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Electrical

Electricity tripping several times since a spare circuit was added to fit an electric shower

Anonymous user 09/03/2024 - 3.25 PM

I had an electric shower and a booster pump fitted 3 months ago . An existing spare circuit switch in the fuse box in the kitchen downstairs was used to run cables from the fuse box up to the bathroom ( upto the isolation switch box on the outside wall of the bathroom) . Then the rest was fitted from the isolation switch box to the electric shower in my bathroom. The electrician said then there's not enough water pressure so I need a booster pump which was a surprise to me bc I said to right at the start b4 hiring him it's gravity fed and he was actually advising me to buy Triton T90 Easy Fit electric shower. However, the electric upstairs, lights, shower, downstairs appliances switch off/on suddenly very often. The electrician came after the first time it happened and only checked the shower isolation switch and said all it's fine. Now it's been tripping the electricity so many times and not even when I switch off and on the main electricity switch it doesn't come on. Then I later opened the lid of the fuse box and suddenly without doing nothing all lights upstairs and appliances went on again. What's the problem please? I am worried about faulty RCD wiring which might have been damaged by the electrician whilst adding wiring/running cables through the fuse box using the spare circuit for electric shower. We decided not to use the new shower since last 2 days but even without using it all the lights upstairs and kitchen appliances stop working suddenly anytime without warning. Is it dangerous? Can faulty RCD start a fire in the wall or the fuse box? The electrician is extremely unreliable and might not come and test everything needed for weeks. He also refused to provide me with Safety certificate for last 3 months. Now he did at last but I had lost of electricity problems and flooding problems since he fitted new electric shower. Any advice please?

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4 Answers

DEACON ELECTRICAL SERVICES

Rating: 5 out of 5
Grimsby
Think you are being a bit blindsided by the shower being at fault. If you have not used it and the RCD ( I assume ) is still tripping out, then it has to be one of the circuits associated with the RCD. Doubtful if it’s a faulty RCD but only a trip test would prove it. The RCD does not provide overload protection the MCB does that. The RCD provides fault protection it senses an imbalance, if it does this then it will trip. It needs an electrician, to break the circuits down, armed with some common sense, multifunction tester, and decent at fault finding. I personally would start at the consumer unit check for tightness of connections, Rcd tripping times, then check each circuit as I went that is off the Rcd.
Answered28 September 2021
4

Internal Repairs

Rating: 5 out of 5
Epsom
If power is suddenly being restored just by adjusting an enclosure then it sounds like a loose connection. My advice would be to take some pictures of all the parts of the installation and then put an ad on my builder and have someone else take a look. Get a few opinions. It won't cost you anything.
Answered28 September 2021
3

M.ASHWORTH ELECTRICAL LTD

Rating: 5 out of 5
Manchester
You should have a competent electrician carry out an electrical installation condition report (EICR) this will identify any faults and remedial works required.
Answered28 September 2021
2

Anonymous user

Hello Diana. You've already asked about this in the first question you posted. My guess is a loose connection on the RCD serving the circuits. I support Deacons view that you are focused too much on the shower circuit. The loss of multiple circuits that come back on intermittently is pointing to a loose connection, disturbed when work was carried out on adding the new circuit. Please ask your electrician to check ALL terminations inside the CU for tightness. Its a simple check and I am confident it will resolve the issue.
Answered30 September 2021
0