Issue 04: March 2023 | |
Welcome to the fourth issue of our newsletter. Una-Volta is a channel on LearningLounge.com dedicated to producing the best online electrical learning and includes free content as well as very popular solutions for 18th Edition qualifications. !HOT OFF THE PRESS! - IET COP 5 on EV installation DRAFT FOR PUBLIC COMMENT NOW AVAILABLE. VIEW AND COMMENT HERE | |
Regs in Brief Video #4 Corrigendum on SPDs expected soon. Watch our Regs in brief video. | |
There is news that the IET and BSI will hopefully be issuing a corrigendum soon, and many hoping for clarification on the use of SPDs on Safety Services. Ahead of that, we chew over the issues with Gary Parker of the ECA to investigate key questions including: What damage should be considered tolerable? And, how can electricians protect themselves when a client decides to omit SPDs. | |
REGS IN BRIEF RCDs, who can decide if SPDs are required? | |
FAQ 1 EICR Coding. Decoding the codes, Best Practice Guide 4 (issue 6) is available. By Dave Austin Sometimes deciding on an EICR code is a head scratcher. You see something that doesn’t comply and feel it should change but what should you do? Issue 6 of Best Practice Guide 4 from the Electrical Safety First is now out and is a vital resource when discussing these challenges. Best Practice Guide 4 is a free download and covers changes made in BS 7671:2018+A2:2022. Electrical Installation Condition Reports are conducted under the requirements for Periodic Inspection and Testing on an installation which has been energised and in use for some time. So the purpose of an EICRs is to assess that the installation is safe for continued use. It is, as named, a report on the state of the electrical installation, not a survey of things that you feel need to change. Let me share a couple of the issues that come up, on my travels, when discussing the requirements of an EICR. 1.We are not there to ensure that the installation complies with the current Regs. Many sparks still ask if they are now required to fail an installation because it doesn’t have AFDDs. This question illuminates the general misconception. You are assessing an installation based on the Regs in force at the time of initial verification. A typical example is consumer units. If an installation has a plastic consumer unit that was installed pre Amendment 3 of the 17th Edition, it is fully compliant and nothing needs to change. It may feel wrong, now we are used to installing metallic enclosures for enhanced fire protection, but that’s the way it is. If the installation is more recent than BS 7671:2008+A3, then we would be making an observation that the installation does not comply with the relevant edition of the Regs. This would be noted on the certificate. If the unit is located on the sole route of escape from the building or under wooden stairs it would be a C3, further improvement recommended. During the EICR process we are often faced with installation changes that have been introduced in subsequent editions of the Regs. SPDs and RCDs have had changes made to their installation requirements but we only need to concern ourselves with their compliance at the date of installation and safety for continued use. However, if that older consumer unit has had a change, maybe a protective device removed without a securely fitted blanking piece installed, thus allowing exposed live parts to be accessible to touch, the situation becomes a C1. Deciding on the correct code does cause confusion but the distinction between C1 and C2 is defined in the guide. Let’s look at that next.
| 2. C1 or C2? The crunch is about whether danger is immediate or not. If a situation has danger present, maybe the lid is missing off a junction box (JB) so that live parts are accessible to touch, it’s C1. The danger is immediate and steps must be taken to make it safe without delay. It has been argued that the immediate danger is reduced if the live parts are inaccessible without human effort, for example if the JB is in a loft. You may have heard me make that distinction myself. Best Practice Guide 4 is clear that regardless of ease of access, unintended live parts present an immediate danger. If the issue is ‘potentially dangerous’ some other action would have to occur before the danger could cause harm. Absence of earthing at a socket-outlet is not immediately dangerous but would become an immediate danger if a fault was to occur in the installation or connected item of equipment. Here we need to code a C2. it’s still unsatisfactory but it doesn’t require the immediate remedial action a C1 would. By the way, in the case of a fault such as the reversed polarity at the origin, as well as recording a C1 and isolating the installation, that would require a call to the DNO on 105, to notify them of the issue. Any faults at the origin are not our domain and require contact with the relevant DNO. A chap in the front row at a recent presentation in Scotland told me about the black X (in the appropriate box on the EICR) for such a fault. Not a widely recognised marking but I liked the image! All the examples in this piece are taken from the Best Practice Guide 4. The important thing to know about this guide is that it is the combined thinking of all the main players. All the registration organisations were in the room along with the HSE, IET and BSI and examination bodies. This is the thinking of the industry. Apparently they all agreed. Yeah, right! Here are a few more situations. Have a think about the principles discussed and then decide what you would code it.
I’m not going to give you the codes because they are all in the guide. Download it and have a look. You will also see that the correct wording for the issue and the category the issue comes under is included. That is useful when describing the situation with clarity. I fully admit that I find some of the codes in the guide contentious. I’m fairly certain you will too. Amongst sparks it’s one of the great discussions. Completing an EICR is a skill that requires experience and sensible assessment of the usage and history of an installation. Fundamentally it’s all about keeping people safe and you must do what you feel is right. However, the importance of BPG4, Issue 6 is this. If you complete an EICR and a customer complains about your judgement, it is this publication that will be consulted to decide if your approach was correct. Download it, have a look and keep it for reference. Best of all, it’s free! |
For more info on course content, click-here to visit our dedicated blog page. | |
In the next issue, we will investigate how you can evidence knowledge of Amd 2 of the 18th Edition to area engineers for certification schemes (NICEIC/NAPIT etc). | |
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