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You got me going there with your Earth leakage tester, I think I know why when you measured leakage on the pair of meter tails, it registered 11 odd mA leakage, and yet when you measured on that earth wire it measured zero mA, so what that means is the earth leakage current is not going through that yellow green conductor, but is getting earthed somewhere else , directly into ground either through pipe work etc, so that should stop you scratching your head. And of course, you need to enclose both live and neutral in the tester jaws, and any common mode load currents would cancel each other giving you any differential mode current read out, so even if you had a load of 5 amps you would be seeing 5.011A in the live conductor and returning exactly 5.000 amps, whereby 0.011A going into the ground through another earth point and not that yellow green earth conductor.

Some points for future. When using earth leakage meter beware you may not be able to read a value if clamping around the CPC as there are possible other multiple pathways to earth - the gas and water bond, you would have to remove them to see it. Looking at the imbalance on LN was the best approach. On RCD tripping you have to remember the cooker/oven has probably a capacitor built into the electronics which with the long run you had could be causing the tripping. If it was a type AC I would replace with a type A. For EV charging when you have to TT my advice is to carry a soil test kit. This has several benefits in that you put the right type of earth rod in. With soil ph around 8 or more you can get corrosion of a pure copper rod reducing the protection over time in using the charger. Two ways around this either get a copper rod which is anodized with a noncorrosive metal on the surface or get a larger steel rod. I would also surround the copper rod. In concrete as well providing more reliable earthing and reducing the possibility the earth rod resistance would go up in summer. Anyway nice work as always.

To resolve having 4 conductors in the MCB where you have doubled up the ring you could have connected one leg of ring 1 to one leg of ring 2 with wagos and then you've got one bigger ring 👍

Videos like this are really helpful for trainee electricians :)

Great video, keep them coming. Like your way of presenting bad situations and remedial work you have to perform (if you can) to rectify the problems.

Fundamental mistake there in trusting a supplier... with such a critical part I avoid booking in a job until I have the part in my grubby little hands because if a supplier or courier can mess up there's a high likelihood that it will happen!

My pal says most sparkys are frustrated plumbers. Great video again, really enjoyed

This has been a real joy for me to watch. Definitely liking and subscribing. I love the humility and honesty of your commentary. (Electrician in Iceland)

Oh dear I can read the details on the WEL Electrical Services sticker at 2:39

Been let down so many times by deliveries I now only book work when I have the ordered parts in my pocession!

If your 11mA of leakage isn’t returning via the consumer unit earth block, check the bonds and also clamp the water and gas pipes before and after the bonds, as it might be going out via services. You might have a screw somewhere through a live leaking it to the fabric of the building. Clamp the circuits and see if you can track it down.

Don't be afraid to name and shame, it's good for consumers. Wel Electrical Services (London).

I use a dentists mirror on the busbar when connecting up, very handy👍

Might have been worth linking out the two ring final circuits to form one ring, to avoid putting four cables away in one terminal. Always enjoy your videos! Hope the job ended well 👍

Good vid Like your positive attitude am sure your customer will be grateful 👍

I love how you big things up what are wrong but it is actually easy fix

Do love the dentist mirror for checking. A great idea. A phone can sometimes be too big to get in there properly.

When I lived in the UK in Luton worked as a washing machine tech 1966 to 1970 went out to Cambridge , Stevenage , North London all villages around Luton and Bedford even at times Canvey Island most I could do any day was 4-5 jobs 70 thousand miles a year 8- 12 hours Monday to Friday over half the time in traffic lasted before I had a minor heart attack so Jordan I know about stress and frustration with parts not delivered

Regarding the mess in the top of the Mantel box, we often use a piece of paxolin and a couple of little angle brackets to fix it.

Instead of adding two rings into the CB - could you of linked the rings in the board? Making one ring? Obviously considering the total length. Love the videos ;)

Great vid, love your testing and fault finding content. You need to to be sending an invoice to Anderson's Electrical for your lost time due to their incompetence. Glad you called them out though, might make them up their game 👍

The BG garage consumer unit IP65 is the best product they make. The remainder of the consumer unit range is bloody awful! Any attempt to do RCBO’s causes the din rail mountings to fracture 😡 Contactum on the other hand, I do like. I’m glad you said the DNO were going to upgrade the old cable head. I’ve an ace relationship with SP Energy Networks sub contractors IQA. 70% of all EV Chargepoint I fit need the cable head upgraded. Also, came across a new build recently with a series 7 head. Thought it would have an 80Amp fuse, which is standard....Nope! 60Amp! Thankfully, I carry 80Amp Lawson’s in the van.

That’s the first time I’ve seen a pvc gland installed upside down 😂😂😂

Could you not have joined one leg of each ring to make one big ring, if the earth loop wasn't to high.

Yep, lower left 4 looks a little loose..... Awesome tip on that mirror. Lovely job Jordan. You have probably mentioned this before but where did you get the cable stripper? Is there a link to it on your tools page?

Really like your videos. I'm learning a lot. Have you ever worked or have some kind of idea about the Heatmiser Neo Electric underfloor hating thermostat and hub.

Nice work mate not too sure about the 2 rings off one mcb I would of preferred to of replaced the devices with contactum rcbos which would of left 2 spare ways to use. Obviously a cost but a much better install along side the shiny new charger :)

No spares? I see 2 spares---if you replace the all breakers with rcbos. ;)

Metering cupboards are just that...for metering equipment, cut out, meter and DPI when fitted. Now getting more and more crammed with PV isolator and associated wiring but never (yet) found a CU in one! Surprised how the DNO fitted a 100A fuse in an 80A at best cut out.

nice work as always - fyi electricians insulated dentist mirrors are available - Boddingtons UK

That was an interesting thing I didn't know when you mentioned USB sockets creating a relatively high earth leakage current. Personally I hate the things as I think most of them are cheap and nasty chinesium curtain burners but it's a useful bit of knowledge to have.

Earth leakage clamp is always best to put round the tails for an accurate reading as the main earth will probably have abit of diverted neutral current going through it . That’s why it was overloading on the mil amp range.

unfortunately work like that seems to becomng the norm, and until someone gets a grip on the industry it wont change

I watch quite a few channels like this, and there seems a trend where when poor workmanship is found that doesn't meet code those who discover it don't want to name and shame or report them to the authorities that govern the installation standards. Maybe if there was some form of reporting, and some for of registration like in the gas industry there would be less cowboys around and installations would be a lot safer as anyone cutting corners would be "struck off" or have to pass some form of exam

Hello from US (please send help). Thanks for the video; always cool to see interesting differences between US and UK.

Great Job!! Good idea to use a circle mirror to see inspection. I am concerned about 100A of the main black box where brown 16ml wire. I noticed Brown 16ml wire on top touched on Natural (yellow) wire. I think you should take out the Natural (yellow) wire from brown 16ml wire then move above near the Main black box. Can you try this? Need a good safety. Thumb up!! Cheer!

Regarding the ring circuit, instead of connecting all 4 legs into the breaker, could you just Wago one leg of each ring together to form one big ring? Also do you have any tips for sizing (visually) meter tails? I struggle so much with this. P.S. You can actually get VDE "Dentist mirrors" lol

You may not have measured anything on the earth cable as that might not be the route the leakage was taking. A conductor leaking due to damp may not show anything on the main earth cable.

Those red and black tails rising into the consumer unit might turn out to be compliant. I've seen similar ones where there are two layers of PVC, with the sheath using the same colour as the insulation. It can be tricky to be sure without stripping a small section and seeing if it comes off in separate layers. I wonder if the cable can be confirmed as sheathed if it has the usual markings on it like BS6004 6181Y?

The metal box is original to the house, the consumer box is where the main switch and fuses were. This would have been the rubber cables usually in the wall cavity dating from the 1950s.

It's not an outdoor meter cupboard Jordan, it's a mantel unit and cupboad, very common in flats and tower blocks in London.

Very interesting Jordan, thank you. In this case it look like the customer misled you, to some degree, as to their rediness for you to do the installation - of course this may not have been deliberate, thay may have been misled by others. How you fo deal with this situation, for example do you try to negotiate an additional fee for you time in sorting the issues, or do you stand by you original quote and just accept that "some you win, some you lose". I'm thinking that, over time, if wins and losses cancel out maybe you've concluded that you have your estimating strategy about right?

As a foreigner I have worked on quite a number of electrical installations in the UK. Most of them looked exactly like this one, so it doesn’t surprise me.

I use a dentist mirror as well I covered the handle in heat shrink to give me a bit of protection

Jordan can you tell what cable cutter device you used in the consumer unit when you were fitting the tails. I fit smart meters & i am always looking for something better than cable cutters. Thanks

The DNO fuse was still in right? But you had the main tails isolated via that low level isolation switch?. But there was no lock off on the switch as far as i could see. Ive had main switches that switch almost with the touch of a feather. I was getting twitchy bum hole syndrome when i saw you working on the tails 💩 I also love the mirror for breaker/bus bar inspection. Absolutely great tip Jordan. You are a real inspiration and a bit above the rest when it comes to sharing your business on social media. Well done, hope i can be as good as you one day

Just wondering why the charger wasn’t obtained before installation date? Relying on on-the-day deliveries seems a bit risky.

The dentist mirror you can get plastic ones. I use a plastic one its really handy

Aside from the rising inflection at the end of every sentence - a good video!

Enjoying your videos, thanks for sharing! Is it the DNO that should be responsible for installing a dual pole isolator switch. I have a similar arrangement to how you described this property originally where there was no isolator switch just the DNO fuse to a Henley block used to feed two different (main and extension) consumer units. The Henley block case is cracked so I know it will need isolating to replace at very least and thought an isolator switch sounds like a good idea anyway. Contacted my DNO and they say they’re only responsible for the fuse and I need to contact my supplier (who I pay my bills to) for an isolator switch quote, does that sound correct?

Hi Jordan, love following your channel I have a question for you, why don't you like BG? I've fitted loads of BG boards and never had an issue my wholesaler stocks BG and Fusebox, twice I've used fusebox both times I've broken the lid clips, I've also noticed I have to cut the conductors quite short to fit them into the main switch and rcbo's, however I really like the blank mcb's they supply, keep doing the videos they're very entertaining and make me feel justified in taking pride in my work, there are lots of dodgy sparks in swansea.

I've been using these soft tails for a while now. They are so much easier to work with. It's best to untwist them a bit before going into the main switch. Does anybody else not have much faith in those small allen key terminals used for the 100a dp switch. I have tried to get a torque version. I use a Boddingtons T bar at the moment.

I really like your videos but the motion sickness is real!

Thanks for video. Tidy work

Same weather here in Singidunum as well

Boddington do a really good insulated mirror Good video Jordan

I would have joined the lighting circuits on this one to free up a spare way with it being a single rcd board. Does the ev charger have a type s rcd as I was wondering about the high earth leakage already

Why didnt you connect one of the lives from the downstairs ring with one of the upstairs, same for neutral and earth then you would have one big house ring. solves the problem of having 4 cables in a breaker.

15:13 - You have the lovely VDE allen keys there for show and then use the bicycle kit to do the job. Are you always missing the 2.5mm like me? I have three sets in the toolbag and no 2.5mm.

Shocking work does not shock me it’s an everyday occurrence. 👍

I'm on a looped supply and we managed to get 80amp fuse put in but that's the max (UKPN said as next door had 60 we were clear for the 80). Good news is the main supply comes into our house so any future work will be on her side and drive. Still think that's going to be a big big problem for the power networks in the coming years.

Another issue having this armoured cable wired directly from the mains means there is no discrimination from the other circuits. In other words, you can't isolate it, even if the mains switch is open/off. I really don't like installing load centres (consumers units) under kitchen bench tops, as main switches are meant to be readily available. (Australian prospective)

Great video. Thank you. Andersen should really offer you some compensation. Why should it cost yo u money and your client the inconvience! I have seen your other videos on Zappy. What's your recommendation? Are you able to compare/contrast these EV chargers if you have not done so before please.

Nice job and video like always

For the ring, why not connect one original leg to the other ring leg and vise versa so you only have two cables entering the mcb, but the 2 rings have been extended to 1?

The weird leakage might be via gas or water pipe. On one of my jobs i found 2Amps running in a water pipe . Even when main circuit breaker was off.

Thanks Jordan

Can I ask, why no earth rod for this EV charge point? Thanks

That is a mantel cupboard, these are used in a lot of council properties or on conduit systems👍

What tool do you use for stripping the tails?

In Holland we have to use a splitter on the rcb when we have more then 1 incoming cable

The box is original, not an outside box. It was fitted to council houses, I managed to get a consumer unit that was made for those boxes no longer made!!

Random question... Why was amoured cable used since most of the install was inside of the property. Would standard 10mm be ok?

When I moved into my house there was a 4mm2 SWA cable connected to the henley blocks. That was definitely a fire risk.

Once EVs become the norm electricians fitting charging points are going to be finding all sorts of horrors that will make this existing installation look good, rewires all round I suspect, bonanza time for electricians.

You are the only person (that I know of) apart from me that calls it Londinium lol!

thanks for the insightful videos. quick question, is it never possible to just use an existing, nearby socket and pull new wires through it?

Love the dentist mirror, just ordered one 👍

I'd definitely have chosen to have a new hole and carefully fill the old one... Hopefully with some sanding of a brick somewhere, some like coloured dust could be used to patch

I've seen several of your video's, great work Jordan! In most of your installs, I see you guys struggling with these tiny tiny distribution boards ... is that typical of the UK ? (Mine is 80cmx160cm by comparison. I live in Belgium) Even my secondary distribution board in the shed is bigger than the typical boards I see in your video's :-)

The modern consumer unit is a thing of beauty.

Hi Jordan. How much do you charge for this job? Do you always need an isolator between the meter and consumer unit?

You know you do not double up ring circuits like that. If stuck, pair the relevant ends to make a single larger ring. But old houses and installs in cramped environments are always going to be trouble

"I'm working in London today"......... get this man a doctor he isn't well.

I would of doubled up on the lighting circuit mate

It doesn't work around the earth because the leaked current is escaping the property by another path. By putting it over the tails and not the earth you measure what the RCD is actually seeing, which is the total leakage from the property not just what comes back down the circuit cpcs.

Hi again Just a thought why didn't you change all mcbs to rcbo plenty of space and contactum are cheaper than most and it could be left as is that would of been my suggestion Thanks

A beautiful part of London? Are you sure you were in Peckham?

What is the correct or required order of work to upgrade to 25mm meter tails? You're potentially requiring three companies: the DNO, the meter operator, and an electrician like yourself Jordan?

One of the gas pipes looked like it was blocked up with putty! Do you put a sticker on the works saying you worked on a take over job and not responsible for the messy tails?

At 27.25 - Ref measuring eth leakage current in main earth conductor - but NOT seeing any ? ( although the instrument appeared to show "OL" ie overload - it did show a current dying away to a small value when you manually switched ranges - so -was there in fact any current there? - - a bit vague here since you didnt stop "long enough" on this part to reach a steady reading) And - you said "you were not sure why this was so" when you had actually established there was indeed leakage current - so why is this ? Just prior to 27.25 you measured earth leakage current by clamping the test meter around BOTH line and neutral tails - which showed just over 11mA of earth leakage. This test device essentially works as a "current transformer " in the clamp probe which is "seeing" the "residual" magnetic field of the two line and neutral conductors This is because the magnetic fields surrounding the two conductors (tails) are in opposite phase since the current in the conductors are flowing in opposite directions - and hence the magnetic field will cancel ONLY IF the currents are EXACTLY equal - AND in PRECISE OPPOSITE PHASE ( point worth noting if some of that leakage current is "capacitive" (or inductive) in a final circuit) Because in this case these currents are NOT equal ( or also not in precise antiphase) - there is thus a small residual magnetic field that the probe "sees". NOW the IMPORTANT point here is the probe does NOT "know" whether that field it is "seeing" is from ONE conductor - OR - the sum of many - or - other words - the probe MUST and WILL work just the same on a single conductor carrying a current that produces the "same" magnitude of field So ... The Main earth - why no current ?? - we have established that the measuring device WILL measure current on a single conductor - thus- Since therefore - you saw NO current in the Main earth conductor - it MUST THEREFORE mean that the leakage current of 11mA or so MUST be going elsewhere - and - the only way you could "track" this down is to repeat the "two wire" clamp test for EACH final circuit -and see which one(s) are contributing to the 11mA. My guess is you will find that the current is going via circuits that have "other" external paths to ground of low impedance - so the main earth lead carries little of this leakage current "AT THE POINT" where "you measured" it. Having said all that - I'd like to know how accurate this TIS 560 is - when measuring very small currents of a few mA - This could be a good equipment "test " video for you to do !

This might be a silly question if it is never mind because I'm not too familiar with anything outside the United States with regards to electrical installations other than mainly out of curiosity and other things. But I notice at least on that consumer unit that there are multiple colors MCB handles does that correspond to the rating of the breaker I do know any old fuse boxes AKA consumer units with fuses they were color coded for amperage I take it that would be a a holdover for miniature circuit breakers as well but was not sure. Never thought about it before. Is there a story behind the color coding of fuses originally in the UK and other parts of Europe and elsewhere? But I do agree that the way they do things in the United Kingdom in terms of electrical to make more sense of the stuff in the United States in a way this that the other but why friend is weird is the way that things are wired at least in some cases. For example individual cables and the main service entrance Aiken a between fuse board or what have you consumer unit what you whatever you want to call it. I've heard various things over the years obviously. Also I think Indian rail would be a great way for anyting not just control panels and stuff and consumer units if we have something like that here in the United States with all this home automation and other things going on now they'll be so convenient. I don't think there's any component in some way that could be done with DIN rail at all nowadays. Also I do agree. 220 volts or above or so wherever it's it's at where you are in the country would be a good idea for a common voltage yes efficiency goes of Lowe's current required and if you had one voltage it would be easier to design everything instead of doing split phase 120 240 but there's I don't think there's ever going to be a harmless standard for the entire world but it would be nice. What would be even better would be one plug the entire world would bring up van one standard for the entire world but yeah you never know. I remember reading years ago about winner home automation was wanting to become a thing say about 1 Outlet that could be used for basically any purpose litter to be communication and everything else to one plug that guy fell apart you know. So essentially your computer could get both the ethernet and power through the same plug the smart coffee maker could tell that you were home and was morning and turn on live the same plug that the computer could have used. But one thing they did mention was having natural gas or propane Outlets with similar functionality which would be nice to be able to have a gas port for portable appliances or Heating I understand there is a thing like that but you don't hear about it much? It also very strange indoor meters as well although here in the United States the old days sometimes you would have that but in bigger buildings once in awhile you'll have an indoor meter. Also used to be here indoor gas meters used to be a thing I remember my uncle's place they had an indoor meter in the garage later on that was changed out I think some of that happened I don't remember. But in some places the meters are inside or a utility area or somewhere and I'll be just a gas shut off valve out of doors sometimes poking up out of the sidewalk.

am I wrong or is the supply providers isolator two seperate switches as apposed to one double pole isolator ?

for some reason, I can't stop thinking about the light switch cable at our house that has a soldered connection (literally) in the wall, where it is impossible to get to without tearing the wall open, and so the two light switches only have a single 3 core and earth cable going to them (the reason for this bodge was that the light switch needed to be moved from one side of the door to the other, as the door was being re-hinged)

That's not an old outside meter box. It's an old style indoor meter box. It most likely had an integrated fuse board when first pin in and when there was a CU change they ripped it out (it would have been at the top)

Can you advise me how you undertake the maximum demand calculation. Would this property not be over 100a?

Why is swa cable being used internally for the car charging circuit when you could run twin and earth to the isolation box and swa connected to it for the outside cable run? Then you could separate the earth at the box.

Hello=) Did u ever install EO charging units? Is it worth?

Great video. What was the reason some cabbies can’t get a home charger? Sorry, I’m not an electrician - just curious.