Fishy smell

[Danny Q]

I had a fishy smell coming from my shower isolating switch, when i opened it up, the the nuetral on the load side was completely free from the terminal and all charred
Could this all have been caused by the nuetral eventually coming free from the terminal because of a loose connection ?

I have an 8.5kw shower
45 amp dp 1 gang isolating switch
The shower is wired in 6mm T&E
the distance between the shower and consumer unit is about 10 metres
At the MK consumer unit it looks like the shower is being controlled by a 32amp RCBO

Any help would be appreciated

 

[bernardgreen]

Loose terminal is the most likely cause.

Next likely is a worn contact inside the switch starting the heating of the terminal and softening the copper which then causes a loose contact.

The switch will need to be replaced and the heat damaged cable replaced as the copper that was heated will not make a good connection in the terminal.

If there is enough slack then pull cable through and cut off the burnt ends.

This can be a DIY job ( part P may apply ) but if you have any doubts then get an electrician to do it for you.

 

[briwire]

Due to the high current with showers, if every connection is less than 100%, you will have problems with overheating.

There's quite a technique to terminating a shower pull switch. With any large cables, you can screw it into the terminal until it will move no more, but as soon as you twist the cables, you will find that they have moved slightly in the termination and you will get half a turn to tighten it up.

To avoid any twisting, don't force the cables to bend in the box when screwing the front part on. Make sure there is enough slack above the ceiling, and make sure that the hole is large enough for both the cables to pass through easily. Pull the cables through, terminate and slide the cables back through the hole so that everything is in a straight line. Make sure you haven't stripped too much sheathing off so that the cables are exposed above the ceiling.

 

[Danny Q]

Thanks guys

One last thing, is the 8.5kw shower ok with the 32amp RCD protected MCB ?