Can anybody identify this item?

[DerekM]

Hello,

I wonder if anybody can identify the item in the attached photographs?

We moved into a victorian property (circa 1900) last year and currently renovating.

We pulled up floorbaords in the hall the other day and found the item in the attached photographs. It's made of iron and has the following imprinted on the front: "15A 250V Made in England". It has two cloth covered wires feeding in from the bottom and two more feeding out the top.

Can anybody tell us more about this item? How old is it? What exactly is it? Where can we find more information about it? I've tried googling but haven't found anything as yet.

Laying close to it was a lead covered section of cable roughly 1/2 inch in diameter which splits into two at one end? Is this related to the other item?

Any help in identifying this item will be greatly appreciated.

Regards

Derek

 

[nikmet]

its an old, maybe 1940? switch fuse, which provides isolation and overload protection to the circuit its connected to, hope this helps?

 

[Guest123]

My grandperants house had 4 of them up until a couple of years ago, & an early wodden CU with porcelain fuses in L & N!!!

 

[Marvo]

Similar equipment is still available but it's not used in the UK domestic installations any more. This is the modern day equivalent.

 

[Des 56]

They were as common as chips a few years ago

They didn't much distinguish between domestic and industrial at one time
The item was generally made by "Bill" and can be found in many older industrial units in large quantities even today

 

[Knobhead]

I remember working on them as an apprentice. I think they were made by MEM.

 

[Deleted member 26818]

Looks like MEM to me.

 

[oldtimer]

Yep 15 amp double pole switched fuse remember then it was ok to fuse the neutral as well and 1900 na it 1940-50

O and the 2 "cloth" covered fuses is Asbestos lining

 

[Guitarist]

Looks like MEM to me.

First thing that popped in to my mind too

 

[telectrix]

I remember working on them as an apprentice. I think they were made by MEM.

surprised you've not made him an offer for it before engineer54 snaffles it up.

 

[DurhamSparky]

View attachment 11675

still around

 

[Knobhead]

surprised you've not made him an offer for it before engineer54 snaffles it up.

I’ve got enough junk as it is!

 

[Brightspark2]

I still come across these every now and again...Didnt know it was asbestos inside...

 

[parker56]

modern day version?

 

[telectrix]

just the old one with a paint job.

 

[GLENNSPARK]

They were as common as chips a few years ago

They didn't much distinguish between domestic and industrial at one time
The item was generally made by "Bill" and can be found in many older industrial units in large quantities even today

didn`t prento make em n all......anyway...at one time houses were wired with radials so what you had was a radial feeding 1 or more points in a room. Each radial was fed from one of these fuse iso`s which is why in time you`d end up with a board full of these things as more circuits were added as demand increased.......i think its before the days of ring finals.....both lead and VIR being used as well

 

[Guest111]

yes looks like and old mem switch fuse to me as others have said also made by other companies as well.I have an old book with these things in and it also lists all the kit needed to rewire a house,although it does state that the work should be done by an electrician and that the info is to help you get the right job done.think its from around the 1950,s.

 

[DerekM]

All,

Just like to say thank you for all your responses. They've been very educational.

I think I'll give the item a polish and find a piece of wall to display it on. It is, after all, part of the history of the house. We've found quite a few interesting items as we've knocked ceilings out. Hopefully make a nice historical display! (Yes, I am odd!)

I was thinking of do the same with the lead covered cable but if it's coated in asbestos then I think I'll give it a miss!

Thanks again.

Derek

 

[GLENNSPARK]

All,

Just like to say thank you for all your responses. They've been very educational.

I think I'll give the item a polish and find a piece of wall to display it on. It is, after all, part of the history of the house. We've found quite a few interesting items as we've knocked ceilings out. Hopefully make a nice historical display! (Yes, I am odd!)

I was thinking of do the same with the lead covered cable but if it's coated in asbestos then I think I'll give it a miss!

Thanks again.

Derek

the lead cable.....well, is coated in lead!!....bitumen insulation with cable cores wrapped in paper thats been soaked in a chemical that gives it dielectric strength.....now if you look in the fuse carrier/s on that cast iron fuse iso....you may find theres a strip of asbestos cloth in there to contain any splash from a rupturing fusewire....

 

[ian.settle1]

Stll made now a days but the design has changed no longer made with a cast body.

 

[Guitarist]

yes looks like and old mem switch fuse to me as others have said also made by other companies as well.I have an old book with these things in and it also lists all the kit needed to rewire a house,although it does state that the work should be done by an electrician and that the info is to help you get the right job done.think its from around the 1950,s.

And now we have B&Q listing all the kit for a complete rewire. Nothing much has changed except we now have "George" telling you how to do it in 3 easy steps ...

 

[Knobhead]

If you have a look on BBCi there’s a new series Brick by Brick. It shows the rebuilding of Hendon aerodrome’s control tower at the RAF museum. The fuse board is incredible, housed in a glass fronted Romanesque oak cabinet, it’s a work of art. Pity it’s just a fleeting look, it’s about 2/3rds of the way through.

Cabinet, it’s the size of a very large wardrobe!