Is the bare wire an earth?

[chezvegas85]

anybody know what goes where on this?

I thought red's to L blacks to N and green/yellow + bare? (not happy with the bare 1!) to E.

Its a single plus socket and i'm guessing that it has a spur connected to it (note - i dont really know what i'm talking about here, just googled trying to find a wiring diagram).

if anybody can help it'd be appreciated, til then ' fuse 7 - sockets' is staying off

http://i46.tinypic.com/3478rp0.jpg

[chezvegas85]

oh and the image is sideways..just to make things a bit more interesting. far right hand side = the bottom

[DarrenSV650S]

Yeh the bare wire should have earth sleeving on it like the other two. If it was just a single socket then yeh it'll be a spur so will get connected the same as everything else.

Is the top right red chewed or burnt out? Looks like it needs some attention

[chezvegas85]

Burnt out I'd guess, I connected it up as I mentioned in first post and it popped the fusebox downstairs*. Looks like I might be paying out to have someone come sort it..eugh.

*when I turned the power back on

[DarrenSV650S]

Obviously a problem on the circuit somewhere. Was the cable with the bare earth definitely connected before? And did you tape up the red?

[chezvegas85]

yeh it was. i've worked out what i did wrong - i disgust myself sometimes - i'd somehow managed to get the screw to contact the live wire! where you can see the 'hole' in the plastic sleeve. Just seen the screw with a partially 'spot welded' end. At 27 i still can't be trusted to be left at home alone, best tell the mrs to come back soon! i've left everything off and am off out to get some leccy tape now. Thanks for your help darren. Now wish me luck, i'm off to the shop on suzie, chances are i'll break her too :smt105

[DarrenSV650S]

If the copper is damaged it would be best to either joint that red cable or try to pull some more length through in to the box. And if the socket screws are too long you can chop them down.

When you get everything connected up just test push it back to make sure nothing is going to be squashed or screwed

[chezvegas85]

Taped it up and everything fitted back in, was snug. but just made sure it didnt bend too much or get towards where the screws would be again.

Victorious
http://i50.tinypic.com/2ik9urp.jpg


Banished
http://i49.tinypic.com/scs18n.jpg

[DarrenSV650S]

Nice one. You should really fix the cable though because the cable size will most likely be reduced now, so it will be a weak point in the circuit

[chezvegas85]

I'll have a ganda n see if I can pull it through a bit more. Would there usually be a bit of slack within the walls?

[DarrenSV650S]

It just depends. But with it being plasterboard there is a good chance. If not just connector strip it

[monkey]

A bit of tape isn't really a proper solution I'm afraid to say. The insulation's probably also very brittle now too. Have you got a fuse with (or without) an RCD or is it an RCBO?

[Viney]

Spot the sparky in the room. If the OP doesnt know which is an Earth then for sure he wont know what a RCD or RCBO are ;) (Appologies OP if you do)

I have wired worse! Rewiring a 17th centry mantion was erm, interesting. Probably last wired in some areas late 40's. Twisted pair cores, old stlye round light switches fuse boxes all over the pace and not nessacarly where you would think the fuse is for the ground floor. 10ft thick walls. All good fun.

[chezvegas85]

Apologies not needed. Not a clue what said rcd/rcbo are, other than there is an rcd on the fusebox (its the last one after the 8 regular fuses) and I saw an rcd that could be plugged into a socket at bnq, recommended for outdoor/shed use.

[chezvegas85]

http://i49.tinypic.com/acf15.jpg
Unsure if the picture answers anything at all.

An RCD is a safety device that disconnects the circuit should their be an unbalance between the charged connectors and the neutral, for instance, if somebody were being electrocuted. An RCBO does the same but has overcurrent protection too, protecting from overload, short circuits or ground faults. <-- now that may be drivel as all i've done is read the wiki article plus a few others, but thats what i believe RCD/RCBO to be now

[Viney]

Thats basically what and RCD unit is. They are there to protect you but can be a PITA like my current issue on mine. But its good that you have one :)

Those fuses are wonkey. Looks like one of Monkeys jobs ;)

[chezvegas85]

Almost looked up what a PITA was then! Time for that first coffee of the day i think.

yeh the landlord said she had some primitive primate round to do em so could well of been ;)

[monkey]

Flick the test button on the rcd and see of the power dies to your socket. If the rcd is operating correctly you should be able to breath a little easier in the knowledge that you'll have more protection. Sometimes you just need to fart and it'll trip an rcd they're that sensitive.

It will still need sorting properly though.

[monkey]

Funnily enough Viney I have to spend some time soon tidying up a lot of my supposedly experienced supervisor's shocking work.

[timwilky]

My neighbour is away and left me with the keys. Great thanks.

Every night something was tripping the downstairs ring. Alarm battery runs down and middle of the night the alarm then starts ringing. After two days desperate fix. Ladder upto the box and snip the wire to the sounder.


B'stard to track what was tripping it. Initially it would reset. But come the weekend not a chance. Everything removed from the ring and a dead short detected. so the ball ache of going socket to socket. Found. The previous tenant had put a shed in the garden and run a spur to it using 2.5 T&E through the walls under the decking and into the shed. Something had had a nibble under the decking. Yuk. cut out the spur no more problem.

I am not a fan of part P as it stops those who know what they are doing. But those who don't will continue to break the rules anyway. Daft that I have worked on power stations all over the world. But lack the certificate to work on domestic in the UK.