drilled hole through lighting cable running to two way switch for stairs lights

Mar 17, 2007 13 Replies
A

Hi,



Managed to drill a very neat 6 mm hole through one cable and singed another cable next to it a little bit. Both cables run down a wall into a normal recessed two gang light switch that controls (two way) the upstairs and downstairs landing lights and used to be "protected" by metal sheathing but are now exposed as I have removed both plaster and sheathing.



Seems to be the downstairs light affected as the upstairs light works ok. Have now fixed the 5 amp lighting fuse which blew and, I think caused the singing, now all seems ok except the downstairs light does not work anymore!



The 6 mm hole in the cable is approximately two inches (50 mm) below the ceiling level. Both of the cable run down to the switch about 3 feet (900 mm) below.



I would like to attempt a fix for this and wonder what sort of mechanical joint repair I could make and then sheath and plaster over? Would for example a simple plastic connector be ok?



Ideas gratefully accepted. Thanks for your time.



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O

You can use a plastic connector ("choc block") enclosed in a back box with a blanking plate, which will be fairly unobtrusive at that height.

If you want to bury the connection in plaster then you must use crimped or soldered connections, and cover with heatshrink tube. Screw connections *must* remain accessible.

Owain

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J

If you are going to encapsulate and plaster over the joint then the two practical alternatives are soldered or crimped joints. You will also need some heatshrink to replace the outer sheath plus some for the wires also unless you are using insulated crimps...

In this case I think I would carefully slit along the cable a couple of inches either side of the hole - exposing the wires. Hopefully you have only cut one. Cut the others - but at an offset position so as to not end up with a big bulge due to having each join adjacent to the others. Slide the heatshrink over the cable, and then crimp the wires. Test the connections[1]. Slide heatshrink into position and shrink it. You now have a join you can plaster back in.

(The Extra length introduced by the crimps may be enough to save having to introduce extra cable).

[1] To test the joint: You can do two tests easily enough. The first is mechanical - test the wires do nut pull out with a good tug (well made crimps are very strong). The second would be to temporailly disconnect the wire at both switch positions, twist the wire ends together at one end and then measure the resistance between each of the wires at the other. Any measurement more than fractions of an ohm would indicate a poor joint.
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M

I have to ask what tune was it?

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O

I was well disappointed with the singed photograph I won on ebay...

Owain

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J

Kind of you to say so, good sir!

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G

In message , mike writes

Obviously Bruce Springsteen : The Fuse :-)

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C

In message , Graeme writes

Elvis Costello, Accidents will happen.

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T

Electric Light Orchestra

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J

Chris De Burgh: Spark to a Flame

Human League: Together in Electric Dreams

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J

Queen: Flash Leftfield: Double Flash

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