Dodgy trade pictures for your amusement! - 1 Million Views!

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5 amp lighting fuse had four wires.
1 - every light in house (IR of zero)
2 - not identified (IR of >299M)
3 - smokes (IR of >299M)
4 - outside light.

Every pendant had a hidden junction box above it so I was looking for an easy place to break the circuit.
First floor board I pull up:

1677329005279.png

Oh great.. every fitting probably like this, and separating them didn't improve IR.
Obviously I wasn't going to leave it like that, so I did my own dodgy contribution as I'd run out of cable ties. I felt it was in keeping with the rest of the house.
1677329216952.png
 
Taking down a temporary power feed this morning. had been working perfectly well, last used Thursday I think. Decided to see how dry the Wago box was, lost quite a bit of water before getting this far:
water-in-wagobox.jpg

Yup, the lower half (as it sat dangling from the 3 core) was ice and the rest water. I am surprised it didn't trip the RCD, maybe the water was relatively pure?
 
pc1966 said:
Taking down a temporary power feed this morning. had been working perfectly well, last used Thursday I think. Decided to see how dry the Wago box was, lost quite a bit of water before getting this far:
View attachment 106453
Yup, the lower half (as it sat dangling from the 3 core) was ice and the rest water. I am surprised it didn't trip the RCD, maybe the water was relatively pure?
Click to expand...

Presumably wicked down along the earth wire.
 
pc1966 said:
Taking down a temporary power feed this morning. had been working perfectly well, last used Thursday I think. Decided to see how dry the Wago box was, lost quite a bit of water before getting this far.
Click to expand...
Can't remember if I posted this, but you wouldn't have had the issue had you followed this exemplarily method of working:
1677525788854.png
 
pc1966 said:
Taking down a temporary power feed this morning. had been working perfectly well, last used Thursday I think. Decided to see how dry the Wago box was, lost quite a bit of water before getting this far:
View attachment 106453
Yup, the lower half (as it sat dangling from the 3 core) was ice and the rest water. I am surprised it didn't trip the RCD, maybe the water was relatively pure?
Click to expand...
I dont think the membrane seal is intended to seal when you poke a hole in it like that.
a suitable compression gland would have probably done much better.
p.s. the glands need to be done up correctly with a spanner, hand tight will not provide a good seal.
 
pc1966 said:
Taking down a temporary power feed this morning. had been working perfectly well, last used Thursday I think. Decided to see how dry the Wago box was, lost quite a bit of water before getting this far:
View attachment 106453
Yup, the lower half (as it sat dangling from the 3 core) was ice and the rest water. I am surprised it didn't trip the RCD, maybe the water was relatively pure?
Click to expand...
In fairness I thought that ice was what was left of the gel😂😂😂
It looks like a Wiska Box rather than a Wago Box though, and I've never seen water in (or ice) in one of those before, but never seen one done quite like that either.
 
As above, if it was buzzzzzzzing, i would Wasp the F out of there.

some interesting collection of wire types and not quite perfect terminations.
 
James said:
As above, if it was buzzzzzzzing, i would Wasp the F out of there.

some interesting collection of wire types and not quite perfect terminations.
Click to expand...
The house is full of weird and wonderful wiring. It was functional with a working RCD upfront but that was probably to do with nothing being earthed.
 
Had a regular customer in a semi detached house, with a simple pyramid shaped roof covering both properties.
About 15 minutes after turning the loft light on, there would be two or three hornets buzzing around it, just two or three, never any more. Looked into every corner many times, and never saw any signs of a nest, or any other clue as to where they were coming from.
Was like this, every time, over a period of about 20 years.
 
I worked in a local village hall a couple years ago.... stuck my head up the attic hatch, pulling cables from the higher roofspace above the actual hall.... working away quite happily.... then i turned around.....

Bloody wasp nest, 2 foot in diameter!.... 2 FOOT!!!!
 
littlespark said:
F**king hate wasps..... nasty little beasties.
Click to expand...
Not too keen on them myself.
They set up camp inside the solid stone wall of my living room a few years ago, getting in and out through failed pointing in multiple places. A complete can of expanding foam into the wall dealt with them.
They weren't too happy about that and went on the attack, but they don't fly too well with a lump of rapidly expanding and hardening foam on their backs.
 
littlespark said:
i think i maybe did!

F**king hate wasps..... nasty little beasties.
I keep a spray can of wasp killer in my van for such eventualities
Click to expand...

Washing up liquid kills them on contact. Spray bottle with a fairly strong solution of it will sort them in no time, without lasting impact on your lungs or expanding foam stuck to everything.

I didn't believe this would work until they decided to begin nesting in our bin - huge swarm neutralised in a couple of minutes.
 
Had to deal with these bees, at least it was outside, but had to open the window to unlatch the shutters, I found that the Hornets tend to leave you alone if you don't wave your arms around, they where quite happy buzzing around me whilst I was re-pointing the chimney.

UNADJUSTEDNONRAW_THUMB_43B.jpeg
 
nicebutdim said:
Washing up liquid kills them on contact. Spray bottle with a fairly strong solution of it will sort them in no time, without lasting impact on your lungs or expanding foam stuck to everything.

I didn't believe this would work until they decided to begin nesting in our bin - huge swarm neutralised in a couple of minutes.
Click to expand...
Scairy Liquid......to the wasps, then?
 
Dave OCD said:
Wow, you'd expect them to be sorting that out for free as it's their equipment and well past its sell by date !
Click to expand...
They'd change the head for free if they'd installed the earth - they clearly hadn't - or someone needed to pull the fuse - like a meter change. But the fee is for providing a PME earth, and fitting an isolator. The head - and the associated work, like digging a hole in the client's front garden - is effectively free
 
happysteve said:
They'd change the head for free if they'd installed the earth - they clearly hadn't - or someone needed to pull the fuse - like a meter change. But the fee is for providing a PME earth, and fitting an isolator. The head - and the associated work, like digging a hole in the client's front garden - is effectively free
Click to expand...
Not a bad deal in the grand scheme of things
 
Today's fun and games. A few interesting period features and no shortage of eyebrow raisers.

1677855739127.jpeg

1677855789362.jpeg

My immediate suspicion about Neutral no 1 was correct:
1677855836765.jpeg


The lighting in double insulated 1-core had more recent CPC's added, and upstairs just about checked out.
Downstairs didn't - only the hall and lobby was giving an R1+R2. All other downstairs lighting had such a large induced voltage (27v) on the separate CPC that the the tester refused to do a continuity test, so there's a missing or broken link. This was also leading to interesting flashing effects of LED bulbs when turned off, lasting minutes in some cases.
 
timhoward said:
Today's fun and games. A few interesting period features and no shortage of eyebrow raisers.

View attachment 106532
View attachment 106533
My immediate suspicion about Neutral no 1 was correct:
View attachment 106534

The lighting in double insulated 1-core had more recent CPC's added, and upstairs just about checked out.
Downstairs didn't - only the hall and lobby was giving an R1+R2. All other downstairs lighting had such a large induced voltage (27v) on the separate CPC that the the tester refused to do a continuity test, so there's a missing or broken link. This was also leading to interesting flashing effects of LED bulbs when turned off, lasting minutes in some cases.
Click to expand...

What's the white box before the meter?
 
timhoward said:
Today's fun and games. A few interesting period features and no shortage of eyebrow raisers.

View attachment 106532
View attachment 106533
My immediate suspicion about Neutral no 1 was correct:
View attachment 106534

The lighting in double insulated 1-core had more recent CPC's added, and upstairs just about checked out.
Downstairs didn't - only the hall and lobby was giving an R1+R2. All other downstairs lighting had such a large induced voltage (27v) on the separate CPC that the the tester refused to do a continuity test, so there's a missing or broken link. This was also leading to interesting flashing effects of LED bulbs when turned off, lasting minutes in some cases.
Click to expand...
Is it badly fitted over the top of an older recessed board?
 
timhoward said:
This is one of several properties on the same private estate, There is a substation on site and upstream distribution boards.
It's just an enclosure where the distribution circuit's SWA is badly terminated and the cores pass right through to the meter!
Click to expand...
It looks to me like either the owner or Mr do it all has done that work.
 
MJPD29 said:
Is it badly fitted over the top of an older recessed board?
Click to expand...
Yes. It looks like they put in a new kitchen ring when they changed the board, as all other circuits are stranded zinc plated copper.
mainline said:
It looks to me like either the owner or Mr do it all has done that work.
Click to expand...
"Mr do it all" who was employed by the owner has just retired after many years tinkering with this installation. After a quick look around I've politely declined to touch anything until the relevant part of the installation has had an 100% EICR. This one was consumer unit 3 out of 12 that are for living accommodation (which we agreed to do first). There are a further 3 identical properties to look forward to!
 
Dave OCD said:
That's strange because for something so non-compliant it's actually pretty neatly done - the 90 degree bend on the T&E where it goes vertical is very nicely done for example.
Click to expand...
I've since wondered whether the switchgear changed and the old arrangement had provision for the lighting circuit.
I need to go back here to take lots of photo's, there's a large transformer / rectifier for a pipe organ below the switched fuse. Behind the photo is the bell rope and a vintage (long broken) electronic bell so someone the other end of the church could signal when to start and stop ringing.
 
littlespark said:
I’m getting itchy just looking at those loft pictures.

8.5kW…. What would you say that supply cable size is? I don’t think it’s 6mm from the photo
Click to expand...
My hands were itching for a while after. It is 6mm. I traced the route all the way from the CU to the shower point as I needed to check nothing else had been added to circuit in a random junction box somewhere.
 
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