Upstairs lights keep tripping - help required

[GirlRacerRed]

Right boys,

I'm posting on behalf of a friend who's having problems with his upstairs lights tripping out.

The problem is in the wiring for three rooms lighting upstairs, and the hallway light which is on a two way switch so you can turn it on and off from both upstiars and downstairs. It keeps throwing its 6A circuit breaker but not the RCD. I swapped it temporarily for a 16A breaker but it just took longer to trip.

Now here is the weird bit. If I disconnect the 'common' from the two way switch downstairs, the circuit breaker doesn't trip and all the other lights work ok - BUT, the tap in the kitchen has a voltage on it. I measured it through my daughter and its 75 volts. I couldn't feel anything, and neither could my wife, but my daughter said she felt tingling in her hands if she ran water over them, so I placed a volt meter between her hands and the tap and it read 75 volts!!

If I trip the 6A circuit breaker, the voltage goes to zero….

I've checked the upstairs lighting cables and none go anywhere near any pipes or water.

Do any of you guys have any thoughts about this one? The fact that there is voltage running through the kitchen tap worries me.

Plus if anybody can recommend an electrician in Rochester, Kent area who can arrange to meet with my friend during an evening or at a weekend, please pm me your details.

Thanks
GRR

 

[neil2jo]

Your final para says it all...get an electrian...could be anything

If the circuit is dead and your getting volts from the tap, this would suggest you have leakage, which is going to earth.

One other problem which may be related in two way lighting is phase is taken from downstairs lighting but using upstairs lighting for the neutral. This situation works with old rewireable boards, but if you fit a modern board,oftern the RCD will trip. this does not help the tap question.

for the leakage, turn off all circuits and test...if it is still present then your house is not correctly earthed and is not going to ground. Once your over this problem, turn on one circuit at a time until you get the voltage...now you know which circuit is leaking...now find your leak, by checking each fitting to start with, if you find nothing, then you need proper testing by someone who can do continuity/insulation and resistant testing