Discuss From a recent inspection in the Electrical Forum area at ElectriciansForums.net

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Wow, that does look old. I can't quite make it out but I wonder if there are asbestos fuse liners.
 
In the larger board (2nd picture) yes there are.
Didn't dare touch the smaller first picture.
 
not sarcasm, just gentle ribbing to a loved and respected forum elder
Nice reply, more sarcasm then lol, what action did you recommend rewire or CU change or both????
 
The channel fuses don't have flash pads because the fuse wire lies in the outward-facing channel. However, there is often a slot-in insulating partition between the line and neutral sides that is made of asbestos cement board. In this case I think it's missing. It's a 1920s pattern and probably the only board when first wired, usually located centrally e.g. in the hall behind the front room near the ground floor ceiling, fed from a switchfuse at the origin.

Where did you find ACMs in the 8-way board? Any detail pics? It looks like a MEM Kantark Junior board which doesn't have flash pads or asbestos tubes, the fuse wire being contained in a plain tunnel through the porcelain carrier. Larger MEM Kantark products with flat pins had flash pads, but not the 15A Junior. Obviously being SP+N it's much later than the channel fuses and actually pretty good as far as rewirable circuit protection goes. Their main hazard is the lack of touch-proofing of the end contacts.
 
The rubber is so flaky its a rewire recommendation, luckily its only now doing the lighting now (and 2 sockets wired in 1.0mm in one room), its just going to be awkward as its a functioning space open to the public except weekends and the flooring on all levels is one sheet of sealed lino stuff in each room, so there go goes what little social life I had if its accepted.
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Both double-pole fused?
Lower one no, only live fusing, upper picture as I say I didn't dare disturb.
 
When the channel board was put in, there probably was only lighting, one circuit for each floor. The Kantark board probably fed a few 5A sockets too.
 
The rubber is so flaky its a rewire recommendation, luckily its only now doing the lighting now (and 2 sockets wired in 1.0mm in one room), its just going to be awkward as its a functioning space open to the public except weekends and the flooring on all levels is one sheet of sealed lino stuff in each room, so there go goes what little social life I had if its accepted.
You'll need someone with some experience, of wiring old properties then Doomed, pick me up AM drop me off PM I'll give you a hand if you want. Got plenty of experience of drilling behind large cornices and deep skirting, no qualifications even the standard ones required for that sort of work, just lots of experience.
 
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The channel fuses don't have flash pads because the fuse wire lies in the outward-facing channel. However, there is often a slot-in insulating partition between the line and neutral sides that is made of asbestos cement board. In this case I think it's missing. It's a 1920s pattern and probably the only board when first wired, usually located centrally e.g. in the hall behind the front room near the ground floor ceiling, fed from a switchfuse at the origin.

Where did you find ACMs in the 8-way board? Any detail pics? It looks like a MEM Kantark Junior board which doesn't have flash pads or asbestos tubes, the fuse wire being contained in a plain tunnel through the porcelain carrier. Larger MEM Kantark products with flat pins had flash pads, but not the 15A Junior. Obviously being SP+N it's much later than the channel fuses and actually pretty good as far as rewirable circuit protection goes. Their main hazard is the lack of touch-proofing of the end contacts.
I'm impressed with your knowledge!
One 16mm feed from a 60A fuse in basement feeds the larger board at high level on the ground floor and then the smaller board at high level on the 1st floor, its a old building converted from residencial to commercial sometime after the 40's
The larger board has flash pads set into the board and surface mounted fuse wire on the carriers.
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You'll need someone with some experience, of wiring old properties then Doomed, pick me up AM drop me off PM I'll give you a hand if you want. Got plenty of experience of drilling behind large cornices and deep skirting, no qualifications even the standard ones required for that sort of work, just lots of experience.
Would love too, but I think you are too far from me
 
The larger board has flash pads set into the board and surface mounted fuse wire on the carriers

Ah, OK it's regular Kantark then, rather than Kantark Junior, I thought I could see the end springs but apparently not.
 
I have never found one like this but on three occasions have found houses in my area with MEM kantark minor boards still energised and supplying the lighting for the house. Always fused neutrals and always VIR singles in conduit drops with no effective cpc. the ones i have found are a block type porcelain fuse carrier, much more compact, like a BS3036 pattern.

I have always assumed original wiring and, like Lucien said, at the time of installation the only electrical power provided. Socket outlets came later in a separate board ina separate location usually.
 
Ah yes, Kantark Minor, not Junior. GEC was Junior. I should be on top of this stuff.

DP fusing is usually now seen as some weird old dangerous practice, but when a lot of these pre-war DP boards were installed, the neutral was not guaranteed to be solidly earthed. An N-E fault could cause an overcurrent that would damage the N conductor unless it was also protected by a fuse. By the same token, a fitting could be live unless isolated in both poles, so there was little disadvantage to the DP fusing leaving a voltage to earth on a seemingly dead fitting if only the neutral fuse was open.
 
Ah yes, Kantark Minor, not Junior. GEC was Junior. I should be on top of this stuff.

DP fusing is usually now seen as some weird old dangerous practice, but when a lot of these pre-war DP boards were installed, the neutral was not guaranteed to be solidly earthed. An N-E fault could cause an overcurrent that would damage the N conductor unless it was also protected by a fuse. By the same token, a fitting could be live unless isolated in both poles, so there was little disadvantage to the DP fusing leaving a voltage to earth on a seemingly dead fitting if only the neutral fuse was open.
The Bad old days Eh Lucien?, some of the Sov installs were DP fused, til I got my Mits on them
 
I guess many of those were relics of the days of delta-derived single-phase, where both conductors were lines and both fuses equally necessary. Over here it was more a precaution against neutrals that were a bit far from earth for comfort. The worst offenders were probably supplies derived from railway and tram traction installations, which might have series return boosters pushing the neutral away from earth in one place, to keep it near earth in another.
 

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