# When a "simple" electrical jobs turns out to be anything but!!



## Dave7 (7 Feb 2020)

First thing.....what I know about electrics is how to change a light bulb.
Our security lights need changing as they were corroded.
The wiring operates the lights and the PIRs.
That was the seemingly simple bit. Switch power off, attach new lights.....simple.
When the guy touched the earth he got a belt that nearly knocked him off the roof.
After much faffing and head scratching it became apparent that the original installer had only used 2 core plus earth instead of 3 core plus earth so the earth is continually live.
To compound the problem the garage has a stand alone alarm running off the same wiring so 'somewhere' there is a box which steps it down to 12V as it branches off to feed the alarm.
All this was done when the garage was built so this box is hidden above the ceiling somewhere.
So......he now has to run new cables and cut off the old power.
What should have taken maybe an hour is going to take ?? hours PLUS x metres of rubberised external cable.
Its starting to get expensive


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## Phaeton (7 Feb 2020)

The transformer for the alarm should be in the control box


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## Dave7 (7 Feb 2020)

Phaeton said:


> The transformer for the alarm should be in the control box


That is what must be above the garage plasterboard ceiling and it cannot be accessed from above as it a very low pitch roof with no crawl space.


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## fossyant (10 Feb 2020)

I won't go near my MIL's house electrics - I shudder when I walk in the garage as to what's been wired upto various un-labelled switches. Wires going everywhere. At least my garage security lights run off 'plugs'. 

We've had to permanently switch off the alarm and two outside security lights as they went wonky - DIY SOS with the wiring in that house.


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## cosmicbike (10 Feb 2020)

Not uncommon, T+E is cheaper than 3C+E and it used to be very much common practice. Any sparks worth his salt would have tested it dead first....


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## Dave7 (14 Feb 2020)

cosmicbike said:


> Not uncommon, T+E is cheaper than 3C+E and it used to be very much common practice. Any sparks worth his salt would have tested it dead first....


TBF the guy who got the belt wasn't a spark as we thought it was a simple case of swapping new security lights for old.
One we realised it was not straight forward I got the qualified spark in.


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## twentysix by twentyfive (14 Feb 2020)

Dave7 said:


> TBF the guy who got the belt wasn't a spark


He is now. I saw that flash from here.


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