Hello All, need a little advice

[Joolssq]

I've come across a job where the emergency bulk head is wired direct to the CU, but it isn't lighting up, however if you trip the MCB, then the emergency back up kicks in and it is lighting, anyone come across this before?

Cheers Jools

 

[Spudnik]

Hello Joolssq, welcome aboard. Enjoy the forum.

 

[telectrix]

with the MCB closed, check if you have 240V at the fitting. i assume you have as the battery back up is held off. once this is confirmed, i think you'll find the fault is in the fitting itself. btw, welcome to the asylum. if it's a non-maintained set up, though, then it's working as it should. i.e. no light until the power is dropped off.

 

[Joolssq]

Yeah, it does have 240v at the fitting, thought it might be the light unit but just wanted to double check.

Thanks a lot

 

[Joolssq]

Trouble is, it just happened to fail while I was there doing another job, i've now got to convince client that it's a coincidence

 

[telectrix]

thinking about it, it's probably non-maintained and thus perfectly OK. that means that the 240V supply is only to keep the battery charged, not to illuminate the fitting.

 

[telectrix]

check with the client to find out if the fitting is normally on or off. usually there is a link across 2 terminals that you fit in order to maintain the light on when power is present.

 

[Joolssq]

The client says that, the fire brigade told her that it has to be lit at all times, there is another switched light in the area, so this seems a bit OTT.

 

[shagbite]

I've come across a job where

the emergency bulk head is wired direct to the CU,

but it isn't lighting up, however if you trip the MCB, then the emergency back up kicks in and it is lighting, anyone come across this before?

Cheers Jools

are you saying this emergency light is on its own circuit? if so, how will it come on in the event of a lighting circuit failure?

 

[Joolssq]

ok, will check, thanks

 

[telectrix]

probably a case of just fitting the link to make it maintained. check with manufacturer as to where the link goes. usually between the Lin and an adjacent terminal.

 

[Joolssq]

The CU is a twin RCD board, when one RCD trips, then the emergency light comes on, never seen electrics like this place before.

 

[shagbite]

The client says that, the fire brigade told her that it has to be lit at all times, there is another switched light in the area, so this seems a bit OTT.

depends on the environment. if it's an office with plenty of lights and everyone knows the lay of the land, i would say non maintained is fine.

 

[Joolssq]

I've viewed this forum before but never registered, it's good to know that I can come here to get some good advice.

 

[shagbite]

The CU is a twin RCD board, when one RCD trips, then the emergency light comes on, never seen electrics like this place before.

yes, the rcd will isolate all the circuits that it is protecting. but, if your lights are on mcb '1' and, the em' light is on mcb '2', the emergency light won't be activated when mcb '1' is tripped.

 

[Joolssq]

so the em' light needs to be linked across to the lighting circuit?

 

[Paul.M]

so the em' light needs to be linked across to the lighting circuit?

Yes it needs to be fed from the local lighting circuit in case that circuit is switched off/trips the mcb or rcd.


Where in Leeds are you working?

 

[telectrix]

@ jools. the em's should be fed from the same circuit as the local lights, so that if the supply to those local lights fails, the em will light up.

 

[Joolssq]

That's great, will do

I'm working in Middleton

 

[telectrix]

once worked there for a few weeks on a sports store ( like jjb, but called something else). parked van as close as possible, about 200 yards from site, and this jobsworth threatened to have the bomb squad blow it up as it was close to a bus station. FFS. as if al quada are going to blow up buses in middleton.

 

[Joolssq]

Sounds like the locals

 

[Paul.M]

I'm working in Middleton

Hope you've got a big dog sat in the van whilst your working lol. Better train it to put car/van fire out as well pmsl.


Yes Tel it is that bad as you have seen. Not all of that area but on some streets even the police dont walk by themselves.

 

[Joolssq]

It isn't THAT bad

 

[shagbite]

middleton village is alright.

just stay out of belle isle.

 

[Paul.M]

It isn't THAT bad

It used to be. Mind you I was brought/dragged up on Ebor Gardens estate so Miggy is'nt that bad really. I play golf at Miggy but never through the school summer holidays. Got sick of the teenage chavs on their motorbikes riding on the fairways. few years ago a nicked 4x4 car did donuts on some of the greens.

Anyway have you sorted out this em light yet?

 

[Paul.M]

middleton village is alright.

just stay out of belle isle.

Yep the village is nice (one of our members live there)

NOW with a user name of "shagbite" and you know a lot about Belle Isle, can I put two & two together and make 26? Painting a mental picture right now of you lol. (no offence ment mate)

 

[shagbite]

so the em' light needs to be linked across to the lighting circuit?

jools, if i was doing this job, i'd just put both radials into one breaker - providing i wasn't overloading the circuit. this, by definition, then becomes one circuit.

when testing zs, i'd take a reading from each leg and use the highest one.

 

[Paul.M]

SB thats good thinking as the op says its only one EM light and you are allowed to spur off the mcb for one piece of equipment so do it that way, no need to rewire near the fittings.

 

[Joolssq]

Going back tomorrow to finish off, hopefully, I told client I needed to get advice, there are four radial lights, 2 to each rcd. Shop lights are on same circuit as back room lights. Need to find out when I can go in when the shop is shut so I can safely isolate the CU to work safe, then I can seperate the circuits and make sure it's working correctly. I haven't even taken the cover off of the CU yet, i'm assuming the CU is labelled correctly. But i've made that mistake before

 

[Silly Sausage]

i'm assuming the CU is labelled correctly.

Hahahaha!!!

 

[shagbite]

Yep the village is nice (one of our members live there)

NOW with a user name of "shagbite" and you know a lot about Belle Isle, can I put two & two together and make 26? Painting a mental picture right now of you lol. (no offence ment mate)

hahahahaha! non taken pal.

i'm in bradford, so i know all the classiest areas round your way.....i've had the pleasure of working in beeston, gipton, halton moor, holbeck, chapeltown and seacroft. when i worked in harehills, the local scroats were always breaking in at night and robbing the circuits we'd first fixed. there was even a security guard on site - but one team of chavs would keep him penned into his cabin, whilst the other team did the robbing. very organised, up there.

it's not all glamour though. i've also had to endure the crapholes of adel and weetwood.

 

[Paul.M]

"the pleasure of working in, gipton, halton moor, chapeltown and seacroft. when i worked in harehills, the local scroats were always breaking in at night and robbing the circuits we'd first fixed."

All very close to where I live and worked in them all.

"i've also had to endure the crapholes of adel and weetwood."

Crapholes :rofl: Up there the customer serves you Fox's biscuits with ya brew

 

[Joolssq]

I did a job in Roundhay, and I got a Ringtons Ginger Biscuit, all very civilised!!!

 

[Paul.M]

Customer in Outwood got me fish and chips with curry sauce a couple of weeks back, bless her. Small job this morning in Moortown I got coffee and McVities chocolate biscuits. Best I ever had was at Jamie Olivers place in the city, 3 times they gave me (and one occasion my mate) a free meal after finishing the job. Next time you go in or walk past have a look at the biggest chandler in the place, thats my claim to electrical fame lol. (how sad is that?)

 

[shagbite]

a few years back, i worked on 'stage@leeds' - a theatre on the university campus. it wasn't the easiest environment to get a lot of work done. it was a constant battle to ignore all the crumpet!

the job in harehills was bellbrooke surgery. we took a temporary supply from the neighbouring church (st. cyprians i think). came in one morning and there was no power, went round to the church to see why and found an axe next to the swa. ----ers had hacked their way right through it! must have gone with a right bang. just wish the wooden handle had been **** wet through when he took a swing. although, maybe that's a bit harsh.

 

[Paul.M]

I've heard about that one, that place got done over every week! The job took all trades twice as long as scheduled due to the site thief's.

@ Shagbite. Your not a tubby 30 something with curly hair and an opinion on everything are you??? I might know you???

 

[shagbite]

i'm 40 now!

 

[markc123]

Up there the customer serves you Fox's biscuits with ya brew

Pardon???? I may have to relocate, you're getting treated like royalty. Middle of last week i got given a brew with powdered milk and ZERO buscuit., when client left the room it was swiftly poured down the plughole, absolutley disgusting.

 

[Paul.M]

i'm 40 now!

I've just read some of your posts and your not the chap I was thinking of.

BTW you need an avatar picture, how about this one lol

 

[shagbite]

i'm struggling to find an avatar. very important decision and has to be right.

 

[Paul.M]

Pardon???? I may have to relocate, you're getting treated like royalty. Middle of last week i got given a brew with powdered milk and ZERO buscuit., when client left the room it was swiftly poured down the plughole, absolutley disgusting.

oh last week I was putting in a new shower for a Seik gentleman and he gave me some form of home made fluffy biscuit to go with my cupa tea. It would be great as a side dish with a curry but not at 8;30am. Anyways after one bite I put it in the toilet but bcause it was so full of air it did not flush! It took a lot of toilet paper and 3 more flushes before it went down lol. He must have thought that I had the runs the amount of times his bog was flushed pmsl. (Wortley btw)

 

[Paul.M]

i'm struggling to find an avatar. very important decision and has to be right.

Heres a few for you Shagbite:-

 

[shagbite]

not bad. like the top one.

why do you think i'm not the fella you were thinking of? that description was pretty close to spot on.

 

[Paul.M]

Did you go to LCT at eastbank?

 

[shagbite]

Did you go to LCT at eastbank?

that's me. about 2007?

 

[Geordie Spark]

Hello, Welcome to the forum and thank you for helping me towards my membership of the exclusive 3,000+ club !!

 

[CRAGS]

Hi and welcome

 

[MarkieSparkie]

Hi, welcome to the forum.

 

[Paul.M]

that's me. about 2007?

After a few pm's YES it is you. Hope your well mate. We were 2 of the blokes of a handful of people that carried the others in college,God knows how they passed lol. You've brought back some good memories from some good lads we trained with back then.

If I remember correctly did'nt we have a couple of heated debates regarding the regs in the classroom SB? Think we did mate, well I have'nt changed much lol. Thats what happens when you put two head strong men in a classroom pmsl. We have to meet up for a pint over the next few weeks, what do you say?

 

[markc123]

^^ cute.