S
stonejenson
Hello all - another newbie coming your way I'm afraid.
So here I am, after doing my first 2 years of evening classes for my 2330, got my 17th edition the other week too - will be doing my level 3 from Sep and tie in a 2391 along the way, is the plan. I'm a self employed handyman of 3 years, with ten years industrial plumbing background, lot of H&S knowledge etc, so deem myself a pretty competent person.
I'm looking at my own house system a while back, thinking 'Right, time for an upgrade, will do that as a job when it comes to signing up for a scheme I thought, (still got an ancient 3036 board) to a modern CCU. But where's my MET?' Testing at sockets says all is well and earthed (apart from 2 which was a surprise - think cellar work some years ago may have damaged CPC to them - so wanted to add another CPC from them to my MET... )
So I call my energy supplier and ask them to verify my earthing arrangements, they send some chaps round to do a PME check (early when I wasn't there) who put me down for a main supply fuse change. Weeks later, along they come again - tut and moan as to who looked at the job first, say it isn't required but change it anyway.
'What or where is my earth' I ask.. they don't know, and put me a nice new MET in, connected to the neutral which they also connected to the lead cable sheath - making me a TN-C-S /TN-S or both? Not too sure about that to be honest, I thought you either connected to the sheath OR the neutral - if anyone can clarify that for me please do, but where the hell I am originally earthed to still, is anyone's guess. There is no TT spike, no bonding to my gas or water supply, no supplementary bonding anywhere...
ANYWAY! It turns out I've got a 60amp supply fuse, only 16mm tails (incoming is 25ish apparently) from meter -to henley block - to main board and to second cutout (which feeds to second board upstairs. Why that is, again who knows.)
I assume my demand will not increase any, so when I put in new CCU's, from what I've seen mostly, they all come with 100A main breakers - not a big deal as I would have all circuits protected via 63A RCDs which would go long before the main supply fuse - but it seems wrong to me. I have noticed this in houses I've worked in, now I look at the tails 16mm, and assume the main fuse has to be an old 60A, but new boards are installed with 100A main breakers still. Is it the accepted way? Otherwise you have to upgrade the tails don't you?
Other than that, I plan to run a new circuit to feed an outside socket in my garden, and hope these jobs would satisfy the NAPIT chaps. But again, a small concern would be that they might want to see the whole place properly bonded, but as it's just a CU change and I'm not installing the circuits (apart from the new one) do I have to put the bonding in? I mean, now I know what should be there, I was thinking of doing it anyway, but 'if it ain't broke...' and all that, what's the general consensus of opinion on this.
Cheers for any help everyone.
John.
So here I am, after doing my first 2 years of evening classes for my 2330, got my 17th edition the other week too - will be doing my level 3 from Sep and tie in a 2391 along the way, is the plan. I'm a self employed handyman of 3 years, with ten years industrial plumbing background, lot of H&S knowledge etc, so deem myself a pretty competent person.
I'm looking at my own house system a while back, thinking 'Right, time for an upgrade, will do that as a job when it comes to signing up for a scheme I thought, (still got an ancient 3036 board) to a modern CCU. But where's my MET?' Testing at sockets says all is well and earthed (apart from 2 which was a surprise - think cellar work some years ago may have damaged CPC to them - so wanted to add another CPC from them to my MET... )
So I call my energy supplier and ask them to verify my earthing arrangements, they send some chaps round to do a PME check (early when I wasn't there) who put me down for a main supply fuse change. Weeks later, along they come again - tut and moan as to who looked at the job first, say it isn't required but change it anyway.
'What or where is my earth' I ask.. they don't know, and put me a nice new MET in, connected to the neutral which they also connected to the lead cable sheath - making me a TN-C-S /TN-S or both? Not too sure about that to be honest, I thought you either connected to the sheath OR the neutral - if anyone can clarify that for me please do, but where the hell I am originally earthed to still, is anyone's guess. There is no TT spike, no bonding to my gas or water supply, no supplementary bonding anywhere...
ANYWAY! It turns out I've got a 60amp supply fuse, only 16mm tails (incoming is 25ish apparently) from meter -to henley block - to main board and to second cutout (which feeds to second board upstairs. Why that is, again who knows.)
I assume my demand will not increase any, so when I put in new CCU's, from what I've seen mostly, they all come with 100A main breakers - not a big deal as I would have all circuits protected via 63A RCDs which would go long before the main supply fuse - but it seems wrong to me. I have noticed this in houses I've worked in, now I look at the tails 16mm, and assume the main fuse has to be an old 60A, but new boards are installed with 100A main breakers still. Is it the accepted way? Otherwise you have to upgrade the tails don't you?
Other than that, I plan to run a new circuit to feed an outside socket in my garden, and hope these jobs would satisfy the NAPIT chaps. But again, a small concern would be that they might want to see the whole place properly bonded, but as it's just a CU change and I'm not installing the circuits (apart from the new one) do I have to put the bonding in? I mean, now I know what should be there, I was thinking of doing it anyway, but 'if it ain't broke...' and all that, what's the general consensus of opinion on this.
Cheers for any help everyone.
John.
