Slight electric shock

honeymonster · Post by **honeymonster** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 5:00 pm

Today I was changing some sockets, just a like for like replcament and so I switched off the mcb for that circuit and the RCD as well.

When removing one of the sockets I received an uncomfortable tingle from one of the neutrals

Any ideas why ?

Post by **ultimatehandyman** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 5:45 pm

Check the consumer unit and make sure that all neutrals from the RCD side are in the neutral RCD side terminal bar and vise versa.

I think a neutral from the non rcd side has been wired into the rcd protected side!

tim'll fix it · Post by **tim'll fix it** » Fri Jan 05, 2007 11:33 pm

or make sure that the live and neutral on the board are the live and neutral.

I worked on ahouse recently where the electric board had swapped them in the meter connections :mad:

honeymonster · Post by **honeymonster** » Sun Jan 07, 2007 4:54 pm

sorted

someone had installed a socket for the dpc and one wire was on the rcd side and the neutral was wired into the non rcd side.

Cheers uhm

markysparky · Post by **markysparky** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 9:05 pm

Doesn't make sense

If the live was on rcd and neutral was not and something contstanly plugged in then the rcd would trip permanently.

And it still wouldn't explain how the neutral was live if the phase was isolated

Post by **ultimatehandyman** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 9:24 pm

I bought an house 6 years ago and it had a socket wired into the consumer unit, I am pretty sure that the live was on the rcd side and the neutral was on the non rcd side. Or perhaps they were the other way around

?

It never tripped out once!

One day I was installing some more sockets and switched off the rcd, not sure about the mcb, but probably that too! and I got a tingle from the neutrals, I asked the sparks at work and he told me to check the consumer unit and I found the wire that was wired to the wrong side.

I thought that honeymonsters problem could of been something similar

markysparky · Post by **markysparky** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 9:38 pm

ultimatehandyman wrote:I bought an house 6 years ago and it had a socket wired into the consumer unit, I am pretty sure that the live was on the rcd side and the neutral was on the non rcd side. Or perhaps they were the other way around ?
It never tripped out once!

One day I was installing some more sockets and switched off the rcd, not sure about the mcb, but probably that too! and I got a tingle from the neutrals, I asked the sparks at work and he told me to check the consumer unit and I found the wire that was wired to the wrong side.

I thought that honeymonsters problem could of been something similar

Hiya Chez

If the neutrals were on the RCD and the live wasn't, You then switched off the RCD, meaning the neutral was isolated and the live was still on then yes you would get a belt from the neutral, because the live is still there. But if HM was correct in what he is stating then he should not have felt anything.

Only other thing would cause it is a neutral borrowed from another circuit.

Post by **ultimatehandyman** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 9:45 pm

Hi Mark

That makes sense, it was a long time ago!

I'll check with HM when he is next on, perhaps he is confused like me

?

markysparky · Post by **markysparky** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 9:46 pm

The other thing with the RCD. It works by monitoring the live and neutral for imbalances. So for a 30ma RCD Any imbalances which equates to 30ma of fault current would be monitored by the RCD and trip out.

So having the live on one side and neutral on the other would cause an imbalance between live and neutral and trip out.

I've seen it more often than enough after consumer unit changes with kitchen fitter wiring etc.

Post by **ultimatehandyman** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 9:50 pm

I'm sure that not all kitchen fitters are that bad at wiring.

This was a kitchen fitter-

markysparky · Post by **markysparky** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 9:53 pm

Nice

See some lovelys all the time. Must get myself a decent camera phone

honeymonster · Post by **honeymonster** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 6:01 pm

I am not sure which way around it was, but one wire that should of been on the other side of the CU was on the wrong side

It must of been like you say Marky

ban-all-sheds · Post by **ban-all-sheds** » Mon Jan 15, 2007 10:36 pm

Get your RCD checked.

If you have L&N wired to different sides of the split then you are absolutely 100% cast-iron copper-bottomed scout's-honour guaranteed to get an imbalance and a trip.