Reply With QuoteMight be worth checking all the sockets just to be on the safe side and worth informing the builders.
My son and his girlfriend recently moved into a new build. We bought them a washer drier for Christmas. I went round to fit it for them yesterday. All seemed simple enough, water supply, waste and electric all in place in the utility room. Piped, plugged in and every muscle strained pushing it into the gap. Only to find no power light on machine. After trying to avoid the inevitable I ended up pulling the machine back out. Socket checked with plug in hairdryer and which didn’t work either. So out with the screwdriver to remove the socket face plate screws and …………..eeeeeekkkk a right belt up my right arm. Power off, faceplate off to find the budding electrician had crossed the live and earth connections, the brown neatly wired into the earth connection.
Fortunately once corrected it looks as though no damage done to the appliance.
I doubt the builders will be too concerned and just blame it on their subbies.
Might be worth checking all the sockets just to be on the safe side and worth informing the builders.
Would that trip the RCD??? live to earth like that? I think i would be having the developer back.
After moving into a new build where every socket was miswired I bought one of these and always check every socket in a new to me home.
In my case the builder was very concerned and checked every property on which the particular sparky had worked.
Last edited by SydR; 15th January 2023 at 21:07.
That would/should have tripped the RCD - needs checking ASAP.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
I am going to the site office tomorrow so I will ask re RCD
The RCD, is there one? could you post a pic of the consumer unit,must be faulty, go press the test button. Would also have shown up on the test at the completion and commisioning of the installation.
Do you have a test sheet/certificate?
Do you have a cert form building control?
I suspect here it was never tested, the cert is fiction. The installation is not right and the developer/sparky will get the wool out to pull over your eyes.
Originally Posted by MCFastybloke
The RCD, is there one? could you post a pic of the consumer unit,must be faulty, go press the testbutton. Would also have shown up on the test at the completion and commisioning of the installation.
Do you have a test sheet/certificate?
Do you have a cert form building control?
I suspect here it was never tested, the cert is fiction. The installation is not right and the developer/sparky will get the wool out to pull over your eyes.
Live to earth - the earth is obv not even connected back at the Consumer unit, otherwise it would trip as soon as energised.
Electricians………………….
^^^^^wot he said!
Jim
Sounds like the new build I was in for three months. Nothing, and I mean nothing, was done properly. No doors fitted correctly; every single door handle, light switch and socket was on the piss, gaps in the flooring, unfinished skirting, creaks and grumbles from every floor panel, felt like living in a paper house.
Utter junk. Moved out after three months.
On the plus side, it was cheap to heat and had FTTP. But those two elements weren't enough to make up for the junky build quality and shoddy workmanship.
The name of the sparky should be on the test certificate?
I’d imagine a dim view is taken of improperly issued certificates.
"Bite my shiny metal ass."
- Bender Bending Rodríguez
Just to clarify then gents. If the earth and live are cross connected ie live to earth connection and earth to live the RCD should have tripped on installation
This was the situation when I removed the socket
Don't think so.
No not on that, its a radial so no crosspollination would occur untill an appliance was plugged in. It never had the martindale tester near it tho.
It is how ever wrong,dangerous and a danger to life.
Last edited by MCFastybloke; 15th January 2023 at 22:20.
Even when not switched on metal parts of the WM will be live.
Thanks for that bought one for both our new build and my daughters house.After moving into a new build where every socket was miswired I bought one of these and always check every socket in a new to me home.
In my case the builder was very concerned and checked every property on which the particular sparky had worked.
Of course, the three conductors remain isolated from each other.
Report your findings to building control.
Having awoke fresh this morning my approach would be
Given the hidden and secretive nature of electrical installs, in that cable runs are hidden, a full retest i.e and EICR by not the installer, as independant as possible given the fundamentally dangerous nature of the one fault you know of
The screwdriver monkey was drunk,careless,not a sparks unsupervised and apparent lack of a proper inspection you just dont know what lurks beneath.
Did the MCB, small cuircuit breaker trip? did the RCD trip when you were shocked.
Really all aspects now need inspection by a third unbiased party.
Faceplates,consumer unit internals,continuity every aspect.
Who is the home warranty with, Architects insurance or national provider NHBC?
Maybe let the neighbours know before a fire breaks out, or a child is hurt.
Lets hope one of the neighbours works for HSE, or is a lawyer.
As above I would insist on a full inspection with visual inspection as well as testing. I would also inform all the neighbours and tell the developers that you (your son) will go straight to building control if there is any argument / delay.
Buillding control are a dog without teeth here, the leverage is the warranty company and the Sparks governing body. Both will need more evidence than we would all deem credible to interupt the flow of revenue and make a fuss. Shit but true.
Shocking story.......but certainly no laughing matter, I find it incredible that things like this can happen. Definitely need to get everything he checked by an independent sparky. The developer needs to accept responsibility, it begs the question whether the same mistake has occurred on other properties.
I’d advise everyone to buy a test plug and check all sockets in a recently acquired property, they cost a tenner and its money well spent.
The bungalow I bought in 2020 had been owned by a so- called electrical engineer so I got a surprise when I saw how poor some of the electrical work was, one socket in the garage hadn’t had the earth connected, wiring for the lights was a mess too. In hindsight I shoud’ve had all the lighting rewired, woukd’ve been easier starting from scratch than sorting out the problems.
There are 10's of thousands of new build litigation cases ongoing that I know of where sometimes whole new estates are death traps. One with 300 houses has incredibly dangerously installed fire break protection that turned a house into a roman candle in minutes, as it had been fitted wrong and the fire was funnelled by the way it had been installed.
I'd find one of these groups and have their independent surveyor come out and check everything.
From what I've seen, I'd not buy a new build ever.
Been out this morning and picked one up from Screwfix £8. Tested our two year old new build, no issues thankfully. Next stop is our daughters house whose previous owners were DIY fans.
Great awareness thread OP thanks for posting.
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