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Help needed with electrical stuff

Guineveretoo

Guineveretoo

Mostly bewildered
My trip switch was tripped a few minutes ago. Although the lights didn’t go off, it looks like none of the sockets were working. There’s a switch in the middle of the circuit breaker thing and that was down instead of up.

I was able to put it up if I put all the ring main switches down, but then it tripped again when I tried to put the sockets back on again.

Does that mean anything to anyone?

How can I work out what tripped it?
 
The circuit breakers trip if there is an error like a short circuit in their specific circuits.

So the lights didn't go off so they are ok.
If you turn off the sockets again.
Lift the trip.
Go slowly around the place turning the sockets on one by one until it trips, it will tell you where the fault is.
 
weltweit said:
The circuit breakers trip if there is an error like a short circuit in their specific circuits.

So the lights didn't go off so they are ok.
If you turn off the sockets again.
Lift the trip.
Go slowly around the place turning the sockets on one by one until it trips, it will tell you where the fault is.
Click to expand...
I did that, and got it back on again, but then it tripped again after about 10 minutes. I figured it was the pond fountain which, despite having its own circuit breaker in the garage, is also linked in to the house, I guess. I dont think the fountain came on again when I got the switch back.

I’ve switched a few more things off and got it back again, but am now fretting that it’ll go again.
 
And I thought the middle switch was all of it. Why isn’t the switch for that particular ring main going?

And how come I’ve got a switch for “kitchen sockets” which doesn’t appear to have anything to do with kitchen sockets?

I think I need a sparky. But, right now, I need to sleep and not to worry about my electricity! I’ve got small grandchildren asleep upstairs.
 
Guineveretoo said:
And I thought the middle switch was all of it. Why isn’t the switch for that particular ring main going?

And how come I’ve got a switch for “kitchen sockets” which doesn’t appear to have anything to do with kitchen sockets?

I think I need a sparky. But, right now, I need to sleep and not to worry about my electricity! I’ve got small grandchildren asleep upstairs.
Click to expand...
I suspect “kitchen sockets” means those high power appliances that tend to be wired straight into the wall with just a switch on the plate where there would normally be a place to insert a three pin plug. In my kitchen there’s one of these for the oven and the washing machine.
 
Guineveretoo it sounds like the trip switches are not well labelled. While you are playing with the different trip switches you will probably come to learn which switch deals with which circuits in the house. It is a good idea to make a note of this for future reference. Make notes on a piece of paper and keep it next to the cabinet.

The fact that one trip switch is flipping is key to finding where the problem is. You have to go through a process of elimination to find where the fault is.

I think you have an idea that that switch refers to the plugs, to confirm that you could turn on a lot of electrical appliances, then turn that trip switch off at the cabinet and see what it isolates (what it turns off).

Assuming it is the plugs, you can then turn all the plugs off, go back to the cabinet, turn that trip switch up for on and then one by one go round the plugs turning them on, each time check to see if the trip switch is tripped, it should be clear that when you turn on the toaster or lamp or microwave whatever, that plug will trip the switch and you will know where your fault lies.
 
spanglechick said:
I suspect “kitchen sockets” means those high power appliances that tend to be wired straight into the wall with just a switch on the plate where there would normally be a place to insert a three pin plug. In my kitchen there’s one of these for the oven and the washing machine.
Click to expand...
Ah - that would make sense. I have one for the cooker
 
And it’s just gone again!

I went to bed last night having managed to get the sockets on apart from the pond fountain.

This morning, I got the pond fountain going again, but it just tripped again.
 
weltweit said:
Guineveretoo it sounds like the trip switches are not well labelled. While you are playing with the different trip switches you will probably come to learn which switch deals with which circuits in the house. It is a good idea to make a note of this for future reference. Make notes on a piece of paper and keep it next to the cabinet.

The fact that one trip switch is flipping is key to finding where the problem is. You have to go through a process of elimination to find where the fault is.

I think you have an idea that that switch refers to the plugs, to confirm that you could turn on a lot of electrical appliances, then turn that trip switch off at the cabinet and see what it isolates (what it turns off).

Assuming it is the plugs, you can then turn all the plugs off, go back to the cabinet, turn that trip switch up for on and then one by one go round the plugs turning them on, each time check to see if the trip switch is tripped, it should be clear that when you turn on the toaster or lamp or microwave whatever, that plug will trip the switch and you will know where your fault lies.
Click to expand...
Did that. None the wiser.
 
platinumsage said:
Surely this means it's the pond fountain. Isn't this a good thing? Keep the fountain off and all should be well.
Click to expand...

Except it’s not. The fountain is turned off but I can’t get the trip switch back on again at all now.

I’m running out of ideas.

Anyone know an electrician who died house calls, in the middle of a pandemic, on a Saturday?
 
The one that is tripping - have you established whether it's the main one (turns everything off) or it's just one circuit (only turns certain things off)?

Edit - in your OP when you say "put the sockets back on" do you mean, switching individual sockets at the wall, or do you mean, switching the trip switches on the fuse board?
 
Leave the fountain off for a while, then try it again, as part of testing all the plug sockets.
When you do that, make a note of which circuit is which, and what appliances / items are run on the various rooms / each circuit.

(it sounds like that external fountain is where the fault is located.
Is there a filter or something that might need cleaning ?)

My late father's house didn't like having the kettle or popitty-ping and the washing machine on at the same time, that was guaranteed to trip the sockets circuit. The temporary solution was to plug the kettle / microwave into the socket on the cooker wall plate is washing was to be done ...
It didn't help that the electrical system was somewhat random - the downstairs light was on the same fused circuit as the downstairs plugs but all in the one room, the only room. The upstairs sockets were split into left and right hand halves, but the lights were divided into front and back. The Cooker and Immersion had high amp circuits to themselves. Oh, and it had night storage heaters, with a spur to the immersion.
Yes, the house needs a re-wire !
 
... and have you got anything plugged into the wall that works on a time switch or thermostat? Like an electric heater? Because if that's turning itself on and off then it might make the tripping appear to be connected to you turning something else on and off, when it's not.
 
Things in my house that have tripped the RCD.
raisin in a toaster that shorted to ground
mysterious plastic toaster fault that carried on tripping the RCD even when I took out the earth
Hotplate that was OK once I removed the earth and put on a big sign telling myself not to touch it.
immersion heater sprung a pinhole leak
me cutting through a neutral, forgetting that the RCD would be sensitive to that too :oops:
Maybe I'm a bit paranoid, but I could list all the devices that are connected in my house at any time...
 
gentlegreen said:
Things in my house that have tripped the RCD.
raisin in a toaster that shorted to ground
mysterious plastic toaster fault that carried on tripping the RCD even when I took out the earth
Hotplate that was OK once I removed the earth and put on a big sign telling myself not to touch it.
immersion heater sprung a pinhole leak
me cutting through a neutral, forgetting that the RCD would be sensitive to that too :oops:
Maybe I'm a bit paranoid, but I could list all the devices that are connected in my house at any time...
Click to expand...
Jesus Christ, you’re a fucking idiot.
 
Supine said:
I'm sure electricians are desperate for work at the moment. Call one :)
Click to expand...
Can’t afford to call one out just to be told it’s a dodgy kettle/lamp/microwave etc.

Have asked my daughter to come round and help me try and identify it. If that doesn’t work, I’ll take out a mortgage to pay weekend call out fee.
 
Guineveretoo said:
Can’t afford to call one out just to be told it’s a dodgy kettle/lamp/microwave etc.

Have asked my daughter to come round and help me try and identify it. If that doesn’t work, I’ll take out a mortgage to pay weekend call out fee.
Click to expand...
Don't know if you missed my post but if you could post a picture of your fuse board there's a good chance we could get to the bottom of it :)
 
Guineveretoo said:
And it’s just gone again!

I went to bed last night having managed to get the sockets on apart from the pond fountain.

This morning, I got the pond fountain going again, but it just tripped again.
Click to expand...
A pond fountain feels to me like a very likely candidate for spurious trips - it only needs a bit of water leakage in there, and it's going to trip an RCD very effectively.

Leave the pond fountain off, and see how the tripping behaviour goes. If that solves it, all you need the electrician for would be to sort out what's happening with that.
 
Sounds like it's a RCD that's tripping and not a circuit breaker.

Switch everything off at the sockets then reset the RCD. Go round and switch each appliance on at the wall. When the RCD trips you know which appliance is causing the problem. Unplug the faulty item and don't use it.

Re kitchen sockets - there is usually a separate circuit for things like fridge, dishwasher, washing machine that tend to be plugged in under the worktop and are turned on and off by a set of switches.

Re pond pump - I had a problem with mine where it kept tripping the RCD that was probably down to a leak in the pump housing. If that's the case you will have to replace the pump.

Spiders or daddy long legs can sometimes get into the back of a socket and can trip the RCD. :eek:
 
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