Trip switch keeps going - electircal fault

Hi, I'm trying to isolate an electrical fault at home as the trip switch keeps going in our fuse box. It doesn't seem to be any one appliance that is causing this as it seems to go on a random basis. The switch always trips when a bulb goes in the house or increasingly for no obious reason.

Can anyone give me some tips as to how I might find what is causing this ? Many thanks

Reply to
google
Loading thread data ...

rcd, mcb or elcb tripping? mcb = one circuit, rcd will take out either many circuits or whole house, elcb is whole house.

Since its most likely rcd, is it a one rcd for all system or a split load CU? For the solution part, is it local earth rod (TT) or supplier earth?

Electric immersion heater or other?

Age of installation?

You may only know some of this, but gis a clue at least.

NT

Reply to
meow2222

Hi NT thanks for the reply,

2 MCB switches go which seems to make the main switch go (elcb ?) There are 2 CUs and only one is affected. I really havn't got a clue about the earth rod, sorry. We have an electric ignited gas boiler which heats the water as you use it (not sure if this is immersion or not). I am an tenant so I don't really know the age of the installation, but I have been here 5 years and it looks a relativley new boiler.

Our landlord is useless and I'm a bit worried I'll come back one day to a pile of ash that was once our home ;) Not sure what use it is but i bought a bunch of breaker plugs and fitted them throughout the house today. Any help is much apprceited. Cheers

Reply to
google

ok your 'main switch' that trips is almost certainly an RCD. One useful question is if you switch that RCD off, does it cut off all power to the house or just some.

Its odd youve got 2mcbs tripping: if they trip together, same time, then theyre probably wired together, which is naughty. Or they might in fact be RCBOs... fuse boxes sure were simpler.

Youve got no immersion heater in use then, that rules out that primary suspect.

breaker plugs, if you mean plugin RCDs, I doubt they'd make much difference to safety to be honest, if any. They mostly affect the consequences of faults downstream from them, not really upstream. And you've already got RCD cover, fwliw, so you dont gain anything.

If an mcb and RCD trips at the same time, it sounds like a hard short between live and earth on the circuit of the mcb that trips. Hard live to earth shorts are really not a good thing, wouldnt really encourage me to use the electric shower.

If its what it looks like, it'll be a fire risk and an electrocution risk, and your landlord should make it safe without delay. Again if its what it appears, you could make it safe by leaving the 2 tripping mcbs off. There is of course no guarantee that it is what it appears, but it does appear to be :)

Its quite likely possible to find the fault by unscrewing sockets switches etc on the circuits powered by those 2 mcbs, but if youre not entirely clear what youre doing, I'd leave it to someone that is. There is also the q of why 2 mcbs are tripping together, if they are. And if theyre not, then why are there what looks like serious faults on 2 circuits, and what does that tell us about the installation as a whole. Either way it sounds like there are problems beyond the initial fault.

In British law you can get repairs done if the landlord has been notified and hasnt acted within a reasonable time frame, and deduct the cost from the rent. However its important to give him/her time to sort it out first, and I think it would be wisest to let him know upfront about any intended repair and deduct, if thats what it comes to. Obviously you'd need to get a few quotes, eliminate any unnecessary costs, and keep the paperwork ianal tho, so upto you to get proper advice on that aspect.

NT

Reply to
meow2222

Hi NT, I will take your advice and try and persuade the landord to get someone in to take a look (although this has been going on for some months and he is not very keen on this option). I'll probably just get someone myself and if it turns out to be a major problem take the bill off the rent or just pay him myself.

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply, maybe I will wear my rubber boots in the shower from now on ;)

All the best !

Reply to
google

he will be once the rent depends on it.

good luck

NT

Reply to
meow2222

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.