Non Part P electrical work

[Matt_B]

I would doubt that it is going anywhere back into the ring.
That light needs to be fused and also do not spur off of a spur, that's how fires start.

Fused how? It is fused at the fusebox?

 

[Matt_B]

That's what I said in post #9.

I would not suggest this to everybody, but I do honestly think that Matt should pay somebody who knows what they are doing.

I know what I'm doing with regards to fitting and the electrics, just not sure what's going on with the wiring in the house!

 

[Blaarev]

Yay! You're still alive!

 

[Matt_B]

Yay! You're still alive!

Yup! The wiring goes on from the first light and round to another outside light and then into the wall to goodness knows where.

 

[bocadillo]

Fused how? It is fused at the fusebox?

Read what I said above. You don't want to blow the whole circuit just because of a fault on a spur. Also the current in the spur should be limited (by the fuse) at a far lower level than the fuse at the box allows.

You really should not be attempting this, especially as the cable goes outside. The wiring you already have is faulty. Do you really want to make it worse?

 

[Macky]

Fused how?

Replace the switch in the picture with a switched fused spur, with a 5A fuse fitted in it.

It is fused at the fusebox?

Yes, most likely with a 30A breaker

 

[bocadillo]

Yup! The wiring goes on from the first light and round to another outside light and then into the wall to goodness knows where.

As a spur (and remember it should be fused and isn't), it should go no further than that first light.

Is the cable that continues on actually attached? Is the spur and the continuation after the light twin and earth or just twin? Can you be sure that whatever is connected "goodness knows where" is properly attached or is it simply redundant wiring? If it is redundant, why is it there at all?

 

[Matt_B]

Read what I said above. You don't want to blow the whole circuit just because of a fault on a spur. Also the current in the spur should be limited (by the fuse) at a far lower level than the fuse at the box allows.

You really should not be attempting this, especially as the cable goes outside. The wiring you already have is faulty. Do you really want to make it worse?

I just want an outside plug, something that seems prohibitively expensive! I can't understand why it can't handle a socket given that it is spurred from a socket anyway that was originally fitted? Is the issue the light? It hasn't worked for years anyway so I'm happy to drop that from the circuit.

 

[Matt_B]

As a spur (and remember it should be fused and isn't), it should go no further than that first light.

Is the cable that continues on actually attached? Is the spur and the continuation after the light twin and earth or just twin? Can you be sure that whatever is connected "goodness knows where" is properly attached or is it simply redundant wiring? If it is redundant, why is it there at all?

I've been thinking of this the same as a simple battery circuit when obviously it isn't. It doesn't need to go "back" to a circuit at all does it, so the wire will terminate with the second light. I assumed it went onwards behind it. There is also the possibility that the switch box is a fused switch box, I'll check later.

Think I'll get my dad to have a look, he's an electrical engineer by trade and wired most of his house. I'll hold of for now cheers!

 

[bocadillo]

I just want an outside plug, something that seems prohibitively expensive! I can't understand why it can't handle a socket given that it is spurred from a socket anyway that was originally fitted? Is the issue the light? It hasn't worked for years anyway so I'm happy to drop that from the circuit.

Do you know why the light is not working?

Is the cable that feeds the non-working light heavy duty enough to take the load to a 13 amp socket?

A fire is also prohibitively expensive. Especially one on which your insurance company refuses to pay up.

 

[bocadillo]

I've been thinking of this the same as a simple battery circuit when obviously it isn't. It doesn't need to go "back" to a circuit at all does it, so the wire will terminate with the second light. I assumed it went onwards behind it. There is also the possibility that the switch box is a fused switch box, I'll check later.

It isn't. A fused switch looks completely different with the fuse holder being capable of sliding out beside the switch.

Think I'll get my dad to have a look, he's an electrical engineer by trade and wired most of his house. I'll hold of for now cheers!

Good idea.

 

[Matt_B]

It isn't. A fused switch looks completely different with the fuse holder being capable of sliding out beside the switch.

View attachment 10768

Well as an immediate half fix for the existing problem, could I nip out and get a fused switch to replace that? 13A?



Good idea.

 

[bocadillo]

Well as an immediate half fix for the existing problem, could I nip out and get a fused switch to replace that? 13A?

It would certainly need to be 13 amp. But do you know what the rating of the cable is? It's possible that it's only twin lighting cable; possibly only capable of taking 5 amps. You would also need an earth and a heavier cable. We can't even guess what might be in the trunking.

 

[Matt_B]

It would certainly need to be 13 amp. But do you know what the rating of the cable is? It's possible that it's only twin lighting cable; possibly only capable of taking 5 amps. You would also need an earth and a heavier cable. We can't even guess what might be in the trunking.

Had to abandon changing the box to a fused box due to bad light, but it's definitely triple core cable. It's old style red and black but no markings on cable indicating ampage.

This is the cable that comes out of the trunking and out in to the light if it makes it easier to identify.



The white cable is a phone cable and not relevant.

 

[SJN-Fox]

That cable shouldn't be just clipped to the wall. The insulation will gradually be degraded by the effects of sunlight and tehrefore needs to be in trunkling or conduit.. I think that before you do anything, you need to know exactly where both of those cables go to. It may be that one is a supply and the other is simply a swicth cable. Is there definitely a connection between the double socket and the switch indoors?

Normally a cable going to a switch like that will be a simple "there and back" arrangement ... going from the feed side of the light, down to the switch and then back to the light fitting.

 

[Matt_B]

That cable shouldn't be just clipped to the wall. The insulation will gradually be degraded by the effects of sunlight and tehrefore needs to be in trunkling or conduit.. I think that before you do anything, you need to know exactly where both of those cables go to. It may be that one is a supply and the other is simply a swicth cable. Is there definitely a connection between the double socket and the switch indoors?

Normally a cable going to a switch like that will be a simple "there and back" arrangement ... going from the feed side of the light, down to the switch and then back to the light fitting.

There is a 3 core cable from the plug to the switch then similar cable out and on to the light. This then leaves the light, as per the picture, goes around the house and into another light. This then terminates, I believe.

 

[SJN-Fox]

My advice would be to scrap that outside light and all the cabling that goes with it.

Run a fused spur from the double socket (assuming that the socket itself isn't a spur), out through the wall for your outside socket. Make sure that any external cable is contained in trunking or conduit. Use 2.5mm twin + earth

Put in a new circuit from the distribution board to deal with the outside light (this can be done with 1.5mm T+E), ideally using a lighting circuit rather than a ring main.

 

[Matt_B]

My advice would be to scrap that outside light and all the cabling that goes with it.

Run a fused spur from the double socket (assuming that the socket itself isn't a spur), out through the wall for your outside socket. Make sure that any external cable is contained in trunking or conduit. Use 2.5mm twin + earth

Put in a new circuit from the distribution board to deal with the outside light (this can be done with 1.5mm T+E), ideally using a lighting circuit rather than a ring main.

That's pretty much what I'm planning to do at the weekend. We've never really used the lights as the died within weeks of moving in so I might just take them down. The socket in the kitchen isn't a spur and I have the correct cable ready. I hate trunking as it looks ugly, but if it's necessary then it's necessary.

 

[homer]

That's pretty much what I'm planning to do at the weekend.....

 

[SJN-Fox]

I hate trunking as it looks ugly, but if it's necessary then it's necessary.

Use black plastic conduit, looks better than white trunking.