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Thanks for everyone's further contributions! I think we're all in agreement that there is a L/N or L/E wiring fault of some description, which needs looked into before we can turn that circuit on again. I should have mentioned in my last post but I didn't because a fault is a fault and I didn't...

Yeah, as mentioned I am leaving it off.

I've used one of those in the past and it seemed like a random noise generator, didn't seem to find anything that I knew was there.

That was my initial suspicion but it's not easy to say. The MCB only started tripping last weekend and the (3 x 5W in this circuit) downlighters have been installed since April. This week when the electrician removed the melted transformer it seems to have stopped the MCB from tripping even...

Yes you are right and a different guy is coming next week, I will report back on the mystery...

UPDATE: It's not fixed. I've been away with work for a couple of days and the lights haven't tripped at all while I've been gone. However the first thing I did when I got back just now was check the meter cupboard and, again, the MCB for the lighting circuit is buzzing quietly and the red LED...

I'm glad you said that, since the electrician didn't seem particularly interested. He actually called his friend up and asked if the red flashing LED went faster under greater load, which surprised me. Any suggestions on how to identify where this load is coming from?

Honestly, you're right and I am still confused and amazed that this has fixed the problem, but I wanted to keep the "solved" post simple and I can't argue with the fact that the lights haven't gone out since he replaced that transformer. Two things still concern me: 1) The MCB was tripping...

Thanks for all your replies guys, much appreciated. SOLVED: It took a while to find but we eventually found a transformer for a 12V halogen that had somehow moved in the ceiling void and was sitting right on top of the bulb. Everything was functioning but it was slowly getting fried. Presumably...

You're right, I just flicked on the MCB for the lights and the blinking LED on the meter went from flashing once every 10 seconds to once every second. All lights are off, so something with a substantial load is attached to that circuit. Given I've found nothing apart from the downstairs lights...

Thanks John, that's a useful point. The MCB actually trips after only 2 minutes or so and there's no smoke or smell anywhere. There is one outdoor light and sensor on the circuit but I can't see anything wrong with it, and it's not on fire. It could all be a coincidence that the problems...

Update: When I reset the MCB it works for five minutes then trips again, tripping immediately upon subsequent reset for another few minutes. Could it be that something is heating up and then cooling down again? Again, nothing is switched on that I know of. There is a light/fan combination in...

Hi Sparkwright, I checked that nothing was pinched. There is a reasonable amount of space in the light switch back box and nothing seems pinched or caught. Thanks, Chris

Hi ban-all-sheds, Thanks for the response! It's definitely the MCB. It's a single B6 MCB that's tripping and I've left it switched off now until I diagnose the fault, just in case. There is only a single RCD covering the entire house and it hasn't tripped once. I agree with your point about...

Six months ago I had downlighter units professionally installed in two rooms and everything has been working fine up until a month ago when about half the time turning on the downlighters in one particular room they would flicker and sometimes fail to start. It took 2-3 flicks of the switch to...

Hello, I have a question which hopefully you guys will have a logical answer to! I moved into the house six months ago. The oil-fired, vented central heating system is about twenty years old and I plan to potentially replace it with gas this summer, but it's working fine for the time...

Ok cheers, bye for now. Telling me it's the photocell, without any explanation of why you think that, calling another engineer a pollock, etc, isn't good advice. John gave good advice and I was happy to hear it. It's called a discussion, I'm not picking holes I'm just having a conversation...

Thanks John! So is the solenoid in the burner or the boiler itself? If it's in the boiler I can see how this might cause the problem, but wouldn't the lack of oil make the flame go out a second or so before the burner locks out? The photocell could be the culprit but does it usually fail...

Even though the burner runs fine for quite some time before locking out? Is there no way the boiler can send some kind of signal to the burner that makes it lock out? I don't see how it could be the photocell. The burner itself is hot and in a steady state for a while before lockout occurs...

If it's the solenoid that would mean no oil getting to the burner, is that correct? The burner starts up no problem at all and burns quite happily for a few seconds before the whole things stops. Lockout doesn't work this way usually, right? Wouldn't it take a second or so before it shut...