fuse board woes
Discussion
the newly found joys of home ownership. I rented for several years basically hardly ever needing to call the landlord. I buy my own place and the fun and games start. oh well.
I have a duplex flat. As you come in the fusebox is on the wall which has a mini circuit breakers - the little switches. there are various switches lights x2 sockets heating etc etc
I came in from work today and the hall light wouldnt turn on. I checked the fuse box, and one of the lights switches was off, so I pinged it back up and the lights came on. This lasted about 5 minutes until it tripped again. This time when I tried to switch it up again, it went up, but then instantly went down again with a small spark behind the individual switch. Further attempts to turn it up resulted in more of the same. everything else works fine. the lights on that switch are the bathroom and bedroom lights. the odd thing was when I went out today none of the lights were on, so im not sure why they tripped when I was out.
not sure what to do. there is a 13a fuse case above the fusebox - im not sure what this relates to. I guess i'll change that 13a fuse tomorrow and see if that sorts it. if not im a bit stumped and will have to call out a spark I guess, because it could be one of many things in the bathroom or bedroom non?
any thoughts?
I have a duplex flat. As you come in the fusebox is on the wall which has a mini circuit breakers - the little switches. there are various switches lights x2 sockets heating etc etc
I came in from work today and the hall light wouldnt turn on. I checked the fuse box, and one of the lights switches was off, so I pinged it back up and the lights came on. This lasted about 5 minutes until it tripped again. This time when I tried to switch it up again, it went up, but then instantly went down again with a small spark behind the individual switch. Further attempts to turn it up resulted in more of the same. everything else works fine. the lights on that switch are the bathroom and bedroom lights. the odd thing was when I went out today none of the lights were on, so im not sure why they tripped when I was out.
not sure what to do. there is a 13a fuse case above the fusebox - im not sure what this relates to. I guess i'll change that 13a fuse tomorrow and see if that sorts it. if not im a bit stumped and will have to call out a spark I guess, because it could be one of many things in the bathroom or bedroom non?
any thoughts?
Have you done anything recently that could have damaged a cable (drilled wall, put nail in for pictures etc.)? Have you had any water leaks/spillages anywhere?
I am assuming all the lights were switched off when you went out so it will be difficult to identify a particular light fitting being a problem by trial and error. Also, with a loop-in switching arrangement, there are live cables at every point on the circuit, so even if the switch is off, the fault may still cause the breaker to trip.
Switch off the power (I recommend you turn off the main switch rather than try to isolate an individual circuit), take off all the switches and look for obvious faults such as cables chafing on metal back-boxes or cables trapped by screws.
If you cannot find anything obvious, it is time to call a spark in.
I am assuming all the lights were switched off when you went out so it will be difficult to identify a particular light fitting being a problem by trial and error. Also, with a loop-in switching arrangement, there are live cables at every point on the circuit, so even if the switch is off, the fault may still cause the breaker to trip.
Switch off the power (I recommend you turn off the main switch rather than try to isolate an individual circuit), take off all the switches and look for obvious faults such as cables chafing on metal back-boxes or cables trapped by screws.
If you cannot find anything obvious, it is time to call a spark in.
The 13A fuse above the consumer unit will be for something unrelated that has been spurred directly off the board. Things like burglar alarms etc. are sometimes wired like that.
Take a look at the switches inside the consumer unit, what markings do they have on them?
They should have a current rating (6A, 10A, 32A etc.) and may say if it's an MCB or RCBO.
Knowing which type of device is would help diagnosis.
However it's unlikely that anyone will be able to tell you the cause via the internet.
Take a look at the switches inside the consumer unit, what markings do they have on them?
They should have a current rating (6A, 10A, 32A etc.) and may say if it's an MCB or RCBO.
Knowing which type of device is would help diagnosis.
However it's unlikely that anyone will be able to tell you the cause via the internet.
Toughy that, when an mcb instant blows with an arc you're getting a short circuit somewhere, could be water leaked in somewhere or could be cable damaged on install, eg nail or screw but not enough to trip the mcb at the time, over time the insulation breaks down, the fault current cascades and the mcb blows. Could be something as simple as a switchplate pin (screw that holds the switch to the box in the wall) screwed into the cable.
But all that's speculative, any idea a) how old the electrical installation is and b) whether it was done by sparks or DIYers or "low budget" technicians.
But all that's speculative, any idea a) how old the electrical installation is and b) whether it was done by sparks or DIYers or "low budget" technicians.
hairyben said:
Toughy that, when an mcb instant blows with an arc you're getting a short circuit somewhere, could be water leaked in somewhere or could be cable damaged on install, eg nail or screw but not enough to trip the mcb at the time, over time the insulation breaks down, the fault current cascades and the mcb blows. Could be something as simple as a switchplate pin (screw that holds the switch to the box in the wall) screwed into the cable.
But all that's speculative, any idea a) how old the electrical installation is and b) whether it was done by sparks or DIYers or "low budget" technicians.
install would have been about 2005/2006. it was in a conversion of a factory warehouse by hampstead homes so I would assume sparks or technicians. But all that's speculative, any idea a) how old the electrical installation is and b) whether it was done by sparks or DIYers or "low budget" technicians.
looks like this maybe one where I'll have to bite the bullet and get a spark out to look at it, which will probably cost me the thick end of a tonne
princeperch said:
well a spark is coming out next week to look at it for 50 quid (as long as it doesnt take more than an hr) which seems very reasonable. he reckons the board in the fusebox is shorting.
Haven't the faintest idea what that means, but if he thinks the mcb needs replacing he's probably in for a disappointment, I've replaced 1 in 15 years.Were the original developers NHBC? 10 year guarantee? Depends on the developer some aren't worth the paper they're printed on.
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