tripping kitchen - what appliance is it?

[dudley_rob]

My kitchen keeps tripping and I can't work out what it is.

I have a combi-boiler, in one plug, a 13a microwave in another. A 3a kettle in another. Alos there is a fuse box and the oven switch.

I another plug in the room we have a large fridge freezer and another small fridge freezer and a Co2 detector. When we turn on certain things it all trips? No obvious pattern yet?

Any ideas? My old man said to take the kettle back?? I think the fuses need changing??

Anyone anyone?

 

[kendor]

Is it tripping when all appliances are on together? is it just when you turn on one or two at a time? reason i ask is it could be either overcurrent operating a breaker (might have all appliances on one circuit) or it could be nuisance tripping of an RCD (if so disconnect all the appliances and plug them back one at a time to try to identify the culprit you may have to wait for the appliance to start running, say the compressor in the fridge freezer before it trips).

 

[Igorian]

A 3a kettle in another.

Did you mean 13A? Kettles are around the 2KW mark and would want a 13A fuse.

Also I have a combi-boiler, in one plug

Plugged into a socket?

 

[dudley_rob]

hmm, I hate electricity! You can't see it like you can see water. Forgive my ignorance. I will check all the plugs and what goes into what and get back to this forum. Watch this space on Monday
Sorry!

------------------
"oh my god he's a DIY nightmare....run"

 

[Igorian]

Have a look at this link re. fuses

http://firetrainingvideos.com/PDFs/Electrical Fire Safety.pdf

 

[securespark]

Is it tripping the rcd or mcb, or rcbo?

In any case, unplug everything, or switch off if you have Fused Conn Units.

Then reset. If the circuit still will not reset (and you are +ve that you have disconnected everything), then it appears there is a fault in the actual wiring, rather than an appliance.
If it resets but there is no juice, then you have break somewhere.

If it resets OK and does not trip, then try reconnecting appliances 1 by 1. Hopefully when you get to the faulty appliance, it will trip.

 

[dudley_rob]

please read above. I don't know much about electricity. What do all those abbreviations mean? MCB??? eh?

 

[ZenStalinist]

MCB are the many little switches at the consumer unit. These control individual circuits. If the one it is tripping is rated 20 or 32 amps, you are tripping the MCB.

Otherwise, if you are tripping the big switch in the middle (usually rated at 63 amps), you are tripping the RCBO.

 

[dudley_rob]

ok! Basically in the past when we have turned the kettle onit is tripped the red switch whihc I just push back on.

The other day when we turned the fuse switch on it tripped the black circuit breaker. I took some time to turn everything off and then reset and turn it back on. Something doesn't agree with the circuit but I willl take your advice and unplug and turn everything on.

Do you think its a too-much-power issue? Too many appliances or do you think its a fuse-replacement issue?
R

 

[securespark]

Rob

There are three possible issues: overload or short circuit (ie too much power or a live-neutral or live-earth fault), and these are detected by the mcb.

The other issue is an earth fault which is detected by the rcd or rcbo.

If you have a board where everything goes off if the rcd trips, then the main switch is the rcd. If your board is split-load - some circuits protected by rcd and some not- then there will be two switches, the main switch which isolates all circuits, and the rcd unit which will isolate only the circuits protected by it. If you have a board with just a main switch, then you may have rcbo's fitted. These protect individual circuits, and are a comination unit, if you like: they are a cross between an mcb and an rcd.

RCD's are usually twice the width of an mcb, sometimes more.
Main switch isolators are twice the width of an mcb
RCBO's are sometimes the same width as an mcb, but sometimes twice as wide.

You have to ascertain which unit is tripping, and that will give you some clues as to the kind of fault it is. But disassociating (isolating) everything from the circuit is a good first step.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Otherwise, if you are tripping the big switch in the middle (usually rated at 63 amps), you are tripping the RCBO.

That's not an RCBO...

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Rob - you don't know what MCBs RCDs and RCBOs are.

You can't describe the fault well enough for anybody to tell if it's an overload or earth fault.

You think that changing plugtop fuses might sort it.

Please get an electrician in.

 

[Big_Spark]

Rob - you don't know what MCBs RCDs and RCBOs are.

You can't describe the fault well enough for anybody to tell if it's an overload or earth fault.

You think that changing plugtop fuses might sort it.

Please get an electrician in.

Wise words indeed from Ban. Even if we managed to tell you what the fault was, which we cannot over the internet with your low electrical knowledge, you do not have the knowledge or skills to do anything about it, so as Ban says..Call in the Professionals..

Remember ...

If you have a problem, If you have a dodgy breaker, switch or socket...who ya gonna call.....

Electricians

 

[securespark]

Doesn't have the same ring to it, Jim!!

How about "Faultbusters" at the end??