Shaver Socket Toothbrush charging issue

[MrRadish]

We have a shaver point in the bathroom that has been used to charge toothbrushes for the past 15 years or so. The shaver point itself is powered by the light switch so is only in continuous use when the light is switched on.

A few weeks ago I noticed that the toothbrush was no longer charging so I followed these steps
1) Having had a toothbrush with a dead battery before I changed the "unreplaceable" battery but no joy
2) Suspecting that something else on the toothbrush was faulty we ordered a complete replacement toothbrush with new charger and found that the new toothbrush also did not charge.
4) I bought a two to three pin adapter and confirmed both tooth brushes would charge from a three point socket
3) Now suspecting the shaver socket I ordered and fitted a replacement but still no joy.
4) Using a meter I can see 240V on the input side the old and then the new shaver socket whilst also testing that both toothbrushes are failing to charge off either.

Could it be that both shaver sockets (old and new- both Nexus) are faulty? Before I buy a third socket I want to rule out anything else that could be causing the issue or anything else I could test. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

How are you testing the voltage?
It could be that you a break or loose connection on the supply neutral.

 

[MrRadish]

I am testing the voltage using a multimeter across the live and neutral connections on the back of the shaver socket. If the neutral line was broken I guess I would still see 240V - correct?

 

[Taylortwocities]

So, you have checked teh 230V input to the shaver point. HAve you used your meter to test the OUTPUT of the shaver point?

If you have 230v on the output side, then I would suspect the toothbrush itself: may be the 2-pin plug, or the cable, or the induction part.

 

[MrRadish]

So, you have checked teh 230V input to the shaver point. HAve you used your meter to test the OUTPUT of the shaver point?

If you have 230v on the output side, then I would suspect the toothbrush itself: may be the 2-pin plug, or the cable, or the induction part.

Agree this would be a good test but - No - I have not checked this conclusively due to logistics of being able to both open the socket pin cover, activate the transformer on switch and make a good contact with my probes eg test was inconclusive

I also do not have a spare 2 pin plug I can use to ensure all the above although I may end up hacking one of the cables if I have to.

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

I am testing the voltage using a multimeter across the live and neutral connections on the back of the shaver socket. If the neutral line was broken I guess I would still see 240V - correct?

If the neutral was out, you should not get a 240V reading.
On a sound circuit, if you tested between live/earth expect 240V and also between live and neutral.

Have you tried any other appliance in the saver socket?

 

[MrRadish]

I am testing the voltage using a multimeter across the live and neutral connections on the back of the shaver socket. If the neutral line was broken I guess I would still see 240V - correct?

If the neutral was out, you should not get a 240V reading.
On a sound circuit, if you tested between live/earth expect 240V and also between live and neutral.

Have you tried any other appliance in the saver socket?

ok thanks for the info. We only have the two toothbrush appliances tested already (no shavers).

I think I need to find a way of testing the output.

 

[MrRadish]

Onwards with the testing:-

As mentioned before - I have tested both toothbrushes on an adapter plug and they both work.

I have just wired both shaver sockets in turn to a three point plug to try and remove the mains wiring from the equation. If the plug worked then the mains wiring would be the cause of the fault but to my surprise the sockets still did not work which indicates to me to think that the mains wiring is ok.

On the original socket I managed to hook some wires up to the output and confirmed there was nothing there with the internal transformer switch activated. I bypassed the internal transformer switch and capacitor and found that the primary coil was O/C. unless there is more circuitry inside the transformer I assume this is the problem

On the new socket the workings are all encased and sealed but the primary coil was S/C with the transformer switch activated (which I would expect). Cannot test the output but I am going to work on the assumption that this socket is also faulty from new.

I might cut my loses and get a dedicated toothbrush charge socket

 

[RF Lighting]

Untitled

• RF Lighting
• 16 Mar 2015
• 1

http://www.screwfix.com/p/mk-dual-voltage-shaver-socket-115-230v-white/55378?_requestid=313949

 

[MrRadish]

Ordered an MK one. For that price it better have a toothbrush symbol on it!

If it hasnt I might draw one on with a marker pen

 

[MrRadish]

Update:

Received the MK socket complete with toothbrush symbol on it. The socket worked straight away which means that the Nexus I had ordered to replace the faulty Nexus is definitely faulty and it will be sent back.

On first inspection the transformer on the MK is quite a bit larger than the Nexus one and I guess that is to support the continuous use?