CR4 Picture Quiz: How Many Errors, and What Are They?

I'm currious about the brraker on the far right.. Is that really happening?

Talk about stuffed beyond capacity.

Black ground..

Where to begin

Maybe they were trying to add on a breaker breaker?...

Bottom wall socket. The one in use switched off. The one not used switched on.

It also seems not to be a "Wall" Socket the way we know it with the cable incoming on the left.

I am not at all savvy with the standard but this looks like electrical cable salad.

If in doubt call a certified electrician to fix it.

In my life experience it is the certified ones who do sloppy and sloppier work like this.

The average noncertified guy does his best to make sure it's neat, clean and properly done to or above code so as to be able to pass inspection the first time without question.

That's been standard procedure for me all my life. Neat, clean and to or above code and no less. (and usually for 1/3 - 1/2 the labor charge on top of it.)

Your question should be, "Do you see anything that was done correctly?"

I am not a licenced electrician and I am not familiar with British electrical standards, being from the US. That said, If I were to encounter a panel like that in any building where I might consider living or working, I would rapidly walk away, being very careful not to touch so much as a light switch!

The whole thing looks like an error, or the circuit breaker box in my house. Scary.

<...circuit breaker box in my house...>

Good idea.

And I should have mentioned the white cable into socket is trapped under socket plate instead of entering steel box behind through designed entry - non-compliance number 15.

67model

...and if it is wired into the back of the socket instead then its protection will be only the 32A breaker protecting the fixed wiring. It's just asking for trouble.

GA

Impressive list! I was going to say, just one, it is British! Do electrons drive on the left in Britain? Just kidding.

I do not expect any of the points would comply with the NEC!

But the important (off-topic) reply - it caught my attention in other threads - is your picture a P38 Lightning? And why that?

67model

Yes. I have in interest in WWII aerial combat multiplayer game, but I need a new better game computer for that right now.

I also enjoy history. No one in my family flew in any theater in WWII, but one neighbor when I was growing up did, and he flew a P-47 Thunderbolt in Europe. The P-47 was the largest fighter plane in WWII. Some models had 8 x 0.50 cal machine guns, could carry up to ten air-to-ground rockets, and also carry 2 x 1000 lb bomb, and one 500 lb bomb, or a drop tank. Amazing combat aircraft.

The P-38 Lightning was the most reliable fighter aircraft in the South Pacific Theater.

Two engines when long distance over water is a great plus. 20 mm nose cannon is also a great plus against low flying Japanese aircraft, especially when the Lightning could zoom dive and power zoom climb away out of their guns quickly. Dick Bong would have been the first to say so, and Lucky Lindbergh showed the men in the Pacific how to get the most out of their Lightnings.

Lots of good stuff there. GA

• Regarding no.14 there is a peculiarity in UK-based domestic wiring codes that is not seen elsewhere, and that is the "ring main". Usually, a 2.5mm² twin-and-earth gallops round in a ring and both ends of the ring are connected to a 30A fuse or a 32A circuit breaker. One may put as many 13A sockets on the ring as one likes. A ring is limited in its area of application before another ring must be installed. What this means is that it is standard for two live cores to be connected downstream of the breaker, instead of one.

What were you doing at Kris' MiL's house? Holding the torch?

ROFLMAO

rofl ! It's so true, though not of my doing. I've gone as far as suggesting she gets a proper sparky in to fix it all.

Now fess up, Kris. All she did was ask you to mend the lamp cord.

Now if I were you, and knowing what you know about your MiL, possibly you could find a fly-by-night sparky willing to move the works outside, right under the downspout?

She wanted the lamp fixed, and I did exactly that. It comes on when she presses the switch, so what's to worry about . It's all about specification . I even sorted it on Neutral switching for added fun. If the unlucky sod who rewires the mess that PW posted doesn't chop the supply they almost deserve a jolt. Being sensible, I'd have to put my eyeballs back in my head first .

Neutral switching? rofl!

I do like your style. Nice and subtle.

Nor really mine. Some shit did that to me when I was about 13. Lightbulb got busted, and I assumed it was OK to put the switch in 'off'' when I tugged out the remains. Ouch ! Luckily the thing was over my head, so the muscle-clench thing didn't happen. If I knew who was respnsible I'd probabaly thank them for teaching me an early lesson. PW's pic is fairly mild compared to some I've seen, a few have been places I've lived in .

Neutral switching is not the kind of thing you would expect. It can be done on an individual switch, or a whole ring circuit. MIL's - you gotta love 'em or have space to bury them in the back garden.

At least it was not neural switching...

It's all fun and games until Kris gets some poor fool's tongue stuck to the lamp post, or to the roof of his mouth!

That one is gonna hurt! ROFLMAOPM!

I'm taking great delight in those who have survived similar .

I am so sorry but that panel itself should be replaced it does not have enough space to accommodate that much components. The IP Rating itself is low. The Bus bar must always have protection like a sleeve. The wiring is bad, there is no discipline in it, also it lacks tags. Any Electrician or any engineer must be able to identify each wire when he/she looks at the SLD at least. I am assuming that the breakers are all Din- Rail type if so then the mounting plate will have to be replaced they look rusted. The Breaker arrangement looks like a mess as well.... Good luck

GA

Considering it looks like a BS7671 15^th edition install I can see 3 major and 3 minor departures from the regs. One of the majors is the SY cable is not approved for mains voltage. Like NIC “grandfather” installs may not comply with the latest standards.

If a UK electrician carried out an EICR on a US panel I wonder what the results would be?

(Electrical Installation Condition Report)

SY cable has wire braid armour covered by transparent sheath - picture just looks grey sheath to me. Maybe that in picture has a braid (which ought to be earthed) buried under the tape but only PW Slack can confirm that. SY is rated 300/500V - which is mains voltage and the cores look as big as any in the box. Brown/black/grey are standard colours for a 3 phase cable now - no reason to conclude cable is european

I have enough trouble identifying cable I can get my hands on rather than just in a picture. Usually any markings of size and standard (if present) are not on the parts one can see in an installation.

Look in BS7671 for SY, you won't find it because it is not listed.