More electrical shenanigans - any thoughts?

[Noodle Legs]

They've been and gone... It's not the supply - I'm getting the full 240 volts coming in at the meter.

So likely it's the bit between the meter and the fuse box. Great, I'll need to get a sparky in for that, except I don't know one.

The guys from the power company were lovely though. I have a data sheet with all their readings, and I also have a serious case of chain saw envy.

Good news but no less frustrating for you- it was always worth checking out though. So do you have an isolator (or a switch fuse isolator) in between the meter and the consumer unit then? Sounds like maybe a bad connection?

In the meantime, I’m out on call myself disconnecting a dodgy supply to one of those “Moroccan Herb” farms……

 

[Reynard]

Good news but no less frustrating for you- it was always worth checking out though. So do you have an isolator (or a switch fuse isolator) in between the meter and the consumer unit then? Sounds like maybe a bad connection?

In the meantime, I’m out on call myself disconnecting a dodgy supply to one of those “Moroccan Herb” farms……

Well, a negative result is sometimes just as useful as a positive one. At least I now know what it is not.

If by an "isolator" you mean a small box with an on-off switch and removable cover that the cable coming into the house feeds into at the bottom, and then has wires coming out of it at the top which then go into the two fuse boxes, then yes.

Good luck in untangling that mess. I hear these guys can get pretty Heath Robinson with their wiring.

 

[Profpointy]

What does it mean when your lights are on a dimmer switch but the lights flicker like mad at certain levels? Poor wiring? Bad switch?

If the bulbs aren't traditional incandescent bulbs, and hardly any are these days, then many of them simply don't work properly on the reduced power of the dimmer but flicker instead. You can get specifically labelled "dimmable" LED bulbs which are presumably OK. I don't like dim lights so have never tried them - I want the light on or off

 

[bruce1530]

Here on my "fuse board" if one of my cartridge fuses goes then we get a reduced output to that particular circuit (or circuits). Can also happen if one of the RCBO's trips out. This happens about once or twice a year here.

That's worrying.

If a fuse fails, it should isolate the circuit. That's the whole purpose of a fuse.

If it's failing, and you're still getting a (reduced) supply on that circuit, then something is seriously amiss with your wiring.

 

[Milzy]

If the bulbs aren't traditional incandescent bulbs, and hardly any are these days, then many of them simply don't work properly on the reduced power of the dimmer but flicker instead. You can get specifically labelled "dimmable" LED bulbs which are presumably OK. I don't like dim lights so have never tried them - I want the light on or off

I might have to buy standard switches & swap them out. I am the same on or off. If you want ambience there’s lamps & special lights for that.

 

[aferris2]

They've been and gone... It's not the supply - I'm getting the full 240 volts coming in at the meter.

So likely it's the bit between the meter and the fuse box. Great, I'll need to get a sparky in for that, except I don't know one.

The guys from the power company were lovely though. I have a data sheet with all their readings, and I also have a serious case of chain saw envy.

That's narrowed the fault down a bit which is good news. Did they say what the voltage was at the fuse box?

This sounds like it's something to keep a close eye on because it could be a fire risk. Get recommendations from people you know in the area. It shouldn't take long to narrow down where the fault is, even if it then takes a bit longer (and expense) to fix it.

Good luck!

 

[Reynard]

That's narrowed the fault down a bit which is good news. Did they say what the voltage was at the fuse box?

This sounds like it's something to keep a close eye on because it could be a fire risk. Get recommendations from people you know in the area. It shouldn't take long to narrow down where the fault is, even if it then takes a bit longer (and expense) to fix it.

Good luck!

They weren't authorized to measure that, and I don't have the right kit.

I checked the fuse box itself yesterday, testing to see whether the fault was in any particular circuit - easy enough to do, taking each breaker out in turn. But it doesn't appear to be. I think @Noodle Legs and the guys who came earlier are probably right - that it's likely a duff connection between the meter and the fuse box.

 

[aferris2]

They weren't authorized to measure that

I'm surprised because it would be so easy for them to do. But as it's not part of the power supply, maybe...

I think @Noodle Legs and the guys who came earlier are probably right - that it's likely a duff connection between the meter and the fuse box.

... and that could be a fire risk.

 

[Noodle Legs]

If by an "isolator" you mean a small box with an on-off switch and removable cover that the cable coming into the house feeds into at the bottom, and then has wires coming out of it at the top which then go into the two fuse boxes, then yes.

That’s exactly what I mean yes. There’s a good chance that it’s a connection that’s a bit dicky or at one of the con units (although if both con units have lighting circuits that are dim then it’s something common to both of them like an isolator or “Henley” type 2 way connector block.) As already mentioned earlier we as DNOs whether yours (UKPN), mine (WPD) or the others are not authorised to work on installations beyond the meter as these then belong to the property owner and thus fall under the scope of BS7671 wiring regs. The plot thickens…….

 

[Reynard]

That’s exactly what I mean yes. There’s a good chance that it’s a connection that’s a bit dicky or at one of the con units (although if both con units have lighting circuits that are dim then it’s something common to both of them like an isolator or “Henley” type 2 way connector block.) As already mentioned earlier we as DNOs whether yours (UKPN), mine (WPD) or the others are not authorised to work on installations beyond the meter as these then belong to the property owner and thus fall under the scope of BS7671 wiring regs. The plot thickens…….

That does narrow it down significantly.

One fuse box is definitely for the house - three lighting circuits, one for the cooker, one for the sockets and one for the water heater. The other fuse box has four breakers in it but they're not labelled, so I'm not sure what they do. I wonder if that's the box that takes the supply from the meter to the garage...

The fuse boxes are the old type, btw, with the large chunky breakers that you pull out and have to unscrew to put a standard fuse of the required amperage in.

There's a sparky based in the village apparently. I can ask around to see if he's any good.

 

[slowmotion]

This is intriguing. I'm apologise because my suggestion that it's almost certainly a supply problem has turned out to be utter poop!
Please keep telling the parishioners how the mystery unfolds.......and Happy New Year.

 

[Noodle Legs]

The fuse boxes are the old type, btw, with the large chunky breakers that you pull out and have to unscrew to put a standard fuse of the required amperage in.

Ah, the Wylex… sometimes with rewireable fuses, sometimes with the cartridge type, some with the BS3871 type MCBs in. Memories….

They were a pleasure to work on back in the day as there was loads of room inside to dress the cables in neatly (unlike today’s bird nests) but the MCBs (trips) were (and still are) notoriously dodgy. It may also be worth checking the connections at the main switch on them as they had a habit of overheating, as did the busbar. A good spark would check all that in any case.

 

[Reynard]

Yep, Wylex - them's the ones. I'll make a note of that. The more info I have, the better. Some of what's come up in this thread has been eminently useful so far. Every day is a school day.

Sounds like you see the Wylex boxes much in the same way that I see manual drafting compared to CAD... There's something very rewarding (and relaxing) about sitting at a drawing board with a sheet of paper and a freshly-sharpened 2H pencil...

 

[classic33]

Ah, the Wylex… sometimes with rewireable fuses, sometimes with the cartridge type, some with the BS3871 type MCBs in. Memories….

They were a pleasure to work on back in the day as there was loads of room inside to dress the cables in neatly (unlike today’s bird nests) but the MCBs (trips) were (and still are) notoriously dodgy. It may also be worth checking the connections at the main switch on them as they had a habit of overheating, as did the busbar. A good spark would check all that in any case.

Do you come across DIAZED fuses any more?

 

[Reynard]

This is intriguing. I'm apologise because my suggestion that it's almost certainly a supply problem has turned out to be utter poop!
Please keep telling the parishioners how the mystery unfolds.......and Happy New Year.

Well, it was the logical assumption, wasn't it?

Mind, collectively, we've narrowed it down a fair bit.