Electrical pat test
Discussion
It also depends upon what you are testing. If it's items like a PC, kettle etc then the legislation just states that it needs to be tested by ‘a competent person’. No need for an electrical qualification.
Therefore all the small items in my place were tested by myself. We bought a load of the green pass and red fail stickers from an electrical wholesaler and Bobs your proverbial.
When it comes to 400v or 3 phase we use a specialist.
Therefore all the small items in my place were tested by myself. We bought a load of the green pass and red fail stickers from an electrical wholesaler and Bobs your proverbial.
When it comes to 400v or 3 phase we use a specialist.
davidd said:
Andrew
how did you test them? Did you hire/buy a macine?
D
how did you test them? Did you hire/buy a macine?
D
We did it the hard way, with a electrical test meter. But if you want to be flash then eBay is your friend:
http://business.listings.ebay.co.uk/M
There are no specifics as to the frequency of testing only guildline suggestions. These depend on the type and environment of use. So a drill in a workshop will need to be tested more often than than a PC in an office.
Typically class I items (drills, kettles etc) will have to be tested every 6 months to a year and class II items (monitor etc.) will have to be tested every 2/3 years. It is up to the duty holder to asssess the risk by doing a risk assessement of the site and implement a schedule accordingly.
Normally new equipment does not come with a PAT pass sticker and a certificate so it shuld be tested as it arrives on site and be added to the existing schedule of items.
Typically class I items (drills, kettles etc) will have to be tested every 6 months to a year and class II items (monitor etc.) will have to be tested every 2/3 years. It is up to the duty holder to asssess the risk by doing a risk assessement of the site and implement a schedule accordingly.
Normally new equipment does not come with a PAT pass sticker and a certificate so it shuld be tested as it arrives on site and be added to the existing schedule of items.
greenie said:
There are no specifics as to the frequency of testing only guildline suggestions. These depend on the type and environment of use. So a drill in a workshop will need to be tested more often than than a PC in an office.
Typically class I items (drills, kettles etc) will have to be tested every 6 months to a year and class II items (monitor etc.) will have to be tested every 2/3 years. It is up to the duty holder to asssess the risk by doing a risk assessement of the site and implement a schedule accordingly.
Normally new equipment does not come with a PAT pass sticker and a certificate so it shuld be tested as it arrives on site and be added to the existing schedule of items.
Typically class I items (drills, kettles etc) will have to be tested every 6 months to a year and class II items (monitor etc.) will have to be tested every 2/3 years. It is up to the duty holder to asssess the risk by doing a risk assessement of the site and implement a schedule accordingly.
Normally new equipment does not come with a PAT pass sticker and a certificate so it shuld be tested as it arrives on site and be added to the existing schedule of items.
Thanks Greenie
Holy thread resurrection...
A quick PAT test question, please. We've just had ours done and been charged for 80 items - we have about 30 or so electrical bits and bobs in the office, but it appears that leads and the appliances themselves are tested separately, as are the ac adaptors for some items - is that right? It's not a biggie, but I'm just curious to see if these guys are working a bit of a con, or if that is indeed the way it should be done? A quick Google seems to suggest that it is - which surprised me a bit, but every day is a school day...
A quick PAT test question, please. We've just had ours done and been charged for 80 items - we have about 30 or so electrical bits and bobs in the office, but it appears that leads and the appliances themselves are tested separately, as are the ac adaptors for some items - is that right? It's not a biggie, but I'm just curious to see if these guys are working a bit of a con, or if that is indeed the way it should be done? A quick Google seems to suggest that it is - which surprised me a bit, but every day is a school day...
Actus Reus said:
Holy thread resurrection...
A quick PAT test question, please. We've just had ours done and been charged for 80 items - we have about 30 or so electrical bits and bobs in the office, but it appears that leads and the appliances themselves are tested separately, as are the ac adaptors for some items - is that right? It's not a biggie, but I'm just curious to see if these guys are working a bit of a con, or if that is indeed the way it should be done? A quick Google seems to suggest that it is - which surprised me a bit, but every day is a school day...
I can't see why you would test them separately. The device cannot be used without the lead, and would need to be plugged in to test. A typical laptop would end up being 3 items (lead, power supply, laptop)A quick PAT test question, please. We've just had ours done and been charged for 80 items - we have about 30 or so electrical bits and bobs in the office, but it appears that leads and the appliances themselves are tested separately, as are the ac adaptors for some items - is that right? It's not a biggie, but I'm just curious to see if these guys are working a bit of a con, or if that is indeed the way it should be done? A quick Google seems to suggest that it is - which surprised me a bit, but every day is a school day...
Thanks chaps - lesson learned.
We're in a serviced office and the landlord arranged the PAT testing - £1.50 per item which we just accepted (assuming 30 appliances max) and ended up with a bill for 80. Not a huge amount, but I wondered if they were being a bit cheeky. Multiplied across every office in this building they made a fair old take last weekend!
We're in a serviced office and the landlord arranged the PAT testing - £1.50 per item which we just accepted (assuming 30 appliances max) and ended up with a bill for 80. Not a huge amount, but I wondered if they were being a bit cheeky. Multiplied across every office in this building they made a fair old take last weekend!
I fully expect the electricians on here to shoot me down but here goes!
A few years ago I was asked by the company I worked for to look into PAT testing and this is what I found out.
PAT stands for Portable Appliance Testing.
It can be done by 'any competent person'. There was no definition of a 'competent person'.
If it had a plug it was classed as portable.
A visual inspection was all that was needed, no fancy test machines were needed.
A sticker, available online from the likes of RS, should be put on the appliance and a record kept of all the appliances tested, both filled in with the relevant details.
I await the flaming from the people make money out of PAT.
Unless the rules have changed, then please accept my humble apologies.
A few years ago I was asked by the company I worked for to look into PAT testing and this is what I found out.
PAT stands for Portable Appliance Testing.
It can be done by 'any competent person'. There was no definition of a 'competent person'.
If it had a plug it was classed as portable.
A visual inspection was all that was needed, no fancy test machines were needed.
A sticker, available online from the likes of RS, should be put on the appliance and a record kept of all the appliances tested, both filled in with the relevant details.
I await the flaming from the people make money out of PAT.
Unless the rules have changed, then please accept my humble apologies.
trickywoo said:
I'm all for a safe work environment but your standard office is going to pose much less risk than a home environment and how many people test anything at home? Normally the first you know of something being wrong is when a fuse blows - which is after all what they are for.
The difference is, you can only blame your self at home! Whereas you can sue your employer at work!But yes the chance of someone getting a serious shock of modern equipment is pretty slim.
But companies need to cover there arse.
I tender a large pat contract (75,000) items per year. We pay something less than 60p per item. Leads are required to be tes5ed seperately. You can do your own risk assessment based on actual use ie office equipment never moved you could in theory visual yearly and test 5 yearly. Its upto you. Hire equipment must be tested before every rental out. Heavily used equipment ie in a catering kitchen we do 3 monthly as its frequently damaged.
Competent persons can be trained properly in 3 days max. Its not rocket science but done right it works to reduce risk and you will be expected to keep adequate records of the date each item was tested and when its next due.
Thats about it. Hope it helps. Users do the most important test when they plug it in, its visual and they should check it looks ok ie lead not melted or bare, plug not smashed but you do need to physically test it at some point based on the above.
Competent persons can be trained properly in 3 days max. Its not rocket science but done right it works to reduce risk and you will be expected to keep adequate records of the date each item was tested and when its next due.
Thats about it. Hope it helps. Users do the most important test when they plug it in, its visual and they should check it looks ok ie lead not melted or bare, plug not smashed but you do need to physically test it at some point based on the above.
Forgot to add, the actual test machine basically checks continuity, earthing, insulation resistance and earth leakage. It does find faults that would otherwise go undetected sometimes but most failures are found at the visual stage ie damaged plug n lead, wrongly sized fuse, loose metal casings etc. IT equipment should always be tested on a "soft" earth test or you can get damage to the equipment .
Jese pat testing lol
Jese pat testing lol
98elise said:
I can't see why you would test them separately. The device cannot be used without the lead, and would need to be plugged in to test. A typical laptop would end up being 3 items (lead, power supply, laptop)
I don't see how a laptop would be three items. Two maybe if the PSU & lead are separate but I'd be very interested to know how you connect a laptop with a DC input to a PAT tester.To the he poster whole got charged for 80 items instead of 30: you should have been given a printed out record of the items tested listing what the device was, serial number, PAT test number & result of test. From that you should be able to work out if the amount of equipment tested was reasonable.
We PAT test all new equipment used on our projects & it's not that unusual to come across items wired incorrectly. We've had a number of mains distribution units with Live-Neutral reversals.
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