Just how old are some of the incomer cables now?. A house that I own was built in 1890 and the power was initially put in appx 1925 "ish".
I don't think anyone's altered the incomer cable since then it does look very olde so just how old are they allowed to be before they are replaced or do they wait till it all just goes Bang! One day and change it then?..
Anyone know?....
Sometimes there is ;-)
Also sometimes done.
I replaced a secondary extra CU once where the main cutout was decidedly dodgy looking. So opted to disconnect the tails to the CU in question at the henley. Its very minimal live working since once the tails are free, they are not live and you can stick the lid back on the henley.
The only challenge with that one was the henley had allen headed screws, and I don't have any VDE allen keys. So I used a hex bit in a mag holder cocooned in insulating tape, and stuck it in my cordless drill.
Incomer cable here is the old lead/bitumen from when the place was built. Originally had a cast iron fuse/cutout but the 'board replaced that with a modern plastic one a few years ago and said the cable was "fine".
Wasn't there a discussion in here some time ago that concluded that these old cable were actually safer than they appeared due to the failure mode being somewhat "gentle"? Or was I imagining that? :)
Nothing wrong with that.
FWIW in September 2012 a BG customer could get an isolator fitted for less than that - GBP 31.42 to be precise. Might be worth anyone facing the same need asking their supplier if they offer a similar deal.
I did and EDF did not even have an option. I doubt UK Power who bought the southern network are and different.
Some other suppliers do though.
This was for a BG customer in London so IIRC EDF were (then) the DNO. And just to add to the confusion when Scottish Power were the supplier in 2011 they said they couldn't provide an isolator at all. How the supplier comes into it is all too difficult fo rme.
After I rewired my first house, the SWEB guys just connected my tails to the distribution point "live". These days, "Oh the seal wires on the main fuse seem to be broken".
It's very simple:
Every thing before and including the main cutout and main earth terminal is the DNO's responsibilty.
The connections from cutout to metering equipment and the meter(s) is the responsibilty of who ever you buy your electricity from.
Everything past the meter output terminals and the MET is the responsibilty of the householder.
So an isolator is really the householders kit but of course one needs a bit of care to install it or pulling the cut out or breaking the seal on the meter to change the tails.
Just to clarify - I am in the SEEBOARD area...
Well it is now, thanks ;)
Apparently, if you're an approved electrician in the Scottish Power area, y ou can get a supply of numbered paper seals and obtain permission telephoni cally for each address as which you want to unseal the cutout. You then res eal it with the paper seal and SP go round sometime later and reseal proper ly.
Owain
Foam or spring?
When I worked for Seeboard, in the days when it was a nationalised industry, the view was that they didn't want domestic consumers to have an isolator before the CU. On request the Board would come and pull the main fuses and replace them later, all free of charge. It was seen as a way of ensuring that a Board employee would get to look over any major changes before reconnecting to the supply. If meter readers saw broken seals on the fuses, that would get passed back and an electrician would usually be sent out to reseal the fuse, have a word with the occupier and look over the system.
The guy who came to me wanted to see my CU and check the polarity.
He also wanted my NICEIC number. He seemed bemused when I said the job was lodged with the LABC.
The fact I'd spent quite some time making the cable runs look pretty helped as he left with a compliment that it was "better than many jobs he'd seen".
But now I have my own isolator...
I asked the DNO and supplier if they would fit an isolator, or could permit me to pull the fuse and task the meter reader with re-sealing it on next visit ... each said ""no" and to ask the other.
So I cut the seal, pulled the fuse, changed the 16mm^2 tails for 25mm^2, fitted my own isolator (on "their" board tsk-tsk) and replaced the CU, it sat there unsealed for ~8 years, unquestioned by any meter readers. When they came to fit smart meters, the chap did notice the improved tails, so uprated me from 60A to 100A fuse, he checked polarity with an el-cheapo plugin neon tester, but that was the extent of any inspection.
Scottish Power were less fussy when they changed the meter here. The guy broke off the plastic lugs for the seals so now there's no way of sealing the main fuse. That was about 5 years ago so things might have changed since then but the meter readers have never commented about the lack of seals.
When my smart meter was installed in May the existing isolator was retained, and carefully re-sealed - the seals had been broken when the solar panels were installed a couple of years ago.
Sqornshellian.
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