Hi please can you help. My friend advises me that each time she plugs her tv a double socket in the bedroom it trips all the sockets on the ring. She tried a bedside lamp in the same socket and the same occured. What is the main or most likely reason why this would occur? If the socket was incorrectly wired would this cause it to trip or would this 1 socket just not work? She has 6 double sockets on the upstairs ring and a fcu to power the tv on off as the tv is on the wall and the button is awkward to get at.
Sockets tripping
- Thread starter thomo27
- Start date
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50p says the socket is incorrectly wired. Turn off the power and check that all the sockets are dead, then take it off, and have a look. If the fault is not in that socket, it might be on a spur,and the cable from the originating socket may have been done wrong.
You do not say how long this has been happening, when the socket was installed, and who by.
When you say "it trips all the sockets on the ring" do you mean the RCD or the MCB? If you don't know, tell us everything that is printed or engraved on the thing that trips.
If you can post some pics of the back of the socket showing the cable connections, you may spark off more ideas.
You do not say how long this has been happening, when the socket was installed, and who by.
When you say "it trips all the sockets on the ring" do you mean the RCD or the MCB? If you don't know, tell us everything that is printed or engraved on the thing that trips.
If you can post some pics of the back of the socket showing the cable connections, you may spark off more ideas.
The ring isnt protected by the rcd so its just the mcb that trips. She has just moved in so only tried it a couple of days ago , the electrician put in a new cu and a number of double sockets around the house. If the bloke has put in a fcu for the tv then am i right in thinkin the socket will be spurred of the fcu or vice versa. Cheers for your response.
If you are correct, and the MCB trips from just plugging in a table lamp, then there is a severe problem.this is most likely a 32A MCB so it will take a very large current to trip it; big enough to start a fire or cause injury or death if the MCB did not protect you by tripping.
I gather an electrician did the installation of new CU and sockets.
If he is properly qualified and permitted to do this then he will have left an Installation certificate and a table of test results. Get him back to fix the fault. It might be damage to the socket.
If he isn't, and didn't, don't let him back in the house. Employ a proper electrician to fault find and rectify. Ask around friends and neighbours for a recommendation. Always ask an electrician, before engaging him, if he is a member of a self-certification scheme; which one; and how long he has been a full member.Sponsored Links
Hi john. I asked her to test again and she confirms that the mcb trips off when anything is plugged into the socket such as table lamp,portable telly, hair dryer, hair The rcd doesnt appear to protect the ring upstairs. Im sure mine doesnt either im pretty sure this is normal. I have asked her bloke to knock the power off and check the connections from the double socket to the fcu , the 2 other sockets in the ring either side of the room are ok but the 1 on the hallway has caused tripped once or twice. This socket used to be used to provide power for electric storage heaters. The electrician did leave certificates etc but it seems his apprentices did the sockets and he did the cu
If merely using a socket is tripping something repeatably and your "electrician" doesn't have the ability to fix the problem then IMO this is a sign they are NOT competant to be doing electrical work.
Are you absoloutely positive the circuit is not on a RCD or RCBO?
Are you absoloutely positive the circuit is not on a RCD or RCBO?
The electrician hasnt looked at it yet. He is scheduled to come on mon. I posted just to find out why this would occur. Should the upstairs ring main be protected by the rcd? When this issue occurs only the mcb trip is down if it was rcd protected wouldnt the rcd trip also need to be put back on? Im pretty sure my upstairs ring main isnt protected by the rcd. Isnt every mcb to the left of the board protected ie cooker,garage electrics etc cheers
Typical UK practice is to put all Socket circuits on the RCD, also any electric showers or outside/shed circuits. However you are not obliged to RCD protect sockets which cannot reasonably be expected to supply equipment used outside, so an upstairs circuit need not be on the RCD.
It is not usual to put cookers and immersion heaters on the RCD,since they are prone to nuisance tripping as they age. However some cooker switches incorporate sockets and you can never be sure someone won't plug the lawn-mower in there.
Top quality installations use RCBOs, which give each protected circuit its own RCD, so avoiding the inconvenience of losing several circuits due to a fault on only one. This does however usually work out more expensive.
It is not usual to put cookers and immersion heaters on the RCD,since they are prone to nuisance tripping as they age. However some cooker switches incorporate sockets
and you can never be sure someone won't plug the lawn-mower in there.Top quality installations use RCBOs, which give each protected circuit its own RCD, so avoiding the inconvenience of losing several circuits due to a fault on only one. This does however usually work out more expensive.
If it is the MCB tripping only when a plug is inserted it would be pointing towards the socket/associated wiring being physically damaged. For safety it would a good idea to leave this circuit turned off until it has been checked by the electrician.
At the moment on a TN system (where the distributor supplies your earth) there is no requirement to RCD protect sockets unless they are reasonably expected to supply portable equipment outdoors or in some of the special locations. Saying that the regs should only be taken as a minimum requirement and a lot of electricians will put almost all the socket outlets on an RCD.
At the moment on a TN system (where the distributor supplies your earth) there is no requirement to RCD protect sockets unless they are reasonably expected to supply portable equipment outdoors or in some of the special locations. Saying that the regs should only be taken as a minimum requirement and a lot of electricians will put almost all the socket outlets on an RCD.
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