Slight possibility of confusion when 3&E is used; Red, Blue, Yellow, or Black, Grey, Brown - all of which can be lives.
Slight possibility of confusion when 3&E is used; Red, Blue, Yellow, or Black, Grey, Brown - all of which can be lives.
If an electrician can't handle working with the common standard cables, where does the fault really lie? As said the note on domestic CUs is senseless.
NT
If anyone is confused by the new wiring colours over the old, get a pro in to do any work.
With 3&E in domestic use, I'd not assume what any of the colours are used for anyway.
Which has always seemed a little superfluous in domestic premises with
Is everyone who works on domestic electrics an electrician?
It's still perfectly legal for non-electricians to work on house wiring. And some young persons may be mystified if they come across red and black in a house they've moved into.
If you came across wiring colours you didn't recognise, wouldn't you ascertain what they referred to before going further?
At one time is was quite common to find imported goods with just about any flex colours you could shake a stick at. So before fitting a mains plug you'd check which did what. If you valued your health.
then what are they doing working on electrics?
either that's obvious, or the person concerned should be backing well away from anything as tricky as replacing a plug.
Maybe we should litter roads with 'caution: pothole' signs. Taps with 'caution: wet' signs. And microwaves with 'caution, food may be hot' signs. Oh, they do that apparently. Next it'll be 'caution, coffee is hot.'
NT
Mine are. In one case, I also filed down the outside jaws a bit because I wasn't getting enough "bite" even when adjusted tight.
It called DIY.
That was made worse with the new colours when old timers used the black as the neutral and the grey as switched live.
I would however say that over 99% of the work I see now has the black as the switched live.
TBH, I am pretty sure I have done that one one early installation with new colour 3&E as well.
You don't say.
Either they're capable or they're not. A bit of paper on the CU saying what they will see with their own eyes is hardly useful.
NT
While true, it does rather ignore Dunning Kruger... i.e. all those who are not quite capable, but don't know it.
This is one of those pointless conversations really. One should (i.e. its a wiring regs requirement) fit the sticker when appropriate, its costs next to nothing to do it. It might help someone at some point. That's all there is to it really.
You obviously won't fit the sticker, that's your prerogative, and in the grand scheme of things the world is unlikely to end (at least for that reason).
There are a whole bunch of "soft" rules that don't alter the fundamental electrical safety of the installation, but potentially make life easier for either users or future maintainers. Lots of people don't label the MCBs, or fit a "live" sleeve on the switched wires on a lighting circuit
- one could argue it doesn't matter since if you know what you are doing, you can work it all out from first principles anyway. However these are things that gives an insight into the attention to detail possessed of the installer. While its no guarantee, IME if you can see that the installer has shown attention to the small details, then you usually also find the big picture stuff is right as well.
It seems to me the sticker was more clearly of value at the time of the change of colour schemes. But changing the regs. to remove the requirement raises the (all too common) issue of asymmetric rewards and penalties for the people responsible. Hardly anyone would praise them for saving 30 pence or so per CU. Many would call for their heads if someone were killed where the blame could be put on the lack of a label. (It's what made the MPs who backed the relaxation of Part P all the more praiseworthy IMO.)
it isn't, it's a simple statement of fact.
it's already been explained why it has no way to help anyone. It's as useful as a sign saying 'caution square pin plugs in use.'
I'm not aware of any fact or reason to base that on
that is a different situation and a different argument to the colours sign
yes, until the installation is altered later.
There are useful constructive rules and useless ones. Caution red & black does not look the same as blue & brown is one of the latter.
NT
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