Electrical Fault Finding

Fault finding usually takes place when a fault on an electrical installation has caused some kind of issue for the homeowner, such as repeatably tripping an RCD or circuit breaker, blowing a fuse, hot plug sockets or accessory plates, flickering lights, or burning smells.

Causes

Common faults that cause these symptoms include overloaded circuits, damaged or degraded cables, water or moisture ingress, incorrect wiring, combined earth leakage, faulty appliances and RCDs, and loose connections. The main fault categories are:

• current overload, where the circuit or cables are carrying more current than they were designed to (e.g. the appliances or fixed equipment used on a circuit are pulling greater load than the circuit breaker and cable size is designed for, causing cables to get hot or melt).
• short circuit, where line current is going directly to neutral without a load to resist the current (e.g. a lawn mower cutting though it’s own cable, shorting live to neutral).
• earth fault, where the current is partially or fully not returning back down the neutral, flowing instead to earth via a fault – or a person (e.g. water ingress in a junction box under a floor, or a faulty appliance).

Dangers

Dangerous (rather than nuisance) faults can cause higher current and heat than the circuit was designed for, which can create a risk of fire. They may also leave live exposed conductive parts or cables that could be touched by people, leaving an electric shock or burns risk.

Price

Fault finding can’t be quoted for as a fixed price because there is no way of estimating how long it will take. It could be a quick fix or take all day. This is because most of the wiring is hidden in walls and under floors, and the fault may not be at an accessory but half way up a wall. It may take time to split circuits, narrow down, isolate, and repair the fault. See the pricing page for hourly rates and get in touch for more information or to book in some fault finding!