Emergency Call Out
"Don't play with Electricity...it can kill"
Working with electricity from the early 80's I have witnessed two electrocutions, several burns, and fires from dangerous faults and many many electrical shocks.
Most fires are caused by "hot connections" which can start in the Distribution Board, in a pipe behind a wall, in a switch socket, wiring in the ceiling.
Most common Emergency situations :
- No Power, could be a result of loose or burnt wires.
- Circuit Breaker Tripping, could be a result of a short circuit or overload conditions.
- Earth Leakage Unit Tripping, occurs when more than 30mA of leakage is measured. Neutral down to Earth
- Faulty Appliance or a culmination of appliances that result in more than a fault of 30mA being drawn.
- Live wires on the roof
- No Earths
- Live metal cover plates
- Wires burning in Ceiling Space: Halogen Lamps causing burning of conductors.
- Distribution Board faults : Loose Neutrals, Loose Connections resulting in hot connections!
For a 24 Hour Service contact Rob on 071 533 6466
There is no call out fee.R620 per hour and R820 per hour after hours (ex Vat).
If the fault is deemed from Eskom / City of Cape Town the charge will be reduced to R320 plus vat.
Earth Leakage Tripping:
Step 1 : Switch off the main switch, earth leakage unit and all the circuit breakers, unplug everything and switch off isolators (stoves, pool, geyser, etc)
Step 2 : Switch on the earth leakage unit first then switch on the main switch, if the earth leakage trips chances are you have a neutral fault, you need to call an electrician. If the earth leakage unit stays up/on go to step 3
Step 3 : Switch on one circuit breaker at a time and wait a second or 2 as you switch them on, if the earth leakage trips as you switch on a circuit breaker, leave the circuit breaker down/off and move to the next circuit breaker, if the rest of the circuit breakers are reset without tripping the earth leakage unit then you have identified the circuit then you can start plugging appliance back in and switching on isolators, you will find some appliance don't work, you will need to get an electrician to trace the fault. If all the circuit breakers reset without tripping the earth leakage unit, then go to step 4
Step 4 : Start plugging in appliances and switch on isolators one at a time until the cable/ appliance trips the earth leakage, unplug the appliance which trips the earth leakage and leave it unplugged, you have identified the problem, you don't need to call an electrician, just replace the appliance, if you switch on the pool isolator and it trips the earth leakage you know it is the pool causing the problem. Note!!!! This is a very basic explanation of what might be causing the earth leakage unit trip and if in doubt call your local electrician. Finding an "electrician" capable of tracing faults could be just as tricky as the fault itself.
