"Supplying Electrical installations

Covering  the North of England"

About Company

MENU

WWW.ELECSA.CO.UK

PART P COMPETENT PERSONS

REGISTERED

CALL NOW TO DISCUSS YOUR

REQUIREMENTS.

017683 71221 OR 07846643602

info@emt-electrical.co.uk

WELCOME TO EMT ELECTRICAL!!

Based in Kirkby Stephen, Cumbria we carry out Domestic, Commercial and Agricultural Electrical Design, Installation and Inspection and testing.

Our clients include domestic customers, Insurance companies, Loss Adjusters and local and National Business.

"Quite simply our aim is to provide our customers with a reliable, efficient and cost effective service that they can depend on time and time again."

As members of ELECSA  - you can be assured that all our electricians have undergone extensive training and assesment to ensure there competence in the job they do.

• Electrical safety in

  your home

  ---

  Page 2

  Electrical safety in your home

  This leaflet gives some general advice on electricity and electrical

  appliances in your home.

  FUSE BOX

  The electricity supply

  into your house is

  controlled by a main

  fuse box, usually

  found in your hall or

  in a cupboard. This

  fuse box, and your

  electricity meter, is

  owned by the

  Electricity Company.

  It’s a legal

  requirement that

  your meter must be

  read at least once a

  year and changed

  every 10 years. Apart

  from this fuse box

  and meter you are

  responsible for all

  other electrical

  applicances in your

  home.

  Your own fuse box

  (which is also known

  as the consumer unit)

  protects the wiring in

  your house.

  The unit may contain

  wire or cartridge

  fuses, or possibly

  circuit breakers if it is

  less than fifteen years

  old.

  There will be one

  fuse or circuit breaker

  for every ‘ring main’

  and ‘lighting circuit’

  in the house. The

  bigger the house the

  more circuits. Not all

  the fuses in the

  consumer unit may

  be in use.

  If a fuse or circuit

  breaker is broken,

  which commonly

  happens when a light

  bulb goes, you can

  simply flip the

  individual switch in

  the fuse box back on.

  However, if you think

  a circuit breaker or

  fuse has blown you

  should turn the fuse

  box off by using the

  main OFF switch

  before you attempt

  to replace any parts.

  ---

  Page 3

  If your fuse box

  contains cartridge or

  wire fuses, you

  should keep some

  spare cartridges or

  fuse wire. You can

  get these from a DIY

  store. A cartridge fuse

  is similar to a fuse in

  a plug, but usually

  much bigger. Fuses

  will normally be

  5amp for lighting

  circuits, 20/30 amp

  for ring mains and

  30/45 amp for

  cookers and showers.

  The fuses/circuit

  breakers in the box

  should be labelled

  with a description of

  what they are and

  which part of the

  house they serve e.g.

  lights, bedrooms etc.

  They are there

  for your protection.

  Always use the

  correct size of fuse

  for the job. If you are

  unsure you should

  contact an

  electrician.

  RING MAINS AND

  LIGHTING CIRCUITS.

  ‘Ring mains’ connect

  a number of 13 amp

  sockets to the fuse

  box in a loop of

   cable. Lighting

  circuits are similar,

  but with thinner

  cable.

  Cooker control units,

  immersion heaters

  and showers must

  have their own

  fuse/circuit breaker

  and be connected to

  their own cable, not

  a circuit. This is

  because cookers and

  showers consume a

  large amount of

  power.

  If your fuses/circuit

  breakers are not

  labelled, take the

  time to find out

  which ones serve

  which parts of the

  house. You can check

  this quite easily by

  following the steps

  below.

  LIGHTS

  1.

  Switch the

  lights on in

  every room.

  2.

  Switch

  everything off

  at the fuse box

  then take out

  one of the

  fuses or switch

  off a circuit

  breaker.

  3.

  Switch the

  fuse box back

  on again and

  check which

  lights are off.

  4.

  You will then

  know that the

  fuse or circuit

  breaker that

  you removed

  controls the

  lights that are

  off.

  SOCKETS

  You can repeat this

  process to work out

  which ring main

  controls which

  sockets by using low

  power items plugged

  in each room, such

  as a radio.

  ---

  Page 4

  APPLIANCES

  All appliances that plug into a wall socket should have a fuse in the

  plug. In some exceptional circumstances the fuse may be in the

  appliance itself. The fuse should be the lowest possible that will

  allow the appliance to work and should never be more than a

  13amp.

  If you need to change a fuse, follow the manufacturers instructions.

  If any of your appliances or hanging lights have fabric covered

  cables this could be a fire hazard. Fabric covered cables are very old

  and you should change the cable.

  FAULTS

  If an appliance stops

  working, switch it off,

  unplug it from the

  wall and try

  something else in the

  socket.

  If the second

  appliance works then

  this means the

  original one is faulty

  or the fuse has

  blown. You can easily

  open the plug to

  check the plug fuse

  and cable

  connections, try

  replacing the fuse

  and see if this works.

  If the second

  appliance doesn’t

  work there may be

  something wrong

  with the ring main.

  Try a different socket

  on the same ring. If

  the second socket

  also doesn’t work

  then you should

  check the fuse box.

  If you still can’t solve

  the problem call an

  electrician.

  If an appliance shows

  signs of overheating

  or you can smell

  burning, switch it off

  and unplug it straight

  away.

  The appliance will

  either need repaired

  or replaced.

  ---

  Page 5

  POWER CUTS

  It is a good idea to

  keep a torch handy

  in case of a power

  cut. Keep it

  somewhere you can

  easily locate in the

  dark.

  If the power goes off

  in the whole house,

  check outside in the

  street to see if the

  power cut has

  affected the whole

  area.

  If there is a general

  power failure, switch

  off as many

  appliances as possible

  to help avoid them

  being damaged

  when the power

  comes back on.

  However you should

  leave at least one

  light switched on so

  you know when the

  power is back on.

  If the failure only

  affects your house

  then do a full set of

  checks on your

  circuits and

  appliances.

  Your main fuse may

  have blown, in which

  case you should

  contact an electrician

  or your power

  supplier.

  Let your supplier

  know if you have any

  special needs in the

  event of a power cut.

  Make sure you keep

  them up to date with

  information about

  your needs.

  SOCKETS

  If your sockets are

  damaged then they

  should be replaced. It

  should not be too

  difficult, usually you

  will just need a

  screwdriver. Make

  sure the ring main is

  turned off before you

  begin this kind of

  job.

  If you don’t have

  enough sockets in a

  room ask an

  electrician to fit more

  sockets. Try not to

  use extension cables

  or multi plug

  adapters. The

  electrician can also

  check that you’re not

  overloading your

  circuit.

  You may want to put

  more sockets in

  throughout the

  house at the same

  time.

  ---

  Page 6

  ELECTRICITY BILLS

  Your electricity bills

  should show two

  readings, the last one

  and the present one.

  If the reading is

  followed by the letter

  E, it’s an estimate.

  Check the estimate

  against your meter

  and tell your supplier

  if it’s not within 10

  units.

  If you get a bill you

  cannot pay, talk to

  your supplier, they

  may be able to find

  ways to help you

  spread the cost.

  STORAGE HEATERS

  If your central

  heating is electric it’s

  probably provided by

  storage heaters.

  These heaters take

  power overnight,

  store it as heat and

  then release the

  stored heat during

  the day.

  Storage heaters

  should be on a

  completely different

  wiring circuit from

  the rest of your

  power. They should

  be connected to a

  ‘White Meter’ that is

  set to provide cheap

  tariff ‘white meter

  electricity’ at certain

  times, normally at

  night.

  Storage heaters can

  use a lot of power so

  the meter should

  have its own fuse

  box.

  If you have ‘white

  meter heating’ your

  electricity bills should

  have two sets of

  meter readings, one

  for normal and one

  for white meter

  power. Make sure

  that you check the

  meter readings on

  your bills against

  both meters.

  ---

  Page 7

  Save energy, save money

  Don’t leave TVs or other electrical equipment on standby.

  Standby can still use up to 60% of the power the equipment

  uses when it’s on. Switch plugs off at night wherever possible.

  Use low energy bulbs, they last longer. Remember to turn

  lights off when rooms are empty.

  Don’t boil a full kettle of water if you’re just making a cup.

  Only boil what you need.

  Don’t switch the water heater on to heat water for the

  washing up. Boil a kettle instead.

  Shut your curtains when it gets dark. The heavier your

  curtains the better to keep heat in. Use horizontal rather than

  vertical blinds. When closing them the lowest edge should be

  towards the window.

  If you have central heating turn radiators down in rooms you

  don’t use, they shouldn’t be switched off though.

  Keep doors shut to keep in the heat, draught proof windows

  and external doors. If you use gas, oil or solid fuel fires and

  cookers make sure you leave enough ventilation for them.

  Don’t use calor gas portable fires in your house - they produce

  a lot of water vapour.

   

  Page 8

  t