DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad Landlord Planning

We’ve already  highlighted  Landlord Licensing Schemes on several occasions. Our aim in those articles was to highlight other contractors unsafe or poor working practices. An interesting pattern has emerged as we undertake more of these checks on our landlord’s behalf. The pattern is that we are always the last people called in. The assumption by the property owner seems to be that because everything appears to work there should be no issue. That is the wrong assumption and it could end up costing you cold hard cash! continue

DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad ‘Electricians’
Regulations broken: BS7671:2008 416.2.2, 134.2.1, 610.6, 631.1, 314.4, 132.13, 514.9

We were on this site to re-install an electric shower about a month ago. See original article here. We installed the shower but were unable to sort out the electrics due to a issues we located with the previous consumer unit. While testing circuits we found some errors in the house wiring. To be specific the circuit feeding the sockets had been bodged by a bad kitchen fitting job. continue

DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad ‘Electricians’
Regulations broken: BS7671:2008 416.2.2, 134.2.1, 610.6, 631.1, 314.4, 132.13, 514.9

We were on site to re-install an electric shower which was removed a few years earlier. We found both ends of the T&E and it tested true. We had some difficulty running a new water feed and a new section of T&E. While at the consumer unit testing the existing shower cable we found some interestingly poor wiring to everything else in the property. continue

DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad ‘Electricians’
Regulations broken: BS7671:2008 Reg. 421.7, 526.5, 530.4.2, 411.3.3, 522.8.4, 522.6.1, 522.2.1, 528.3.1, 522.6.5, 134.1.1, 526.3, 526.8.1, 411.3.1.1, 514.4.2, 559.10.5.2

While installing a wet-room in this property we needed to move all electrical junctions from beneath the bathroom floor before we put down our new plywood floor. We found three junction boxes in a row and after a lot of tracing found that they all eventually fed back into the downstairs light circuits via PVC cables pushed through old metal conduit. Unfortunately however not all of the cables were being used for lights! continue

DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad ‘Electricians’
Regulations broken: BS7671:2008 Reg. 421.7; 526.5; 416.2.1; 514.3.1; p343

A simple  request to have a new American style fridge freezer plumbed in started easy enough. We located a spot to cut into the existing water supply and run a hidden line to a location nearby to the new freezer. The electrical supply was a different story. While looking for a ring to main to splice into we found this mess behind the drawer carcass. continue

DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad ‘Electricians’
Regulations broken: BS7671:2008 Reg. 421.7; 134.2.1; 610.6; 631.1; 633.2; 134.1.1; 416.2.2; 633.2; 314.4; 514.8.1; 514.14.1; 132.13; 514.9; 432.1; p363; 433.1

This job seemed simple enough. A mixed bag of jobs so the client could skim and redecorate their front lounge. They wanted a water stop tap moved, a radiator relocated and an electric fire fitted to the old chimney breast. We arrived on the day with the intention of adding a fused spur to the double socket located on the side of the chimney breast.  Unfortunately, the double socket was fed by a single cable meaning that it wasn’t part of a ring main and was already a spur. We removed three more double sockets and discovered that they too were spurs! As I checked three more sockets located on the opposite wall to the lounge they too were spurs. NO RING MAIN! continue

DANGER OF THE WEEK AWARD
Bad ‘Electricians’
Regulations broken: BS7671:2008 Reg. 421.7; 526.5; 416.2.1; 514.3.1; p343

I stopped in at one of my suppliers earlier this week to discuss some upcoming work. While there I required the loo so was pointed the way. The room was dark and I fumbled around for a light switch eventually finding it. What I found was unexpected! continue