Boxing Day Quiz question

[Vicario]

Early on Christmas Day I decided to put on the Central Heating via the wireless thermostat by turning it to 'manual'; but this was showing a blank screen. As I didn't have a spare battery (I assumed that this was the cause) I remembered that there is an override in the airing cupboard - a little button on the sender unit which will turn on the heating if the room thermostat is out of action. So I leaned into the cupboard, there was a crackle and a tiny flash. The heating circuit and half the house were disconnected instantly.

What was I wearing at the time?

 

[Vicario]

Question 2:

How might the cat be indirectly responsible? (She was out in the garden when this happened).

 

[Koolpc]

1. Mankini
2. The cat peed through the window onto it.

 

[Vicario]

Hint: the cat had been inside on my lap for about 30 minutes before she went out.
I don't have a mankini!

 

[SithLordHood]

Your favourite pair of Chaps?

 

[Mottie]

Dead mouse somewhere in the electrics?

 

[Vicario]

No, although many years ago we did have a nest in the trunking which linked the CH timer to an old Baxi back boiler. The little devils had chewed through the cable, but only during the night apparently when there was no current - we didn't find any corpses.

Think.... 'clothing which has dangly bits'

(I hope the GCHQ recruiters are watching this thread).

 

[Vicario]

Final clue - I think I know the sequence of what happened but I'd be interested in any comments. The tripped RCD reset without any problem and all circuits affected came back - so when I moved away, so did the issue.

 

[johnny2007]

Cowboy jacket...

 

[Pete the Feet]

Not those Tinsel nipple tassels again?

 

[Vicario]

I have a fluffy dressing-gown made of some artificial material; it has a long cord round the waist which dangles even when tied. The cat sat on this and then I went straight to the airing cupboard where the cord or possibly the bottom of the dressing gown touched something in there. Static was then discharged - near some component (I suspect the pump, which was on as the hot water timer had triggered it a few minutes before). Or it might have been a copper pipe on the 3 way valve. I had to lean into the cupboard as the sender is on the back wall behind and above the HW cylinder so I don't really know, to be honest. This dressing gown has given me an unpleasant shock on several occasions when it has touched a radiator; if I take it off in the dark it sparkles like a Christmas tree.
Anyway, it was enough to trigger the RCD. I think that the cat added to the charge in some way and as I didn't touch anything metallic on my way upstairs everything discharged in the airing cupboard. As I have a dual RCD board several circuits went off but were fine when I did a re-set. I know that this scenario can fry computer components (when replacing a CMOS battery or adding memory, for example) and the experts use a grounded wrist strap if they open up a laptop. You live and learn, don't you?

 

[Pete the Feet]

Brentford nylons. Not arf.