Consumer unit upgraded - no earth continuity question?

[Ccx295]

Being on the job they have a much better understanding of the particular installation than opinions from afar

Certification, although necessary for all installation work, it actually means little with regard the standard of the work carried out

Maybe be a little positive and give a little trust,at least they seem to know what they are doing

Thanks for the advice.

I do trust completely trust their advice (The guy who installed the unit was brilliant) I was just interested to have a second opinion on what other people thoughts were on the best route to take going forward but now I know as long as each plug has been tested then their is no issue with leaving the break in the circuit.

 

[telectrix]

each socket needs to be tested to confirm presence of cpc.

 

[Pete999]

Thanks for the advice.

I do trust completely trust their advice (The guy who installed the unit was brilliant) I was just interested to have a second opinion on what other people thoughts were on the best route to take going forward but now I know as long as each plug has been tested then their is no issue with leaving the break in the circuit.

Not knowing how the Electrician dealt with the break in the cable, other than downgrading the MCB it's hard to tlee, but as Telectrix says each socket needs to be tested to confirm the presence of a cpc. Did he isolate the damaged cable completely?

 

[Madocks]

To be honest, if hes gone to the hassle of identifying where the break is, sorted 2 radials @16 and is part of NIC then it should be good.

Perhaps email asking if he split the ring so you have it in writing whats been done.

 

[telectrix]

could be painful, having your ring split.

 

[Ccx295]

each socket needs to be tested to confirm presence of cpc.

I am not sure if this has been done..

 

[Toneyz]

Well as Des56 has said let us look on the positive side they have had a consumer unit upgrade which with RCD protection for the sockets and the installation has been left in a safer condition than before.If there is a break in the cpc in the ring final circuit what is the Zs at the highest points this may be still under the max Zs for the protective device.Personally, I don't like sockets in a room being fed from different circuits but that's only an opinion. Has the electrician taken off the socket front plates to see if it is as simple as a cpc that has come out? If not it could be a joint somewhere.

 

[ruston]

Presumably he has already had the socket fronts off to see if all the earths were connected properly.
I would of thought that he would of checked the end to end continuity before he carried out the board change though.

 

[Octopus]

I would say that until said spark has conclusively identified the location of the fault, and corrective work has been undertaken, the job is not complete, and the bill is increasing......

This is the most common fault in houses

 

[Ccx295]

Not knowing how the Electrician dealt with the break in the cable, other than downgrading the MCB it's hard to tlee, but as Telectrix says each socket needs to be tested to confirm the presence of a cpc. Did he isolate the damaged cable completely?

I don't think he completely tracked it down, He knew at which point the socket was showing the issue but from there he mentioned having to remove floorboards.
The only other thing he mentioned was downgrading the MCB. I guess I should get on the phone to them tomorrow to find out the complete facts

 

[Ccx295]

Presumably he has already had the socket fronts off to see if all the earths were connected properly.
I would of thought that he would of checked the end to end continuity before he carried out the board change though.

I was expecting to be told about any issues before the change

 

[ruston]

I was expecting to be told about any issues before the change

So would I to be fair.

Ps. The outcome would be the same though . It would still of needed attention.

 

[telectrix]

you raise the blade, you make the change, you rearrange me till i'm sane.

 

[Pete999]

I don't think he completely tracked it down, He knew at which point the socket was showing the issue but from there he mentioned having to remove floorboards.
The only other thing he mentioned was downgrading the MCB. I guess I should get on the phone to them tomorrow to find out the complete facts

I would!!

 

[Wilko]

Hi - My preference is to find the fault and replace the cable. But if that's uneconomic then by all means use the circuit in a new configuration but I would disconnect the damaged section, as per @spinlondon in post #7. I do this because I know it's been damaged somehow and it might get worse

 

[davesparks]

A certificate IS partof the works, therfore payment should not be made until certificate has been issued, in my opinion.

If it is specified prior to commencement of the works that certificates will be issued after payment is received then he won’t get it until he pays.

I always do this with new or one-off customers and it has helped me to get the money out of non-payers

 

[Pete999]

If it is specified prior to commencement of the works that certificates will be issued after payment is received then he won’t get it until he pays.

I always do this with new or one-off customers and it has helped me to get the money out of non-payers

Agree it's away of getting payed Dave, but is it a legitimate method, more importantly is it legal to use this method of chasing payment, after all the customer could argue that, infact you haven't completed until you issue a cert, wouldn't like to argue that in a court of law, you do the work, part of that work is certification, sorry I have to disagree withholding the certificate until payment is, in my opinion a bad move, no offence intended.

 

[davesparks]

Agree it's away of getting payed Dave, but is it a legitimate method, more importantly is it legal to use this method of chasing payment, after all the customer could argue that, infact you haven't completed until you issue a cert, wouldn't like to argue that in a court of law, you do the work, part of that work is certification, sorry I have to disagree withholding the certificate until payment is, in my opinion a bad move, no offence intended.

Originally I was advised to do it by an NICEIC assessor on an annual visit when I was a qualified supervisor, and I’ve done it ever since.

I don’t see why it shouldn’t be legitimate if it is made clear in the written contract or terms and conditions before the work starts.
I don’t spring it on customers at the end of the job as a surprise, I make them fully aware before I start.

Also I include inspection, testing and issuing the certificate as a separate line on my quotes (for a nominal sum), so I can, and have on occasion, invoice for everything but this item and get the bulk of the job paid before issuing the certificate.

 

[Toneyz]

Originally I was advised to do it by an NICEIC assessor on an annual visit when I was a qualified supervisor, and I’ve done it ever since.

I don’t see why it shouldn’t be legitimate if it is made clear in the written contract or terms and conditions before the work starts.
I don’t spring it on customers at the end of the job as a surprise, I make them fully aware before I start.

Also I include inspection, testing and issuing the certificate as a separate line on my quotes (for a nominal sum), so I can, and have on occasion, invoice for everything but this item and get the bulk of the job paid before issuing the certificate.

That is completely the opposite what they said when my previous boss used to keep the cert back until payment and I think it was a question put to them in their connections magazine. So what you are saying is if I am right is they pay for the work and could pay for the cert later?

 

[Pete999]

That is completely the opposite what they said when my previous boss used to keep the cert back until payment and I think it was a question put to them in their connections magazine. So what you are saying is if I am right is they pay for the work and could pay for the cert later?

No the certificate IS part part of the work withholding the certificate until payment. is in my book wrong, like I said in my ealier post would hate to argue this point in a court of law.