Query regarding work carried out

[Chri5]

Sounds like you had a wrong un.

A decent spark will offer a professional view post examination of the existing standard of work on site.

This should include necessary changes, adjustments and tweaks.

So it is unacceptable that he then asked for further work to replace parts of a circuit he had already inspected and tested.
The exception to this would be discovering damage by 3rd parties after the I&T work.

It sounds like the spark didn't explain the methodology of his work and the fabric damage that would be required to do the work. More worryingly it sounds like he has used bad routing for the cable runs.

Please see the diagram below for safe zones, can you confirm he has kept to these with the cable routes?

Most sparks will include a simple level of making good, my terms are making good to a level that is ready for decorators preparation. In other words chases closed up with bonding plaster, ready for a 1-2mm layer of plaster / filler.
If I quote for decoration finish, then I'll add time on to do such. A pointless exercise if other trades such as plasterer, tiler or decorator is on site.

As for mess, if I make it, I tidy up. I can't be accounted for dust / contamination, but a good sweep up and hoover is a courtesy offered. An attempt to leave it, as near to it was before starting the work. Again some clients are pleased with this and others adopt the "I'm paying him to do that" stance, and want to do it themselves.

As for an isolation switch that closes down the whole kitchen circuit- are you sure that is correct?

A kitchen ring is rated at 32a and isolation switches tend to be 20a, so that's not good.

A bank of 20a isolation switches to isolate devices such as integrated fridge, microwave, washers- well that is a good, sensible design.

 

[CLCS]

Chri5: Thank you for your very detailed response. I've uploaded a few photos - they aren't as clear as they should be, but I've indicated on one of them where the additional points are - and also included one of the area that was removed, but no cable fitted.

http://s487.photobucket.com/albums/rr236/Max_CL/?action=view&current=IMG_1489.jpg

http://s487.photobucket.com/albums/rr236/Max_CL/?action=view&current=IMG_1490.jpg

http://s487.photobucket.com/albums/rr236/Max_CL/?action=view&current=IMG_1491.jpg

As I said previously, I wasn't actually worried about his capabilities on doing the work - he seemed very competent. I was annoyed about the mess he left (but have long since got over that!), and just wanted to clarify if he was the one who should repair the area that he had gouged out, but not actually used for cabling.

I hope the photos can help with my further query about the isolation switch for the kitchen - and perhaps someone could tell me what the other additional box is for; I'm intending to call him at some point today, as he told me to contact him after the kitchen was fitted, but that doesn't make any sense, as the two connection points (cooker and ignition) are below the area of the units, and the units all have backs to them - so I think he'll need to do something to that wiring before the units are fitted...

My kitchen fitter has just arrived and has said that the cabling should definitely have been plastered over - he said that his own electrician would never have left the kitchen in that state, and, on closer inspection, said that he felt the white cable covers on the other side of the kitchen (no photos) were incorrectly fitted. He has said that he will do the repairs and not to worry about it.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

From the photos it looks like the entire wall would need plastering anyway, so there would have been little point him making good a few chases.

 

[CLCS]

Ban: no the walls did not need replastering. You are ignoring the fact that I had kitchen fitters in BEFORE the electrician arrived, and they did a thorough inspection in order to do their quote. If the walls had needed replastering, they'd have said so, and quoted for such. You're just confirming that the electrician actually did make sufficient mess of the wall in order for it to need replastering!

 

[CLCS]

Just an update...

On further inspection the kitchen fitters (who have clearly worked with multiple electricians in the past) said that the work would need to be adjusted. The electrician was called out, and agreed to move things, though he insisted there was nothing wrong with the work his assistant had done. Even when it was clearly pointed out to him by the fitters where exactly it was wrong, and why it was wrong, he still had an excuse as to why it was the way it was.

I think his only real excuse is that he's young and doesn't quite know when to stop digging the hole he's in.

The upshot is that he should be returning tomorrow to re-do some of the work, and to chase it properly. The fitters will then be back, and will do the remedial work before continuing with their own job.

I'll know better next time than to choose someone who is local (thought I'd save on the environment aspect somewhat), and someone who is young - next time I'm going for the old guy who has to drive 30 miles to get here!

 

[Ghughes]

From the photos it looks like the entire wall would need plastering anyway, so there would have been little point him making good a few chases.

Agreed, although if their tiling over it its not so important, but if it were me then i would have boarded and skimmed anyway.

After chasing out in my house my walls looked worse, mainly due to the fact it was an old house and the plastering was coming away anyway. So in the end just took the SDS to it and boarded.

 

[comms]

Hmm having seen the pics I'd say I think if it were my job & I'd chased out in the wrong spot like that I'd be inclined to offer to replaster or fill that section.

As for the kitchen isolation.......he's not put a fused spur in then run all other sockets from it has he?

 

[Ghughes]

Ban: no the walls did not need replastering. You are ignoring the fact that I had kitchen fitters in BEFORE the electrician arrived, and they did a thorough inspection in order to do their quote. If the walls had needed replastering, they'd have said so, and quoted for such. You're just confirming that the electrician actually did make sufficient mess of the wall in order for it to need replastering!

If you had told them what what electrical work was being carried out and they knew the sparky wasnt making good the chases, which you should have checked with the spark first, then they probably would have quoted for it.

 

[CLCS]

Comms: After his visit today he has agreed to fill/plaster that area. He has put the fused spur in the run of other sockets - from what I can see, each "cage" has two or three bits of cable going into/out of it, but nothing is connected - in fact, some of them you could pull the cable out of as it's not connected to anything at all - I will ask him tomorrow what is what, as it would appear that only one cable is actually connected to the thick cable in the wall (the original cabling).

I'm happy that the issue is on its way to being sorted - but I do think the fact that the fitters were so helpful actually persuaded the electrician that he wasn't on a firm footing with what he'd done. They'd clearly worked with other electricians, and the standard of work done wasn't what they had experienced prior. It may just have proved persuasive with the electrician - plus the fact that I said I wasn't going to quibble over his bill might have swayed him into feeling a bit helpful - he even thanked me for the advice I'd given him about apologising to a client if he was unable to effect an adequate clean up in future!

 

[ccrowe]

Sounds like you're on the right path to getting this sorted. All you need to do now is make sure that he's a competent person so he can write and sign off your certs. If he's not on the website then you've got a whole load of other problems.

 

[CLCS]

Once again, thank you all for your comments.

I am very happy to say that it was all sorted out yesterday. They plastered the area they had gouged out, and had brought (new) a broom and a dustpan and brush with them, and did a very effective clean up after they'd finished. I told him that I was pleased with that, and he said he had even got an old vacuum cleaner that he was now going to put on his van. I said that he'd have nothing but pleased customers in the future if that was the case.

CCrowe, he is NICEIC qualified/registered - I had checked that out long before he worked for me fitting my new fuse board.

It all looks a lot better than it did, and the kitchen fitters are happy that it's been done so they can get on with their work.

 

[Chri5]

Sensible attitudes, get sensible results.

 

[stargazer]

I like a story with a happy ending, what with it being Christmas and all

But…

As for the kitchen isolation.......he's not put a fused spur in then run all other sockets from it has he?

He has put the fused spur in the run of other sockets

mmm…

 

[CLCS]

Stargazer - the other sockets aren't run off from it. There are a whole lot of cables, but the isolation socket is run directly from the cable in the wall, and isn't connected to any of the other sockets. I presume that is correct?

 

[stargazer]

Without being on site it is difficult to tell.
I see from one of your previous posts that your electrician has fitted a new consumer unit, so assume your kitchen sockets are properly wired from that, ideally on a separate 32A ring final + you should have a separate radial circuit for an electric cooker if you're having one.
I still don't get why he's apparently installing an isolating switch for your kitchen sockets, so maybe it's for something else and is quite OK. He hasn't done the second fix yet so maybe he's going to put a cooker control unit in there?