So you've had an electrical safety check carried out by your local electrician in High Wycombe and the report has come back with a list of observations on it which have had a code put next to them. What do they mean and how bad are the issues?
C1 - Danger Present
Examples of situations attracting this code would be that some exposed connections have been found or some conductive parts have become live. A circuit has no fusing or the polarity of the installation is reversed ie. live is connected to neutral and neutral is connected to live. These are very serious problems and would usually be rectified during the inspection so that they can be coded as C2 instead.
C2 - Potentially Dangerous
This code is used where there is a situation that is not immediately dangerous but would become dangerous under fault conditions. Examples of this would be the absence of any earthing or the lack of earthing in a circuit with metal accessories. Also no RCD (Residual Current Device) protection on circuits where required.
C3 - Improvement recommended
Code 3's are given when some parts of the installation are not necessarily dangerous but do not comply with the current version of BS7671 The Wiring Regulations. Examples would be Type AC RCD's being used instead of Type A, the consumer unit being plastic and not metal and circuits not labelled correctly.
FI - Further inverstigation required without delay
FI is used when, for instance, a break is discovered in a socket ring final circuit and further investigation would be required in order to find out where the break is. Also if a circuit is unknown then it would need to be traced.
EICR Electrician in High Wycombe
If a report has any code 1, 2 and/or FI's then the electrical installation is considered to be 'unsatisfactory'. If the report had only code 3's and no others then the installation can be deemed as 'satisfactory' but it is strongly recommended the code 3's are addressed.
Electrical Installation Condition Reports are a legal requirement for rented accommodation in the UK and should be carried out every 5 years. They are also a good idea to have done when purchasing a new house.
Get in touch with me to book you EICR in High Wycombe.
