Fun with electrics

Or Indian wiring – worse in cities than rural, if anything, if only because it’s largely absent in rural settings.

Here’s a fine example of Scottish wiring: http://clive.semmens.org.uk/pics/BurntSwitch2.jpg – done, I’m pretty sure, at least five years before it finally failed, by the husband (RIP) of the elderly lady we bought the house from. He’d been a technician at the local tech college. He’d tightened three screws nicely, but left the fourth loose. This was evident from its position post this event – perhaps it had got tight early due to trapping just one or two strands of the cable, and unable to see this in an awkward position he’d assumed it was actually tight. How it had worked for years before failing is an interesting question.

Killed to death? There’s an alternative, like slightly killed?

Older viewers will be remembering the transitive verb “to dead”, as in “You have deaded me!”, which, when spoken thus, does imply a gradation of deadedness!

Older viewers will be remembering the transitive verb “to dead”, as in “You have deaded me!”,

viewers? I don’t recall Eccles, Bluebottle and crew appearing on a visual transmission.
That said, I think there is film of the radio programme being made.

Electrically, all I can offer is a doorbell wired on two single core lines – one into the lighting circuit and the other into the main ring.
Fortunately, I’m paranoid and test at the outlet/switch etc. before sticking fingers in.

Apparently, my E&EE qualification was too high to be viewed as me being a qualified electrician.

viewers? I don’t recall Eccles, Bluebottle and crew appearing on a visual transmission.

It does actually exist on film as you think you know,and, yes, I have actually seen it on the television, but I was, of course, referring to the act of reading this particular forum. At least you got there in the end, despite your youth!
And no saying he wasn’t your youth!

Killed to death? There’s an alternative, like slightly killed? ;)

It was a James May-ism…

In the Top Gear Winter Olympics, when the lads were attempting to ski-jump a Mini using rocket propulsion, the conversation went something like this:

JC; “It’s worth saying that nobody will be sat in this thing.”
JM: “No, they’d probably be killed to death.”

(As an aside, if someone asks me how I like my steak I usually reply ‘lightly killed’.)

How is simple. Don’t poke a sleeping bear with a stick.

You may have heard of the Hackspace rules. The most important of which is Rule Zero: “Do not be on fire.”

PS: Have you seen rural Spanish wiring?

Perhaps fortunately (for my sanity), no I haven’t. But I can imagine.

If you’d seen the shocking (no pun intended!) state of the wiring at my house when I first got the keys you’d understand. How there wasn’t a Rule Zero breach (see above) I don’t know.

Although I can say I know exactly why Part P of the Building Regs was introduced, and unqualified people are now no longer allowed to touch electrics in the UK (as has been the case with gas for a long time). Too many incompetent people playing with mains voltage, and it seems that Darwin had a bit of a backlog.

unqualified people are now no longer allowed to touch electrics in the UK

In England surely? And possibly Wales, not sure whether the Building Regs are England & Wales or just England. There are regulations in Scotland, but they’re different. It’s likely Scotland will follow suit on this particular issue, but I don’t think they have yet. (You wouldn’t get away with a typical English roof up here…)

Although I can say I know exactly why Part P of the Building Regs was introduced

Isn’t it the case that non-qualified persons can do the wiring, but it can only be made live if certified by a qualified person?

Too many incompetent people playing with mains voltage, and it seems that Darwin had a bit of a backlog.

Apart from an old style Antex soldering iron shorting out using the metal cable clamp screw¹, my arms and the metal sink I was working over, I’ve not had a twang from mains.
EHT/HT on the back of CRT’s is a multi-experience item.

NB. Some of the most incompetent wiring I’ve seen was, sadly, done by qualified people.
In one case I saw the rubbish wiring where he worked in London (my holiday activities), and I know where he works now (different building, same site as me)

¹ Later versions used a blunt ended nylon clamp screw.

Isn’t it the case that non-qualified persons can do the wiring, but it can only be made live if certified by a qualified person?

Well a non qualified, strictly the term is competent, can do repairs to existing as well as spurs from existing etc unless it is in an area that is classed as high risk like a bathroom or outside.

They can add on things if they have a fused spur etc.

Like a lot of things this was all done because people did not follow common sense when doing work.

I remember, when I questioned something I saw many years ago, someone saying to me that the open wires pushed in to the socket and held in place with matchsticks was safe as the wood would not conduct! I see the misplaced logic of it but really common sense didn’t come in to it.

Isn’t it the case that non-qualified persons can do the wiring, but it can only be made live if certified by a qualified person?

I believe there is a provision that if an unqualified person has done wiring that it indeed has to be signed off by a competent and qualified person.

Not sure what the rules are on making it live, but I do know that if someone who isn’t competent / qualified has done major electrical works on a property, it will make it very difficult (read: almost impossible) to sell that property until an electrical safety certificate has been provided by a suitably qualified person.

Well a non qualified, strictly the term is competent, can do repairs to existing as well as spurs from existing etc unless it is in an area that is classed as high risk like a bathroom or outside.

An unqualified person can replace like with like, eg if you have a broken socket outlet plate it’s perfectly acceptable to pop down to B&Q, pick up a replacement and swap them over.

What you aren’t allowed to do unless qualified and competent are major works, eg:

• Installing a new final circuit
• Replacing a fuseboard or consumer unit
• Any work in a ‘hazardous area’, eg a bathroom or outdoors
• Commissioning any “fixed” appliances, eg installing a built-in oven or hob. (A free-standing cooker doesn’t fall under the regulations as it’s not a ‘fixed’ appliance.)

There may be others, I’d have to look it up. Those are just from memory (and may have changed since I did the qualification).

Commissioning any “fixed” appliances, eg installing a built-in oven or hob.

Well again if there is an existing dedicated socket already in position then you can install and use it it.

What you can’t do is do a direct wire install, without a fused or RCD connection, but most come with a plug so as long as the circuit is suitable then there is no issue.

Things like electic heaters again can be installed if they are socketed or direct wired via a fused spur.

Personally though I always go on the side caution and sometimes it is best to let others take the risk :-)

was safe as the wood would not conduct!

Hmm, is this better or worse than replacing fuses with paperclips?

Seen that a few times.

My favourite, though, was a widget that fitted into a bulb holder to allow something to be plugged in. Invariably things like irons were hooked up that way. Because there’s simply no risk of a big heated piece of metal overloading a low current unearthed lighting circuit, is there?

🤦🏻‍♀️

Because there’s simply no risk of a big heated piece of metal overloading a low current unearthed lighting circuit, is there?

Not as long as whatever replaced the fuse last time is thick enough, anyway… 🤦🏻‍♀️

My favourite, though, was a widget that fitted into a bulb holder to allow something to be plugged in. Invariably things like irons were hooked up that way. Because there’s simply no risk of a big heated piece of metal overloading a low current unearthed lighting circuit, is there?

Apparently this was the norm in the UK until BS1363 (the standard UK 3-pin plug and socket) was introduced in 1947. Until this point there was no official ‘standard’ for connecting a portable appliance.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AC_power_plugs_and_sockets:_British_and_related_types

What you can’t do is do a direct wire install, without a fused or RCD connection, but most come with a plug so as long as the circuit is suitable then there is no issue.

When I moved here I replaced the built-in oven, hob and cooker hood, which were some no-brand crap and were next to useless. I installed a well-known brand of built-in double oven with halogen grill and a matching cooker hood with extraction (the previous one was recirculate only), and at the same time purchased a 5-burner gas hob.

Because the hob was sold at a retail outlet (hint: starts with a C and sounds like a popular Indian takeaway dish) the hob, despite needing professional installation by a CORGI (now GasSafe) installer, had a moulded 13A plug fitted to the power cable. (It uses mains power for the electronic igniter.)

Of course that plug was cut off and the unit hard-wired into the cooker outlet.

Being qualified, I was able to install the electric oven myself. This didn’t come with a plug despite coming from the same big-box retailer as the hob and cooker hood. (The reason is obvious, it takes lots of amps and can’t be just plugged in, but still.)

The cooker hood also came with a moulded 13A plug, which of course had to be cut off so it could be hard-wired to the FCU above the kitchen cupboards.

As an aside – if you have to cut off a moulded plug for any reason, pull the fuse out, then grab a pair of electrician’s pliers (the hefty ones) and twist the tips of the L and N pins to about 45 degrees after you’ve cut the plug off. This will stop it being accidentally plugged into a socket with the bare leads exposed. I had to do this with the hob, cooker hood, and under-counter lighting which was intended to be hard-wired, but because sold via retail (B&Q) had to be fitted with a moulded plug.

One has to wonder how many moulded 13A plugs end up in landfill when they’ve been supplied with items that are intended to be hard-wired?

One has to wonder how many moulded 13A plugs end up in landfill when they’ve been supplied with items that are intended to be hard-wired?

Loads.

Not as long as whatever replaced the fuse last time is thick enough, anyway… 🤦🏻‍♀️

It helps if the person doing the replacement is thick, too, of course.

Not as long as whatever replaced the fuse last time is thick enough, anyway…

When I was at Uni I shared a flat in a large house in Pakenham Road, Birmingham.
If it hasn’t burnt down in the intervening years, it’s a total miracle as the son of the then landlady had a fix for fuses blowing and him only having 15amp fuse wire for a 30A ring – it involved looping the fuse wire round the connectors several times.
I’m not sure which would have failed first, the household main fuse, the cable in the house or the appliance cable. Since most of those involved probable combustion we found another flat as did the girls in the floor below and left the silverfish under the carpets to their own company.