Good old B&Q

[tim west]

Phase? whats phase?

 

[Spark123]

Always worth a laugh standing in the electrical ailse at B&Q listening to how people think they should do their electrics.

Reminds me a bit of this topic: http://www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=1155358#1155358

Also made me think of a conversation with a foreign bloke and a salesman in carphone warehouse, when he produced a modem cable for his laptop with a 3 prong foreign plug on the end, asked if they had anything to connect it with then he produced a shaver plug and asked if he removed the middle pin and plugged it in if that would work

 

[RF Lighting]

Phase? whats phase?

It's an old word for line. Maybe a bit before your time Tim.

Did they actually have any pre-harmonised cable on their shelves?

Nope. It was only a couple of weeks ago I saw the sign.

 

[Spark123]

Phase? whats phase?

It's an old word for line. Maybe a bit before your time Tim.

Line/Phase and Neutral both being Live conductors

 

[tim west]

This Elecktrickery stuffs well confusing!

 

[Spark123]

Surely in this harmonized world phase is brown and neutral blue on T & E?

What I dont get. And I have to test T and Earth and triple all day coz we make it in our factory! How is black, brown and grey easier to distinguish than blue, red and yellow??? Under poor lighting they all look the same. And brown / brown ribbed. Whats that all about?? I'm sure I can see ribs on both of 'em!

It is called harmonization meant to be a way forwards to harmonizing us with the rest of europe. Just like why fire extinguishers have changed to red - is that really a way forwards??
As for twin brown cable, is one not brown right the way down to the copper and the other one brown with a white inner? I'm sure I have seen that before.

 

[Click-Sure]

Never owned a length of twin-brown, i like to know which my p/live and sw/live is, so brown sleeving at the terminations does me fine, saying that I favour the loop-in switch method most of the time anyway.

Do B&Q even sell brown sleeving?

 

[harrisonline]

As for twin brown cable, is one not brown right the way down to the copper and the other one brown with a white inner? I'm sure I have seen that before.

Hmm. I'll have a look in the morning to see. I dont think mine are?

 

[wingcoax]

Price for t&e 2.5 around £19.00 per 50mtr just over a week ago

 

[harrisonline]

Hmm. I'll have a look in the morning to see. I dont think so as they are both made together at the same time on the same extrusion die.

If you get different colours its because the two cores are from different batches and you can use all sorts of pvc waste to make the insides and just put a layer of brown on the outside. So insides could be shades of white, yellow or brown.

 

[ColJack]

some makes are as stated... one brown all the way through, one white with a brown cover..

 

[ericmark]

Ups posted wrong place

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Did they actually have any pre-harmonised cable on their shelves?

It would be amusing, if you had an hour or two to kill, to ask them where the cable was that matched the colours on their big notice, and to act all confused and distressed when they tried to explain why their big notice didn't match what was on the shelves. With a bit of planning you could tie up 2-3 employees and a till for quite some time..

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Also made me think of a conversation with a foreign bloke and a salesman in carphone warehouse, when he produced a modem cable for his laptop with a 3 prong foreign plug on the end

What kind of phone plug was that?

What kind of international traveller with a laptop and a command of a foreign language doesn't have the right phone cable adapters?

 

[Spark123]

I'd imagine a traveller who doesn't know his mains plugs from his telephone plugs!
From what I can remember he sounded and looked as if he was of Asian origin. The plug was somewhat similar to the old 2 pin lighting ones but had a plastic pin in the middle of it which he was asking if he could remove to fit it into the UK shaver adapter plug.