help needed please on fault

[714gold714]

Hello there basically i rewired a 3 bedroom house about 9 months ago tested out fine and have had no problems at all.

However received a phone call today from customer saying that all power has gone off, arrived and found that on the dual RCD board i fitted i would switch on the shower circuit (switch on at button on shower) which is powered by the 2nd RCD and switch on the 1st RCD powering kitchen lights it will trip the 1st RCD. In the end i totally disconnected the kitchen lights and the shower worked perfect and all the other circuits but as soon as the kitchen lights are connected it trips.

The circuit is not being over loaded as i have done a clamp test etc

Also when I had the kitchen lights on if i plugged anything into the sockets it would trip, it just seem as soon as a load is applied with the kitchen lights on it trips.

I have had done insulation resistance but my tester was playing up im going to do insulations tests tomorow with my new tester.

Also customer said that they changed one of the bulbs in kitchen ( 12 downlights ) as when it first started the rcd had tripped

Please help lol just cant get my head around it

 

[chrisc 77]

have you done the new IR test yet ?, are there any fans, outside lights spurred of the kitchen lights ?

 

[Octopus]

Maybe the heat from the lights have damaged the cables and this is the issue. As for the shower I don't quite understand what you've written!

 

[ezzzekiel]

sounds like n/e fault, need to ir circuits

 

[714gold714]

thanks for replys i have a bad feeling its the kitchen lights there is x12 240v GU10 downlights soon as these are connected in circuit it plays up with everything. will IR soon as i find a replacement. Sorry about desciption very hard to describe

 

[714gold714]

No spurs etc off lights i ran a dedicated circuit for kitchen lights strictly for downlights

 

[ROADESPARKY]

Not quite following original post and had a few strongbows but could it be a neutral in wrong neutral bar??

 

[ROADESPARKY]

Sounded ok. But just read and now it dont!!

 

[GLENNSPARK]

Hello there basically i rewired a 3 bedroom house about 9 months ago tested out fine and have had no problems at all.

However received a phone call today from customer saying that all power has gone off, arrived and found that on the dual RCD board i fitted i would switch on the shower circuit (switch on at button on shower) which is powered by the 2nd RCD and switch on the 1st RCD powering kitchen lights it will trip the 1st RCD. In the end i totally disconnected the kitchen lights and the shower worked perfect and all the other circuits but as soon as the kitchen lights are connected it trips.

The circuit is not being over loaded as i have done a clamp test etc

Also when I had the kitchen lights on if i plugged anything into the sockets it would trip, it just seem as soon as a load is applied with the kitchen lights on it trips.

I have had done insulation resistance but my tester was playing up im going to do insulations tests tomorow with my new tester.

Also customer said that they changed one of the bulbs in kitchen ( 12 downlights ) as when it first started the rcd had tripped

Please help lol just cant get my head around it

well for a start whats overload got to do with an RCD?...

 

[714gold714]

thats what i originally thought with neutral in wrong bar but its been working fine for 9 months solid with no faults or trips at all

 

[GLENNSPARK]

check all connections at the C/U.....could be a loose neutral here....

 

[714gold714]

also when i would get the kitchen lights on all of them did light up

 

[telectrix]

i suspect damaged cables on kitchen light circuit causing a N/E fault. dis. the kitchen light circuit from CU ( all 3 conductors) try a continuity test N-E. if reading is > 10k ohms, then IR test N-E.

 

[GLENNSPARK]

also when i would get the kitchen lights on all of them did light up

well i`d hope so...lol.....
doesn`t mean you dont have a dippy neutral (or line for that matter) upstream.....such as the 25`s in the C/U....

 

[714gold714]

just trying to borrow a IR tester.

It is a complete head scratcher, he also said aswell when he canged a bulb in the downlight it didnt come on at first and he wiggled the cable and it came on so I wonder if hes pulled a connection out in junction box in the floor

 

[GLENNSPARK]

just trying to borrow a IR tester.

It is a complete head scratcher, he also said aswell when he canged a bulb in the downlight it didnt come on at first and he wiggled the cable and it came on so I wonder if hes pulled a connection out in junction box in the floor

so is said joint box accessable?....
wants to be really doesn`t it....

 

[telectrix]

well, that's the first place to look then. see my last offering.post 13.

 

[714gold714]

it just confuse me why when the shower and kitchen lights are on together ( powerd by seperate RCDS) they trip when i disconnect shower kitchen lights come on, and when i disconnect kitchen lights the shower etc works fine

 

[chrisc 77]

has the customer been diy-ing? its a line-earth fault for sure, maybe trapped/penetrated cable. Is there a bathroom above the kitchen tat may have leaked/ hot water pipes in ceiling ?

 

[telectrix]

reason i suggested what i did is that i've come across a similar fault. N/E short on RFC fed from RCD2. RCD2 will not trip, even with the test button, but RCD1 trips. there are no crossed neutrals and no loose connections.