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Stevo90

Hi guys

Hope you's may be able to be help me here as i am puzzled.

I have 2 sockets downstairs and two upstairs not working now, they used to work perfectly and suddenly there seems to be no power going to them. I also think one of the sockets upstairs has borrowed a neutral from the one directly below downstairs. I have put my test lamps across live + neutral which shows no voltage present but tells me theres a potential for it to be live ........ any ideas ?


Cheers
 
A socket with a borrowed neutral?That's a new one for me.Is it a ring circuit?You need to isolate all the socket circuits and then start buzzing out and finding out exactly the way this has been wired.Remember and check each socket is dead before starting!Are you a spark?
 
I have put my test lamps across live + neutral which shows no voltage present but tells me theres a potential for it to be live ........ any ideas ?
Cheers

Please explain: "Tells me there's a potential for it to be live" ??
 
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If hawk81's suggestion is not supported then it sounds like a radial circuit with a broken conductor somewhere. Possibly one of the conductors has broken off at the socket before or at the first downstairs socket that is not working. Switch off the power and undo the socket face plate for the first non working circuit and the one before that in the circuit and check that the cables have not broken off or become detached from the terminals.
 
To be fair if you have to ask how to find this fault you do not have enough experience/knowledge to be undertaking this work.Is it your own home?If so then if you feel up to it go ahead but if not I would get your journeyman in for a look.He/she would most likely find the fault in no time
 
1 Have you checked all fuses have not blown or MCBs tripped?
2 What test lamps are you using and how does it indicate a "potential to be live" The handle on our living room door has the potential to be live but it's unlikely it ever will be (unless the kids decide to collect on the insurance:) )
3 What makes you think there's a borrowed neutral? In 28 years since my apprenticeship I've not come across a borrowed neutral on a socket circuit
4 Are you knowledgeable enough to be poking around a socket circuit? Remember, the electric chair operated on 10 amps
 
Right guys am an apprenice,
All mcbs are switched on
2. Test equipment i am using : Di-log6780 test lamps.
3. The reason i think theres a borrowed neutral is that there was a missing neutral indicating on my martindale from the skt upstairs, i went to change the skt downstairs and noticed a neutral had fell out its connection and once connected skts started working upstairs.
4.All connections are secure in each skt's terminal.

I thought that the conductor may have snapped in the circuit in the wall somewhere but i thought this may be unlikely at first.....
 
That just means that all or some of the sockets upstairs are on same circuit as the socket you replaced the neutral in downstairs.You should test that circuit correctly to make sure there are no other faults!!
 
Right guys am an apprenice,
All mcbs are switched on
2. Test equipment i am using : Di-log6780 test lamps.
3. The reason i think theres a borrowed neutral is that there was a missing neutral indicating on my martindale from the skt upstairs, i went to change the skt downstairs and noticed a neutral had fell out its connection and once connected skts started working upstairs.
4.All connections are secure in each skt's terminal.

I thought that the conductor may have snapped in the circuit in the wall somewhere but i thought this may be unlikely at first.....

OK so if the sockets started working upstairs then what does'nt work ? As for the conductor snapping in the wall, unless the wall has been drilled or disturbed / damaged then that wont happen. Still dont understand the POTENTIAL TO BE LIVE bit.
If your an apprentice Electrician then it may be a good idea to get the Sparkie your working with to go through testing the circuit with you.
 
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All 4 are not working anymore, they all suddenly just stopped working. The voltage indicator on my test lamps is lit up... thought that may mean there is a voltage present or something along they lines.
 
Best advice Stevo, turn off the circuit, prove it's dead then go through the procedure for testing as if it were a new circuit you had ran in. That should tell you which sockets are on the circuit in question and where the problem is
 
All 4 are not working anymore, they all suddenly just stopped working. The voltage indicator on my test lamps is lit up... thought that may mean there is a voltage present or something along they lines.

When you say the voltage indicator on the test lamps, do you mean the small LED to the right with a lightning flash at the side of it ? If so it's showing that you have a Live but also telling you that you've got a dropped Neutral you can prove this by Testing Live / Earth for 240v.
Be warned: Some of these Di-Logs will trip the RCD doing this.
 
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Yep its on the right hand side with the lightning flash.... even when i test live/earth still dont 230v, still just comes up with the lightning flash LED lit...... Its starting to really bug me now, it dont have a clue whats going on .
 
When you go live to Earth, what does it show ? Have you got a Non contact tester ? it would prove that you've got a live. Next thing i'd be doing was opening up the fronts on the sockets that dont work & checking them all first, you also need to check the socket you found with the Neutral out.

Remember: Power off & use your tester to prove safe isolation first, you'd be better off leaving it till tomorrow when you've got daylight & your minds fresh. Think about whats going on with the wiring & you may realise you've missed something, we've all done it.
 
When i go live to earth it doesnt show that i have a voltage present but i have got the LED on the lightning lit. Probs going to leave it till tomorrow and i will check the continuity between all the sockets just to make sure the cable is ok between them all .
 

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