Is this setup normal?

[ApePat]

Hi there, hope someone can kindly advise. My wife and I recently got the key for our new build 4 bedroom detached. When I had a look at the fuse box, I noted one of the 100A 30mA RCDs was down so I tried to switch it on but it tripped the other RCD straight away. I can only keep 1 RCD on at a time. Does it mean they are all in 1 circuit and is it normal if so considering it’s a 4 bedroom house? Thanks in advance.

 

[JohnW2]

Hi there, hope someone can kindly advise. My wife and I recently got the key for our 4 bedroom detached. When I had a look at the fuse box, I noted one of the 100A 30mA RCDs was down so I tried to switch it on but it tripped the other RCD straight away. I can only keep 1 RCD on at a time. Does it mean they are all in 1 circuit and is it normal if so considering it’s a 4 bedroom house? Thanks in advance.

Not normal.

It sounds as if the installation has been incorrectly wired such that one or more circuit(s) protected by one of the RCDs is 'sharing' a neutral with a circuit protected by the other RCD. I wonder if that consumer unit was perhaps installed in a rush (without proper care or testing) for the purpose of the sale?

You need an electrician to investigate and rectify this error.

Kind Regards, John

 

[terryplumb]

No it is not normal, you have a fault .
Call in an electrician.

 

[ApePat]

Thank you so much for the replies. Is there any immediate safety concern? We have not moved in but have a few electrical stuff like security system/fridge running currently.

Obviously it’s difficult to say without further info here but is it likely to be an “easy” rewiring with the fuse box and not some major work in the house?

 

[JohnW2]

Thank you so much for the replies. Is there any immediate safety concern? We have not moved in but have a few electrical stuff like security system/fridge running currently.

No, no safety concern - the only iussue is (obviously) that you can only use half the circuits at any one time, which is presumably somewhat of an inconvenience!

Obviously it’s difficult to say without further info here but is it likely to be an “easy” rewiring with the fuse box and not some major work in the house?

The actual 'rewiring' will probably be quite quick/'easy', once the cause of the problem has been identified/located - that could be very quick ('immediately obvious') or might take quite some time - but I've no way of telling from here.

Kind Regards, John

 

[winston1]

It is not a fusebox, it has no fuses. It is a CU. I don’t know why people are advising you to call an electrician. It is a fault from new and you should contact the developer immediately, not pay for a sparks.

 

[ApePat]

No, no safety concern - the only iussue is (obviously) that you can only use half the circuits at any one time, which is presumably somewhat of an inconvenience!
The actual 'rewiring' will probably be quite quick/'easy', once the cause of the problem has been identified/located - that could be very quick ('immediately obvious') or might take quite some time - but I've no way of telling from here.

Kind Regards, John

Thanks again. Strangely everything (lights/sockets/boiler/bell etc) is actually working despite 1 RCD is off, hence I am a bit confused with the setup. What’s your thought?

 

[winston1]

As I said, contact the developer.

 

[ApePat]

As I said, contact the developer.

Thanks - we are definitely asking the developer to fix 100%. Just want to know a bit better so they can’t fob us off.

 

[AndyPRK]

Honestly. How can a new house be like that!

zero testing or they just wanted to be out of there

 

[JohnW2]

Thanks again. Strangely everything (lights/sockets/boiler/bell etc) is actually working despite 1 RCD is off, hence I am a bit confused with the setup. What’s your thought?

If one RCD is off, then none of the circuits in the associated 'block ('left set' or 'right set') should be working. If they are working ()even with their RCD 'off'), then there is something very wrong (and possibly even dangerous) about the way that consumer unit has been wired.

Just to clarify, when I said that you "needed an electrician" to investigate and rectify this problem(s), given that it's a new build I was not suggesting that you should send for and pay for an electrician yourself. As others have said, in this situation it is the developers who need to send (and pay for) an electrician to come and sort it out.

Kind Regards, John

 

[securespark]

Do those clip-in plastic blanks comply?

 

[SUNRAY]

While the electricians are there they need to lable the rest of the MCB's too.

 

[securespark]

And the other labels as per regs.

 

[securespark]

It is not a fusebox, it has no fuses. It is a CU. I don’t know why people are advising you to call an electrician. It is a fault from new and you should contact the developer immediately, not pay for a sparks.