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What in Tarnation?
What in Tarnation?
by timmp, September 10
Plumber meets Electrician
Plumber meets Electrician
by timmp, September 10
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Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 25
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ryanjuk Offline OP
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Found these images on another site.

The electrician replaced the old consumer unit for £200, pulling the main fuse himself in the progress.

[Linked Image]

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[Linked Image]


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[Linked Image]

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{Post edited to resize images. [Linked Image]}

[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 08-15-2005).]

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djk Offline
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This was done by an electrician!?!

Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 8,443
Likes: 4
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Hi Ryan!,
Long time no see. [Linked Image]
Interesting pictures, sorry that I had to prune them down a tad, as it wouldn't have been fair to those on a Dial-up connection.
Nice to see that the guy removed that nasty piece of TRS cable hanging over the top of the meter in the first pic.
This job obviously didn't have a lot of forward planning associated with it, judging by all the joints and the messy way in which the wiring has been just thrown in.
This could have been done a LOT better. [Linked Image]

Joined: Jul 2002
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Whoa!!,
Just had a good look at the picture of inside the consumer unit.
Why are there black wires going into the top of the MCB (3rd from the left)?.
This is just a mess and I'd find it rather hard to believe that an Electrician would be so silly as to do work this badly. [Linked Image]

Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 7,520
P
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Looks about normal to me! [Linked Image] [Linked Image]

I see a lot of this sort of "choc-block" extended wiring where a new panel is installed but there isn't enough slack left in the old cables to make the new terminations.

Quote
Why are there black wires going into the top of the MCB (3rd from the left)?.

Well, black is now a phase color under the new system, but I can't figure it out either. [Linked Image] The MCB is off and has no label on the panel.

Clearly the shower circuit is new (MCB immediately to the left of the RCD), and I assume that the large blue conductor on the left-hand neutral bar is part of that circuit.

There's also a smaller gauge blue wire going to the right-hand (non-RCD) neutral bar though. Where is the phase associated with that one? Could it be the brown wire laying directly in front of the incoming tails? Looks like its just taped up and not connected to anything though.

If one of those black wires was part of a new-style cable the gray could have been cut back and brown left spare I suppose. That doesn't explain the second black wire.

Joined: Sep 2002
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C-H Offline
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One of those pictures could be placed in a dictionary as definition of "mess" and "messy".

I can think of four things that are right about this installation:
1. There are MCB's.
2. The circuits are labled.
3. No live metal parts are exposed. (Currently, I will have to add. It looks like anything could come loose at any time. [Linked Image] )
4. Ehhh.... Well, three things then. [Linked Image]

Looking at the double blacks: Could it be that the installer ran out of "choco-blocks" and used the spare MCB? *horror*

[This message has been edited by C-H (edited 08-15-2005).]

Joined: Dec 2004
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Quote:
Could it be that the installer ran out of "choco-blocks" and used the spare MCB?

Press here for fireworks display... [Linked Image]

I think the blacks go under the MCB to the grey and the white T&E coming out the bottom, leaving the MCB unused.

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Quote
Looking at the double blacks: Could it be that the installer ran out of "choco-blocks" and used the spare MCB? *horror*

That horrible possibility occurred to me too, but I tried to dismiss it as quickly as possible. [Linked Image] [Linked Image]

Ryan,

Was there any explanation with the photos?

Joined: Dec 2001
Posts: 2,503
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The breaker in question actually has _two_ black wires attached to it...
and I think I found where the weird blue wire comes from... it is twisted and taped (with yellow/green tape) to one of the blacks, roughly above the RCD!

Another weird thing: even though it's supposedly new he used helluva mess of different breaker types!

Joined: Oct 2003
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ryanjuk Offline OP
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