Damaged a meter neutral feed cable to CU

sparkwright · 12 Mar 2011

Can't say I like the idea of those tails buried in that wall.

You mention the meter box is on the exterior, so I presume there is a cavity.

As I understand it, tails are the only cables that may be in the cavity. You could fit new tails in the cavity, including the earth.

Leave the old tails as they are, do a temporary repair on that neutral. Then get someone competent to disconnect the old tails and connect the new tails. Then cut off or completely remove the old tails.

You need an electrician to do this.

electronicsuk · 12 Mar 2011

The fact is that cables buried at <50mm need to be RCD protected. Clearly the meter tails are not protected and, as such, there's no point trying to repair the damage. The job needs to be done properly, and the easiest way will be for an electrician to run in a set of new, slightly longer tails in surface trunking.

westie101 · 12 Mar 2011

Just a question

The fact is that cables buried at <50mm need to be RCD protected

According to which edition of the Wiring Regs?
This installation dates from 1996! So the 16th apply until they are renewed

It doesn't meet the REC standard design by not being in a pipe anyway!

ricicle · 12 Mar 2011

The tails are still not in a safe zone though !

westie101 · 12 Mar 2011

Just for the sake of discussion, does not the ODVC create a safe zone both vertically or horizontally, if not, why?

ricicle · 12 Mar 2011

ODVC ?

westie101 · 12 Mar 2011

Sorry "OutDoor Viewing Cabinet" the meter cabinet referred to in the first post

electronicsuk · 12 Mar 2011

westie101 said:
Just for the sake of discussion, does not the ODVC create a safe zone both vertically or horizontally, if not, why?

If working on a similar theory to that applied with stud walls, I would say that it does not. Not that I think it would be applicable to this situation anyway.

westie101 · 12 Mar 2011

If working on a similar theory to that applied with stud walls, I would say that it does not

So you have a large box on the outside wall of a house, there is a cable entering it from the mains and singles leaving the meter and going to the CU. And neither are afforded safe zone protection.

It is not unknown for folk to drill through outer leafs of walls around cabinets and straight into the service cable or the tails!

Not that I think it would be applicable to this situation anyway.

I agree with that

Adam_151 · 13 Mar 2011

Meter cabinet in my view would create a safe zone on the side of the wall its located; the outside rather than the inside, the dist board would create a safe zone on the inside, but in this situation I think it would be poor pratice to use it to conceal meter tails, as the picture shows someone might drill for a bog roll holder and not consider that tails might not be in cavity, the energy let through by a 100A fuse is going to be much greater than that let through by say a 32 b curve breaker protecting a ring final!

It might be possible to have fabricated a steel plate that its strong enough to stall any reasonable attempt at drilling it with a masonary bit, and earth it just incase. I know of cases where the DNO have insisted on such a shield to be placed behind the meter box where the property is timber framed, to try and reduce the risk of someone drilling into the back of the metering cabinet from inside the house!

bobdabuilda · 13 Mar 2011

Thanks folks it looks like this needs to be urgently looked at by a qualified sparky, but given that this is a national house builder who do I have recourse to if they say they don't have records beyond 6 years? Where would the installers name be if anywhere?

here is a better pic of the room size and location of cu and external distribution board

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bobdabuilda
13 Mar 2011
1

bobdabuilda · 13 Mar 2011

Here is a better pic of the room arrangement

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bobdabuilda
13 Mar 2011
1

holmslaw · 13 Mar 2011

bobdabuilda · 13 Mar 2011

I don't think rear entry with SWA cable would be an attractive option owing to the construct, with the toilet wall being half external and half internal. The distribution board is on the external part and the consumer unit is on the internal part of that wall, if that makes sense? Here's a picture to clarify it.

Picture Title

bobdabuilda
13 Mar 2011
1

ban-all-sheds · 13 Mar 2011

Run SWA up the wall outside, then through the wall, either into the room at the top of the wall then along just below the ceiling in trunking or other boxing-in, or into the floor void.

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Damaged a meter neutral feed cable to CU

holmslaw

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