just found spur off spur

[very_pointy_ears]

Hi,

Having just removed the skirting board in our dining room ready for the plasterer to come next week I've just found that we've got a double socket spur feeding on to a further spur.

What is more, the cable route is bad. The supply from the ring comes down from the ceiling to the first socket (OK) and of course this is where it should then stop.

The spurred spur is about 8 feet to the right of the first spur, yet the ongoing cable leaves the first spur on the left. It goes across about 4 inches and then goes down to behind skirting level. Then, it turns right again, running behind the skirting beneath the the first spur socket at a height of 3 inches off the floor and then heads vertically again to come up underneath the spurred spur.

What surprises me more is that this work looks original (house built 1976). It uses the same old 2.5 T+E with 1mm CPC (!!) that I'd found on the rest of the original ring and has solid green earth sleeving. I know my house has been subjected to DIY disasters by former owners but this really doen't look as if it was added later.

Obviously I need to sort this out (and I'm glad I found it in time to put it right before the plasterers come) but was this sort of practice common in the 70s?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

It's always been "common to a certain extent" practice.

The current generation did not invent the concept of incompetent/lazy/ignorant "professional" electricians. It could easily have been wired like that when the house was built.

Also, I have a feeling that in earlier versions of the regs an unfused spur was allowed to supply 2 single sockets, so if that's the case it could have been done correctly originally and then later had someone swap the singles for doubles.

 

[333rocky333]

Also, I have a feeling that in earlier versions of the regs an unfused spur was allowed to supply 2 single sockets,

Fourteenth regs (inc 1976 amendments)
Reg A.40
Not more than two socket-outlets, or one twin socket-outlet, or one stationary appliance, shall be fed from each non fused spur

 

[Click-Sure]

Quite common 'practice' during the mid seventies, seen similar in quite a few properties of the age, ones that have never been touched since they were built. A lot of 'estate houses' of the time come with stainless steel plumbing too

Another good one of that vintage is where you discover a split in the existing ring main, then going through the usual routine trying to find out where a diy'er cut it, only to find out it was never a ring, just two radials wired off one 30a fuse in 2.5mm