PAT Testing

You definitely need proof of competency, the tester itself needs calibration regularly. If you want to test everything then you need to spend a lot more than 250 quid. Indemnity against mistakes and good record keeping are needed too.

Most businesses use a firm that comes in and tests everything, the usual sort of fee is three pounds per item.

So my guess is it would be a hard way to get a living.

Mrcheerful (recently did a PAT course)

Yes, you should definitely have certification if offering as a professional service. It's a C&G 2377-002. I did mine the other month - it's not hard [1] and is a 1 day course via the IET and a short exam on a subsequent day. You should not use a pass/go tester (these are for people to do a quick verification on equipment) - you need to record *actual* numbers on the inspection sheet (so future inspectors can see if there are any trends developing).

Here's a pointer (other course providers are available):

Public liability insurance would be advisable (in case someone trips over you while you are on their premises - that sort of thing).

Cheers

Tim

I did a PAT (not a PAT testing) course a few years ago at work and it was a piece of piss, a waste of two days. If I were wanting to set myself up as you do I think that I would teach myself and just take the exam.

I think you need to spend about =A3400 for a reasonable tester though in practice 90% of faults are found on visual inspection - frayed cords and wrong fuses. I think that a Go/NOGO tester is perfectly adequate but the full tester with results entered into a form will make the customer feel that he is getting a more professional service :-)

The whole process is as much about record keeping as about technology..

Another thing to consider is your attitude to failed appliances. A lot of customers will expect you to repair the failed appliance. Whilst that isn't practical for major failures, being prepared to change a fuse or replace the plug mcould give you an advantages over competitors who stick to the "you only pay for the testing" line.

And you will get irrate customers who just don't believe that grandads old reading lamp can possible be unsafe.

The message from "mrcheerful ." contains these words:

One of the teaching assistants at the kids' school does their PAT testing. Turned out to be cheaper than outsourcing it - she's appropriately qualified and IIRC uses suitably calibrated equipment loaned as a favour to the school by someone.

The message from Tim S contains these words:

Out of interest - are you supposed to take the backs of such plugs as you can and check the security of the terminal screws? Checking the fuse value make sense, of course, and while you're at it checking nothing's loose would make sense.

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I don't suppose there are many situations in which Grandad's old reading lamp would get tested in the first place.

Start by buying a copy of the definitive book:

PAT testing where I work seems to be little more than a visual inspection. In a previous existence, I was sure that someone occasionally put a megger across input sockets on some of our computer servers, but that was stopped after some expensive kit was damaged ;-)

I expect that some "proper" testing should and does take place, depending on the type of equipment. We can wait weeks for someone to make up and PAT test a 13A trailing lead, or I can walk into any local supermarket and buy one, but I am not supposed to use it at work until the PAT guy has eyeballed it and affixed his sticker. Modesty prevents me from saying whether my time is expensive enough that we actually take the unapproved route or not...

Can you give us some examples of the not obvious stuff?

Yes, and to check the fuse is ASTA compliant too.

Cheers

Tim

Technically, I thought you didn't need to PAT test new stuff in its first year.

Christian.

than a visual

Whenever I've come across PAT testing, there is no requirement for PAT testing of brand new items.

MBQ

I would not be surprised if that were true (as Christian has also pointed out). There are sound and justified reasons for a rigorous safety culture where I work, but I do question the need to apparently demand higher standards of consumer items than any of us would apply in our homes. And trust me, I love my family way more than I love my work colleagues, and value my house far above what passes for my office !

Checking for an ASTA marked fuse (mentioned already), knowing when to do a "soft" test, a "hard" test or (where applicable) a touch current test.

I might remember some more later. Some of the above may be obvious to some, but they weren't all obvious to most of the folks on my course, me included.

Actually the handbook is very good (and it is all in there), but they do draw your attention to the important/more obscure points in the course. I would say, if you are going to do it 100% as a pro, the course is worth it. If you were doing it to service your own company then perhaps less so. The course is a good opportunity to ask specifics of the lecturer(s), concerning the type of kit you think you are going to encounter.

Our course went into a discussion about what to do with and whether you would ever encounter a Class 0 appliance[1].

HTH

Tim

There is no *requirement* for PATing full stop under H&SAWA (AFAIK)

The requirement is to ensure electrical safety and to produce a procedure that can demonstrate a defence of due diligence if someone gets frazzled.

Owain

for a quarter of the price IEE charge for just one of them.

Another problem you'll find is a number of companies will insist you belong to NICEIC in order to do PAT testing but won't care about you being 2377-002 qualified. This is completely wrong, but it will still be a problem for you.

There are no hard and fast rules, just guidelines. You can start off using the guidelines, but you should modify those in the light of your experience, e.g. if you are picking up failures, then you may need to increase testing frequency, and conversely if you aren't ever finding problems, you could use this to justify decreasing the testing frequency if you have appropriate record keeping to show this.

The testing period for different things in different situations varies enormously, from some things almost never needing testing, through to other things requiring daily testing (e.g. a fairground ride). So you can't claim a blanket no need to test new items for a year.

It's in the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989:

Which IIRC are delegated legislation under H&SAWA

Yup, I still don't see the magic words "Portable Appliance Testing with a PAT Meter"...

Owain