Is it possible to fit an rcbo in this board?

[Risteard]

Oh, well. Joke wasted!

I got the joke. It was somewhat amusing.

 

[ross94]

Thanks all, it does sound like the breaker is faulty, come to think about it i remember the "down lights and downstaira socket had the same issue as you can see from the newish mcbs, the downstairs lighting breaker used to trip like crazy whenever the old incandescent bulbs blew so i imagine it got fed up and finally failed, as for the downstairs sockets, we had a flood years ago in the bathroom which took down the kitchen ceiling and i remember then the breaker was tripping like crazy.

Maybe breakers just fail after a certain amount of trips? Does that sound likely?

I have got the oven and hob working temporary by pinching the 16a immersion breaker as we never use it, Its only a gas hob and fan assisted oven which pulls about 10 amp so it should be okay for now.
I will try get hold of the shorter rcbo but worst case scenario i will get a plug in rcb then order a normal 32a hager mcb.
Thanka

 

[flameport]

Maybe breakers just fail after a certain amount of trips? Does that sound likely?

Yes.

Despite what many people think, circuit breakers are not indestructible and most definitely have a limited lifespan.

 

[ross94]

Thanks for clarifying I think this board is about 24 years old so imagine 24 years is pretty good going for a circuit breaker life.
Just one more question,not relevant but like to know, is the wiring in this board neat?
Thanks

 

[EFLImpudence]

Just one more question,not relevant but like to know, is the wiring in this board neat?

It's pretty good.

 

[ross94]

It's pretty good.

View attachment 171568

Wow! I wouldn't want to be in that building

 

[AndyPRK]

what happened to the main switch !

 

[scousespark]

So i can see what i'm doing and because i'm not daft enough to stick my hands on the busbar I appreciate your concern though but i was very careful.

Your reply is quite frightening, as wanting to keep your lights on while you work is not a justification for working live. Why could you not wait until daylight and check it then.
I would recommend you can search for 'Safe Isolation' in this forum or wider to read up on what you should do. Touching a live busbar (intentionally or by accident) is potentially fatal. Breakers can fail, but you need the circuits testing. It is never safe to act on an assumption, when working with electricity.

Reading through the thread only Adam (who is a trading electrician) has mentioned that you have a fault to investigate. Given you later post that you have had similar with another circuit, I suggest you get a qualified electrician to carry out an EICR.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Reading through the thread only Adam ... has mentioned that you have a fault to investigate.

Ahem!

 

[scousespark]

Ahem!

Sorry. missed the reference to a fault in your post. I still think the thread has focused on the fact the breaker is probably with little consideration of what he needs to do to check the cause. If I was called out to this, my first task would be to check the circuit and I WOULD NOT DO THIS WITH A LIVE BUSBAR. If it was my house, I'd have takeaway until I had a day off to check.

 

[ross94]

Your reply is quite frightening, as wanting to keep your lights on while you work is not a justification for working live. Why could you not wait until daylight and check it then.
I would recommend you can search for 'Safe Isolation' in this forum or wider to read up on what you should do. Touching a live busbar (intentionally or by accident) is potentially fatal. Breakers can fail, but you need the circuits testing. It is never safe to act on an assumption, when working with electricity.

Reading through the thread only Adam (who is a trading electrician) has mentioned that you have a fault to investigate. Given you later post that you have had similar with another circuit, I suggest you get a qualified electrician to carry out an EICR.

Oh here we go, there is nothing wrong with working live as long you use your common sense, why do you think insulated tools exist? It all comes down to risk assessment i could see there was very little risk of me getting hurt at the time so had no reason to turn off the main switch.
Next you will be asking cable jointers to turn off a whole street from a substation just to join a new service cable to the main or whatever,(which is far more dangerous to what i was doing) they don't drop like flies everyday why? because they use common sense as was i.
Common sense and risk assessment is all it comes down to at the end of the day.

 

[scousespark]

Cable jointers go through trading courses before they are let loose in the network. As the saying goes, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Out of interest, do you know what safe isolation is?

 

[ross94]

Yes i know what safe isolation is, and it has its place (in the college) in the real world its very different, you are deluded (no offence intended) if you think nobody works live and safe isolation is used all the time. Again common sense and risk assessment. If the board was metal i would maybe be inclined to turn off the main switch but would judge the risks as i see and follow accordingly.

 

[JohnW2]

"trading courses" - are they related to Brexit?

 

[scousespark]

"trading courses" - are they related to Brexit?

So in this thread a posts that safe isolation is only practiced in the classroom and in the real world the ”safety protocol” is to leave things live and be careful doesn’t warrant a comment, but a word set by predictive text on an iPad does. I do see the smiley and am not wound up by your post, but I am curious as to whether you would condone working live in this instance.