rewiring a light circuit

Stephen · 2016-01-22T20:00:08+00:00

Hello, I didn't look close enough at the electrics before I bought this house. I have found that none of the sockets are on a ring: they are all wired as radials, some with spurs. I know you can have a radial with a 20A MCB but they are not wired like that (32a MCB in CU making it look like rings)! I found at least one socket that did not have an earth connection! The lights are wired curiously. Some of it is red and black T&E. Some of it is T&E that has stranded conductors. And some of it is (if such a thing exists) "single and earth": grey outer insulation, with a red insulated wire inside and an un insulated earth wire. Though earth wires may be present in the cable, they are not always connected; sometimes they are cut level with the grey insulation. What is frustrating is that a professional firm of electricians fitted a new consumer unit a few months before I bought the house. How did they let the vendor get away with this? Shouldn't they have tested for earths at the sockets, etc? It seems to me fishy that someone should buy a new CU just before moving house. I wonder whether someone else made an offer on the house, had a survey, and withdrew their offer because of the electrics, so the vendor fitted a new CU to give the appearance that everything was ok? I thought I would begin by rewiring the lights. My house is like this: ground floor: lounge and kitchen first floor: front bedroom, rear bedroom, bathroom second floor (loft conversion): bedroom and en suite I thought I would start on the first floor as I am already doing some decorating on that level. The loft conversion above is making it very difficult to follow wires. What do the professionals do when rewiring houses: remove carpet and cut holes in the floor above or cut holes in the ceiling below? Rather than move the bed and roll back the carpet in the loft conversion, I went with cut a hole in the ceiling on the first floor. It seems that the builders have run chicken wire between the old ceiling...

Jan 22, 2016 83 Replies

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Tim Watts 10 years ago

I think I tested a similar sized bit - perhaps PIRs are not all equal? Mine charred but would not light, but as I mentioned, did produce some nasty smoke.

It's a little worrying as you really don't want that lot going up in a roof!

I am covering 95% of mine with plasterboard (essenstially down to within a foot of the eaves, not practical to got the last bit), even in the attic spaces, so that will reduce the risk to very small... (I hope!).

Oddly the BCO mentioned nothing either way and he knows I am using lots of PIR.

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charles 10 years ago

There are some fittings that look like the 2D one I have on my stairwell ceiling which are LED with emergency facilities. I'm planning on getting one when I'm next redecorating. TLC stock them.

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John Rumm 10 years ago

Chopping them into the ceiling makes even the small striplight ones look less objectionable. However you can get more pleasing looking fittings these days.

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ARW 10 years ago

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