DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad ‘Electricians’
Regulations broken: BS7671:2008 Reg. 132.12, 526.3, 421.7, 526.5, 530.4.2, 522.6.1, 521.10.1, 514.3.1, 559.6.1.5

When asked to replace a couple of lights in a front and rear lounge we expected an relatively easy job. The old fixtures were standard 6″ pendant lamp holder comprising a ceiling rose, pendant lamp holder and heat-resistant 0.75mm² twin-core circular cord. At least that’s what we thought!

We unscrewed the ceiling rose of the first fitting and found that it was wired correctly but not screwed into the joist above. We resolved the issue as the new light fixture was all metal and heavy. Once completed and tested we moved on to the next fitting.

When we tried to unscrew the ceiling rose to expose the junction box we found it wouldn’t move. Not an unusual problem and usually resolved by tapping on the cover with a screwdriver handle. We couldn’t get the cover to budge so tapped it hard enough to break it. Once removed we found that the cover had been glued to the ceiling and the screw connectors had been pushed up between the plaster laths and into the joist space above the ceiling. There was no cover provided to protect the cables. The light fitting had been hanging from the screw connectors only!

Once we fastened the new hanger to the ceiling joist which was designed to take the weight of the very heavy glass chandelier we pulled the cables and connectors through and sorted out the wiring. Once wired correctly we installed the cover and had a properly and safely installed fixture.

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