Plumber has just drilled into my 14mm Shower Cable!

[docklandsuk]

Hi Everyone,

I'm currently having a bathroom installed by a private housing trust, theres been problem after problem and it's been ongoing for 3 weeks now, they come to fit the shower today and somehow the plumber has managed to drill straight into the 14mm cable that was fitted a couple of weeks ago by the electrician.

I didn't know this until the electrician came around to wire up the shower and nearly **** himself when the RCD tripped out, investigation shows that he's gone into the main 14mm cable coming up from the consumer box up behind the tiled wall and into the loft to the shower pull switch.

As it was 4pm when this happened they have now said that it will be sorted out on Monday, however they advised that they may have to run a new cable up and surface mount it in a large trunking conduit on the outside of my bathroom at the top of the stairs.

I'm not happy about them doing this and feel they are just trying to go the easy route also the cable in massive and would just look nasty. I would like to ask about the chances of them fishing the old cable out and trying to get a new cable in the existing internal conduit, the electrician said this would be very hard.

There is a couple of other options, one includes knocking all the tiles off again.


I'll upload some pictures to show you all what i mean.

As you will see from the images, they have used no shielding to protect the wires from being drilled only internal conduit (not sure if shielding is a requirement or not)

 

[xr4x4]

Did they drill into the cable actually fixing the shower?

Bit stupid really seeing as the cable is clearly there to see.

Saying that if the shower has to mounted on the wall where the cable is and as they didn't install the cable, how did they know exactly where the cable was.

 

[docklandsuk]

Did they drill into the cable actually fixing the shower?

Bit stupid really seeing as the cable is clearly there to see.

Saying that if the shower has to mounted on the wall where the cable is and as they didn't install the cable, how did they know exactly where the cable was.

Yes they have drilled into the cable fitting the shower :/

Theres two cables mate, ones going from the consumer box going up the wall where the shower in mounted then into the loft, then that connects to the shower switch pull and another cable coming back down the wall, it's the one going from the consumer box up to the loft that he's gone into.

I really don't know how they can avoid it as the same team are replacing nearly a 100 bathroms within my estate atm and each house give or take is nearly the same etc, and use the same plumber, electrican and other tradesmens.

 

[electronicsuk]

What you see covering the cables is plastic capping, not conduit. It isn't designed to protect the cables from screws and/or nails, nor is there any requirement to. I'd question the wisdom in the electrician having run the supply to the 45A isolator via that route, although technically it is within the safe zones.

I think the chances of being able to pull a replacement cable through the capping are minimal, but it can't hurt to try. Failing that, do you really not have an airing cupboard or built-in wardrobe upstairs in which a replacement cable could be hidden?

 

[seco services]

Bit stupid who ever put the cable going up right next to the cable coming down.
everyone who installs electric showers knows the top securing screws can useally be close or tight to the cable feeding the shower from above let alone sticking another cable right next to it.

PS the shower you have mira advance aren't all that either.

 

[docklandsuk]

The electrician did say he might struggle to fish a new cable into the capping, but I'm going to ask him to try that first.

On the other side of that wall is the top of the stairs/landing, (the consumer box is under the stairs) failing the fish he wants to run a surface mounted conduit on the otherside of the wall coming up from under the stairs and straight into the loft and into the shower switch, the problem with that is it's going to look crap and I don't want him to do that, the other option is to sink the cable into the wall instead but I don't know if he's willing to do that.

Also I've been looking at the shower tonight and even if they fish a new cable theres nowhere else they can mount the screws unless they move the shower to the left or right but that's now restricted with the cold feed and also the amount of cable he's left coming out of the wall.

Total knightmare this is

 

[docklandsuk]

PS the shower you have mira advance aren't all that either.

Are they no good then? They supplied that for free so I'm not complaining, plus it's fully covered by them should anything go wrong.

Anything I should be worried about?

 

[xr4x4]

If you needed to move the shower over, you could have a small piece of Crome pipe on show.

 

[joinerjohn]

Nowt wrong with the Mira Advance showers. Lot's of councils use them. Not exactly the cheapest electric shower on the market either. (which you think council's would go for)

 

[docklandsuk]

Just an update for you all, electrician turned up this morning and wanted to run in a conduit on the outside of the bathroom wall, i told him that wasn't happening and agreed to sink the cable into the wall, however he's only taken the plaster off, it's not very deep at all and when they plaster over it it's going to be very very close to the wall surface.

He hasn't used any capping or internal conduit or anything.

I'm just waiting for he plaster guy now, I've had to chip bits of the wall off as it was sticking out in parts :/

Does anyone know if the cable has to be a certain depth? there's nothing going on that wall but just worried with it being not so deep

Thanks

 

[PEDANTICVINDICTIVEMAN]

What a stupid place to run the two cables, right where the shower and rail fixings are going to be.

Horrible slippy chippy cold steel bath.

No protective tape on the cold supply copper tube, lovely

 

[UpgradeME]

Does anyone know if the cable has to be a certain depth? there's nothing going on that wall but just worried with it being not so deep

According to the link provided by Electronicsuk above, unless it's located within 150mm of the corner, it should "incorporate an earthed metallic covering" or "be mechanically protected sufficient to prevent penetration of the cable by nails, screws and the like"

 

[londonboy]

So how much did this installation cost you then?

 

[expertgasman]

[quote="londonboy";p="1943906"]So how much did this installation cost you then?[/quote]

I would guess just grief. He's a tenant!

 

[PEDANTICVINDICTIVEMAN]

Well no one paying would have a steel bath, so must be "free"