electric cable in soil pipe!

[calumr135]

I was helping a friend moving a few things in the attic and made an alarming discovery. It turns out the cable that supplies the attic light is running down the soil pipe where the vent is! someone has actually drilled a small hole in the 4 inch pipe and ran the twin and earth inside the pipe!. Luckily I noticed an access hatch on the pipe box in the back hall (this was screwed firmly shut,I wonder why) I eventually got it open and found the inspection rod eye which was left open and the very cable comes out of this then through a small channel into the spur unit which supplies the tumble drier!.

Have you guys ever come across this before, this is a cowboy at best! and the worst thing is this has gone unnoticed for years! When is something going to be done about these ****ers!

 

[JohnW2]

.... It turns out the cable that supplies the attic light is running down the soil pipe where the vent is! someone has actually drilled a small hole in the 4 inch pipe and ran the twin and earth inside the pipe!.

It's certainly unconventional, and I am sure most people would say that it is "not good practice" (or something far worse than that!). However, electrically speaking, it's probably not actually as bad as it sounds. PVC twin and earth cable 'exposed to the elements' is fine, other than that if exposed to UV light (e.g. sunlight) the PVC sheath can eventually become brittle - but inside the soil pipe it would be protected from sunlight!

Kind Regards, John

 

[calumr135]

Hi there, yes the pipe is inside the property the soil pipe is enclosed in your normal pipe box. I am not kidding the cable genuinely runs inside the actual 4 inch waste pipe and comes all the way down and out the inspection hole at the bottom then into the wall along to the spur unit that supplies the tumble drier.

I suppose you are correct, if its gone without issues for several years it probably won't start causing problems anytime soon?. However I would definitely like to remove it and reroute but I would imagine the cable would be covered in rather unpleasant you know whats.I still think its outrageous it was put in there in the first place and if that's not bad enough the supply for this cable looped from the spur that supplies the tumble drier, so effectively this cable which looks to be 1mm twin and earth is protected by the 32A ring circuit. Why whoever didn't take the supply from the nearest ceiling rose or light switch is beyond me?, they should be shot!

 

[DaveHerns]

But doesn't that mean the soil pipe is venting into the house? That's far more concerning. Methane isn't good for you.

 

[bernardgreen]

Methane isn't good for you.

Methane and a spark can be very bad for you. boom boom

 

[JohnW2]

I suppose you are correct, if its gone without issues for several years it probably won't start causing problems anytime soon?

As I implied, in truth that is probably the case.

I still think its outrageous it was put in there in the first place ....

I agree.

.... and if that's not bad enough the supply for this cable looped from the spur that supplies the tumble drier, so effectively this cable which looks to be 1mm twin and earth is protected by the 32A ring circuit.

You say that it comes from the spur unit (I presume you mean a 'Fused Connection Unit') which supplies the tumble drier. Do you know whether it comes from the 'supply' or 'load' side of the unit? If the latter, then the culprit cable would at least be protected by a 13A fuse - not quite low enough for 1mm T+E "in conduit" (I suppose that's what we would have to call it!), but far better than 32A. If there is no such fuse (or the cable is connected to the supply side of the fuse, such that, as you suggest, it's only protected by a 32A device, that is clearly not
satisfactory

Why whoever didn't take the supply from the nearest ceiling rose or light switch is beyond me?, they should be shot!

Indeed. It's very odd since I imagine that it was probably more difficult for them to do what they did that it would have been to get a supply from a ceiling rose.

Kind Regards, John

 

[winston1]

Why whoever didn't take the supply from the nearest ceiling rose or light switch is beyond me?, they should be shot!

That is rather over the top. Educated or fined perhaps.

 

[SimonH2]

But doesn't that mean the soil pipe is venting into the house?

I don't think so. The OP talks about a hole having been drilled - there's probably an air admittance valve sat in the top of the pipe.
I'd be concerned about the length (weight) of cable hanging on the probably sharp edge of the hole - and is T&E actually properly waterproof ?
There's another issue that having a loop of cable down the pipe introduces something for "things" to snag on on the way down. Over time that can lead to a blockage ...
But then, the OP also talks about the rodding eye having been left off - that means the pipe cannot be in use for it's normal purpose, at least upstream of the rodding eye.

Methane and a spark can be very bad for you. boom boom

A friend told me a funny story a few years ago - though while it's funny, I can't help wondering how genuine it was. He was fitting a new toilet and the new one was rather tight in the spigot seal which had hardened with age. So he thought he'd just warm it up a bit with the blowlamp. When he started this, he thought nothing of a "whoomph" noise down in the pipe ...
The next day, a neighbour knocked on the door asking if he'd had any problems with the toilets - apparently he'd had something akin to an unexpected bide effect

 

[JohnW2]

.... and is T&E actually properly waterproof ?

It seems so. Not so long ago I removed some (unprotected) PVC T+E from the outside of my house which had been there for at least 30 years, probably more, and it was still working fine, not even appreciably affected by all the UV exposure, and IR'd fine (between cores and liquid) when I submerged it in water. More dramatically many years earlier I removed a length of T&E which had clearly been buried (unprotected) in my garden for many years - and, again, it was fine.

Talking of submerging cables in liquid, my occasionally-mentioned long-term experiment continues, and has now been going for 3 or 4 years. I have ~2m lengths of both T+E and ("50V") alarm cable submerged in brine, and periodically IR them (from cores to brine). At the last count, both were still showing >1,000MΩ at 1000V.

But then, the OP also talks about the rodding eye having been left off - that means the pipe cannot be in use for it's normal purpose, at least upstream of the rodding eye.

Yes, I was confused by that, particularly since the OP seemed to imply that the rodding eye was 'low down' - perhaps the OP can clarify? If it were a disused soil pipe, that would obviously change things completely - nothing wrong with putting T+E in a 4" 'conduit'!

Kind Regards, John

 

[calumr135]

Hi, yes the cable is connected to the "fused connection unit" and it was connected to the supply side. I have removed the cable completely today and closed the rod eye, I will find a proper supply for the attic light probably tomorrow. The lighting loop is in the roses luckily so shouldn't be too difficult. It looks like whoever fitted just couldn't be bothered to move a few boxes and lift the floorboards!. Yes believe it or not the soil pipe is still in use serving the bathroom and how it hasn't leaked out the rod eye is another mystery (well if it has leaked it certainly wasn't noticeable or ever mentioned in the past).

cheers

 

[JohnW2]

Hi, yes the cable is connected to the "fused connection unit" and it was connected to the supply side.

Ah. As I said, electrically speaking, it would have been much better on the load side!

... I will find a proper supply for the attic light probably tomorrow. The lighting loop is in the roses luckily so shouldn't be too difficult. It looks like whoever fitted just couldn't be bothered to move a few boxes and lift the floorboards!

Indeed - but, as I said before, I'm not convinced that what they decided to do was necessarily any less effort!

Yes believe it or not the soil pipe is still in use serving the bathroom and how it hasn't leaked out the rod eye is another mystery (well if it has leaked it certainly wasn't noticeable or ever mentioned in the past).

Interesting. Is the rod eye perhaps on an upward sloping branch?

Kind Regards, John

 

[calumr135]

Interesting. Is the rod eye perhaps on an upward sloping branch?

Hi, I have had another look at the rodding eye and it is indeed facing slightly upwards so I guess that would have been enough to prevent water pouring out. The cable has been removed completely and it lets just say it was a bit dirty. I may have overreacted earlier I was just flabbergasted what I found and to think some people can get away with this, he/she should be fined at the very least imho but its not like they ever will be found is it?

Clearly not an electrician whoever it was so I can only assume it was a cowboy or a very dimwitted previous diyer? either way the cable is now removed and the soil pipe is sealed up.
thanks

 

[SimonH2]

Yes, there is an endless supply of "interesting" DIY work. We're looking to move, and the house we're moving to comes with plenty of "interesting" things to deal with. it's going to keep me busy for many years - but it has off-road parking and room to build a good garage and workshop

 

[stillp]

Sounds like sh!tty wiring.

 

[SUNRAY]

I have encountered TV aerials strapped to vent pipes and coax dropped down the pipe but not T&E. This is also the most frequent method of getting pirate radio aerial feeder from the roof to an empty room or flat in tower blocks. and very frequently seen Sky dish cables in gutters & downpipes.
I've known of a power feed which ran through several inspection holes and under several gardens the in sewer to get to a garage in a block at the end of the street, the only actual problem was some of the other garage owners had found it...