bit of decorating and unscrewed the switches from the wall… when I screwed them back, there was a bang!”

I remember that one as it was metal switches and no earth flylead. Could have been nasty.

Other time someone was decorating and was trimming the wallpaper behind a loosened switch with a butter knife…. Power was still on, and she touched the top terminal screw…. No more butter knife!

Off tangent a little. Apologies. Grommets and sleeving…. Yes to both, but understand plaster holding cable in place. Safer just to say grommet always.

loz2754 · Nov 28, 2021

LastManOnline said:
I can appreciate that what I stated sounds like heresy to some. But I have never, ever seen a t&e cable damaged due to lack of a grommet. I have many times encountered problems resulting from unsleeved earth's and from live and neutral cores coming in to contact with the metal box for various reasons. Add to that the number of problems resulting from accessory screws nicking a live conductor. But problems resulting from lack of a grommet? Still have to experience that.

I have experienced it several times. The last one was a neutral core being pressed into the edge of the hole, causing the RCD to trip periodically.
Always fit grommets on my own new work.
If I come across lack of grommets on an EICR, my reaction would range from no action at all, to a C2, depending on the likelihood of cables being damaged.