Heres a few pictures I took in the old Cheshire County Council depot at Milton Green near Chester just before it was closed in 2011 and yes this was all still in full use !
Electrical installation from 1950s
- Thread starter streetlighter
- Start date
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Used to work on similar stuff regularly, most BT telephone exchanges have similar vintage installations, full of busbar chambers, massive heating/lighting contactors and big old azzy filled switches.
The only thing I disliked about the old installations was tap off systems. Who ever invented that needs shooting. The proper busbar ones are OK but the bits of 16mm in a ring with soldered on tails to a box are a horrible, horrible idea...
The only thing I disliked about the old installations was tap off systems. Who ever invented that needs shooting. The proper busbar ones are OK but the bits of 16mm in a ring with soldered on tails to a box are a horrible, horrible idea...
Non-standard Earth pin.
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Non-standard Earth pin.
...and live pins for that matter, "Walsall Guage" I think.
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Still used on parts of London Underground
I stripped out an installation just like that at a school a few years back. It was such a shame to have to do it 
see a few like this round and about, generally in good condition but they can take quite a bit of "abuse" as well.
Like the "legacy" cut-out/CT chamber set-up as part of the board
Like the "legacy" cut-out/CT chamber set-up as part of the board
View media item 59781
Still in use and live, and plenty more out there if you want further examples.
Still in use and live, and plenty more out there if you want further examples.
If it a'int broke it don't need fixing.
What were the outgoing cables?
Ours were a really odd hybrid between PILC and SWA.
It was like PILC on the inside but had an unsheathed SWA outside.
Unfortunately the SWA was used as earth and much of the armouring had rotted away where the cables ran in damp underground ducts, hence the cable and switch gear being replaced.
Ours were a really odd hybrid between PILC and SWA.
It was like PILC on the inside but had an unsheathed SWA outside.
Unfortunately the SWA was used as earth and much of the armouring had rotted away where the cables ran in damp underground ducts, hence the cable and switch gear being replaced.
Im sure all the wiring was singles in steel conduit and trunking it, I know all the lighting circuits in the offices and the sockets where done in conduit and it was PVC singles using the conduit as the CPC.
Used to love going there on depot maintenance wish id taken more photos now
Used to love going there on depot maintenance wish id taken more photos now
Pilc can be unarmoured, tape armouring or wire armouring, the lead sheath would be used for the earth, the armouring would be bounded at terminations and any joints, there are also lead covered jute insulated cables about, in ilfracombe there are sections of a tape armoured 2 jute cores as phases, paper insulated core as neutral and a cotton braid insulated street lighting core
Hey Dino - Ilfracombe - my stomping ground. The latest large asbestos filled building going to ground recently in 'combe had some similar switch gear. We used to do the maintenance in that site, now relocated to new premises up top.
This is EXACTLY what I've been looking out for - I have never even seen a picture or drawing of a 13A socket with dolly switch before.
Is that a brass faceplate too?
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