Wiring help

[srb62]

Hi,
I've taken off a ceiling rose. At first I could only see a single live and single neutral wire and assumed because of the age of the house there was no earth wire. However, I noticed what looks like a very short, bare, third wire between the other two. Is this likely to be an earth wire that someone cut short and didn't bother to earth? I've shown the wire with a pink line. I've covered the other wires in tape in the meantime. What advice can anyone give me.
Thanks,
S

 

[Wayners]

Lighting don't always have an earth wire.
If you need an earth wire you have to test it's connected

 

[endecotp]

That’s certainly an “earth wire” in some sense, but you don’t know whether it is actually connected at the other end - quite possibly not.

Is that cable emerging from steel conduit of some sort? It’s quite possible that that is itself earthed.

Do you have a multimeter?

 

[srb62]

Thanks, it's not so much that I need an earth wire (as it's just an old type of rose/fitting) it's more why there is a bare wire.

 

[srb62]

That’s certainly an “earth wire” in some sense, but you don’t know whether it is actually connected at the other end - quite possibly not.

Is that cable emerging from steel conduit of some sort? It’s quite possible that that is itself earthed.

Do you have a multimeter?

Thanks. I'd assumed it was some sort of plastic but looking more closely, it could well be made of steel. I don't have a multimeter but can probably borrow one.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Is that cable emerging from steel conduit of some sort? It’s quite possible that that is itself earthed.

It looks like a BESA threaded rear entry conduit box. A brass 2BA screw, might fit one of the threaded lugs, to provide an effective earth terminal.

 

[Bear2Biker]

the screw holes are too shiny to be plastic, looking at the screw hole bottom right adjacent to your pink line seems to be 2 crud covered wires coming out and bent over ? , certainly more investigation needed

 

[srb62]

Would a screw from the plastic connector do?