Terminate a switched live wire?

[bri66]

My 22 month old daughter has progressed from a cot to a bed and as such she can wander around her bedroom at will. On the wall near the floor in almost the middle of the bedroom there is a plastic 2 gang pattress box with two separate 1 gang plates on. The left plate is a fused unswitched plate and the right is a 1 gang two way switch.

The fused unswitched plate has 3 connections, red, blue, white and there is a yellow wire which terminates in the adjoining switched block, but it is not connected to anything, (i.e. the wire is hanging loose). The switch on the switched block does nothing as there is nothing connected to it.

The pattress box is for the exterior security light which automatically operates when it is dark and there is movement within range. The switch on the switched block has not been used / tested since my partner bought her house 14 years ago.

I believe that the yellow wire is a switched live wire. I say this as an electrician advised my partner (14 years ago), that it is the type where to override the security light you flick the switch off and back on quickly.

I am concerned the loose wire could possibly be dangerous. Is the safest option to terminate the switched live wire with a choc block and place a blank plate over the (switched) pattress box (dispensing with the switch)?

Thank you.

 

[JohnW2]

The fused unswitched plate has 3 connections, red, blue, white and there is a yellow wire which terminates in the adjoining switched block, but it is not connected to anything, (i.e. the wire is hanging loose). The switch on the switched block does nothing as there is nothing connected to it.

Having a potentially live wire 'hanging loose' is clearly not satisfactory, even if it is within an enclosure. If I understand you correctly that this yellow wire goes into the half of the pattress box which has a switch, but that nothing is currently connected to the switch, the simplest solution, at least for now (unless/until that switch is wanted for something) would probably be to just put that yellow into one of the (unused) terminals of the switch (a terminal of the switch itself, NOT the earth terminal, if it has one).

Kind Regards, John

 

[ericmark]

Pictures please.

I would hope no one would ever leave a live wire exposed. If you think there are live wires then maybe time for an EICR on whole house to identify problems.

 

[JohnW2]

I would hope no one would ever leave a live wire exposed.

If I understand correctly, it is not 'exposed' - but simply unterminated within a pattress box - although, as I've said, even that is not really acceptable.

Kind Regards, John

 

[bri66]

Thank you both for your suggestions which I really appreciate.

John - Yes the wire is unterminated within the pattress box. I did think about putting it in to one of the unused terminals of the switch itself, but I was a bit concerned that my daughter will be drawn to the pattress box and be constantly faffing around with it, switching it off and on etc - you know what toddlers are like.

I wondered if there was any other safe option where I could remove the switch (which is not needed)?

Thank you

 

[JohnW2]

John - Yes the wire is unterminated within the pattress box. I did think about putting it in to one of the unused terminals of the switch itself, but I was a bit concerned that my daughter will be drawn to the pattress box and be constantly faffing around with it, switching it off and on etc - you know what toddlers are like.

Given that the wire is totally unexposed, no harm would come of her switching the switch on and off. However ...

I wondered if there was any other safe option where I could remove the switch (which is not needed)?

Yes. If it would make you more comfortable, you could terminate that bit of yellow wire in a little bit of connector strip/block and then replace the switch with a blank plate.

Kind Regards, John