Keep getting electric shocks in kitchen.

[LiamC1]

I bought my house 11 months ago with no issues, after a few months everything metal in the kitchen starting giving me an electric shock when touched. After a few more months this stopped on its own, and has recently started again. We realised that it only happens when not wearing shoes, if that helps. Any help and advice would be much appreciated. Thankyou.

 

[DPG]

Went to fit some dimplex heaters the other day. Customer had already had a go fitting two of them. When I touched the casing I could feel some voltage on it. I said as much to the customer, they felt and said "Oh yeh, never noticed that" So took off the spur and even though he ad googled it and took photos of the original heaters wiring....That single 6181y is live btw. That was the end of his career in electrics. No surprise there was a live on the casing. So it can happen a number of ways.

Takes some doing to get it that wrong!

 

[MJPD29]

It does sound like lost earth

 

[telectrix]

booked in for a visit saturday. let you all know what i find.

 

[telectrix]

and I'm taking my AVO8 to measure real voltages. might even take my 1934 750V voltmeter for a jolly.

 

[ELECNEWT]

and I'm taking my AVO8 to measure real voltages. might even take my 1934 750V voltmeter for a jolly.

Don't forget your boots.

 

[Mike Johnson]

and I'm taking my AVO8 to measure real voltages. might even take my 1934 750V voltmeter for a jolly.

And a couple of spare valves.

 

[telectrix]

And a couple of spare valves.

i'll just borrow some out of the TV. she can record emmeroids and constipation street on the betamax.

 

[DPG]

i'll just borrow some out of the TV. she can record emmeroids and constipation street on the betamax.

Need a band 3 converter for ITV don't forget.

 

[telectrix]

Need a band 3 converter for ITV don't forget.

mo problem 'er in no.27 has one. i'll just nip over after dark and nick it.

 

[edexlab]

Had a job like this a few years ago customer reporting shocks from sink or metal appliances for 2 years

I was 7th electrician to look at this and spent 10 mins trying to measure this voltage before I started digging got 70v rising quickly to 120v then settled at 230 ish

found it in a few mins, went to check incoming supply polarity

earthing was originally TT spike still intact and the conductor was still connected into an earth block

I could see it was now TNCS
and outside 10 ft away was a new looking Tx on a pole and supply cable, asked the customer how old it was....
"2 years" .......

Tested polarity nothing unusual and did same again using the TT earth got L and N both at 230v to earth


Called Western Power got them out to check, showed him what I'd found he went straight to the Tx and checked

Lots of muttered excuses about the wind blowing a "Stay" loose in the Tx

I watched him change the connection to tap and said show me the bit that's been blowing about mate
His colleague started laughing and admitted it was connected up wrong.

 

[pc1966]

There is always a reason. Not always a good reason mind!

Some folks don't check the CPC integrity, and even if it is OK, checking the CPC potential to true Earth (as what is probably under the concrete floor) is not always done.

My only experience of that was a mate's father's home, said he got shocks from the garage door. Turned out no incoming supply earth to MET connection and recently an electric fire was added that the fixing screw managed to puncture the live. Result was whole house at 230V

No idea if it was just missing at the start, or some muppet had removed it for whatever reason.

 

[telectrix]

update. went round this morning. this is what i found:

mem rewireable CU. all outgoing cables no sheath inside enclosure, holes in to IP00, could park a bus in them.but the main fault was the 6.0mm main earth cable . comes out of MET up behind CU and instead of connecting to the CU E bar, it loops round and back to MET. cut and connected correctly and fault cleared. then. 1 light circuit had a 30A fuse carrier bodged in ( the blades are thicker, so it was hanging by a thread, just making contact. must have disturbed it when i took the cover off, so then sparks fron the fuse. correct 5A fuse was lying in bottom of cabinet. fitted that with a new fuse wire and lights on no problems. total time on site 90 minutes.

 

[westward10]

Nice update Tel, pics n all.

 

[Mike Johnson]

Why would someone do that with the earth lead, seems very strange, unless they where thinking it would clear the fault. ?

 

[Moley]

Just out of interest, where did the other (thin) earth wire go?

 

[pc1966]

It beggars belief that the first "electrician" failed to notice or comment on these factors when they went to look at it. Not just the missing earth but the wrong fuse as well.

Well done @telectrix !

 

[telectrix]

try and upload a pic of the cable entrys into CU. the 2 wagos are my doing. split 2 separate cpc's and extended into CU. temp. fix as i have quoted for a new CU to be mounted above the cupboard to get some slack on the outgoing cables and connect properly.

 

[pc1966]

Yes, a case for a new CU without any doubt!

 

[telectrix]

Just out of interest, where did the other (thin) earth wire go?

it disappears into the wall with the T/Es. was dubious about trying to trace in case of disturbing something else.

 

[Moley]

it disappears into the wall with the T/Es. was dubious about trying to trace in case of disturbing something else.

 

[pc1966]

it disappears into the wall with the T/Es. was dubious about trying to trace in case of disturbing something else.

In my own flat there was some 6mm running from the MET to "somewhere".

Later when a new gas supply & meter was fitted and they had to cut back the rear of the under sink kitchen cupboard for the external pipe coming in (no longer allowed a riser in the building centre) and LO! there was the 6mm coiled up ready to be connected to the cold water pipe.

Clearly they had fitted the kitchen before the sparky had got round to putting on the pipe clamp for extraneous bonding. Had been like that since the 90s I guess.

 

[Mike Johnson]

pc1966 I have just upvoted your post by clicking on the arrow on the right hand side, but I have no idea what it does.

Oh just noticed at the top of the page there is an option to sort by date or votes, will that change the order you see the post, could make a nonsense of someone answering a post immediately above?

 

[pc1966]

pc1966 I have just upvoted your post by clicking on the arrow on the right hand side, but I have no idea what it does.

I have no idea either!

But it is counting 2 votes (I presume?) though only DPG's 'like' is showing on the lower bar or the little notification bell thing.

 

[snowhead]

Never noticed them before, I've just down voted it then put it back.
If you down vote someone on ZERO it goes negative..

 

[Dave OCD]

try and upload a pic of the cable entrys into CU. the 2 wagos are my doing. split 2 separate cpc's and extended into CU. temp. fix as i have quoted for a new CU to be mounted above the cupboard to get some slack on the outgoing cables and connect properly.

It looks to me that the bodged MEM unit could even be a replacement from many years ago as you can see the skimmed round rectangle above where the cables are stripped back looks about the size of a 4 way Wylex ?

 

[Ziggie]

And a couple of spare valves.

One thing that reminds me of my dad is his 1946 AVO. He was a teacher but repaired radios for oaps in the town. His loft was full of valves.

 

[nicebutdim]

Not sure how I feel about this turn of events.

On one hand the question everyone was waiting for an answer to has been answered. On the other, there'll never be an answer to how someone came to loop from the MET right back there again. All very strange!

 

[telectrix]

It looks to me that the bodged MEM unit could even be a replacement from many years ago as you can see the skimmed round rectangle above where the cables are stripped back looks about the size of a 4 way Wylex ?

looked like that to me but probably original was a 6 way. most likely a wood backed wylex, or something even olser. it's a teaaced house, town centre si pre WW2. the MEM board probably went in when it was rewired ( 1980?).as all cables are pvc.

 

[telectrix]

it's a nice job to fit a new CU atop the cupboard, dig cables out highr to give enogh t make a neat job.

 

[Dave OCD]

The sort of job I like too.