Electrical install question

[Guest]

There's power running from the house across the garden to the garage (garage is completely separate) via a grey box underneath a consumer unit. From the right hand side of the grey box is a cable which is not connected to anything at the other end. It was running from the box through a hole in the wall under a concrete path in the garden into a plastic tube. I've pulled it through into the garage for the time being, but could anyone tell me if it is meant to be there or what it might be for?

 

[Stu]

Someone had a pond in the garden before? 

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, Stu said:

Someone had a pond in the garden before? 

Could be. There is a well but it has been filled in. Maybe it ran to a pump in the well at some point but would that not come off the consumer unit rather than what I assume is a fused junction box? If not then is the cable live?

[Stu]

Probably more than likely for a pump or some lights maybe! 

 

I can't answer if it's live or not but I would isolate the electrics and remove that wire if it's not in use. 

 

 

[Bender]

As above, if it's not in use isolate and disconnect, if in doubt or you don't like electricity get someone else to do it.

 

Electricity is funny old stuff, I've had multiple encounters starting from a young age, others get one shock and dead.

 

[Guest]

6 minutes ago, Stu said:

Probably more than likely for a pump or some lights maybe! 

 

I can't answer if it's live or not but I would isolate the electrics and remove that wire if it's not in use. 

 

 

Added to the list of things to correct that the previous owners bodged.

[Guest]

1 minute ago, Bender said:

As above, if it's not in use isolate and disconnect, if in doubt or you don't like electricity get someone else to do it.

 

Electricity is funny old stuff, I've had multiple encounters starting from a young age, others get one shock and dead.

 

I'll do little bits, light fittings, sockets and the like. Not overly keen on it. Knowledge low, risk factors high.

[Bender]

6 minutes ago, goat said:

I'll do little bits, light fittings, sockets and the like. Not overly keen on it. Knowledge low, risk factors high.

If rod hull had got a portable aerial he would still be with us, better to know your limits than be remembered fondly  

[Stu]

If you can isolate the incoming supply at the house then do that and away you go 

 

I suspect it may already be dead though otherwise you will have had some issues already if its just cut? 

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, Stu said:

If you can isolate the incoming supply at the house then do that and away you go 

 

I suspect it may already be dead though otherwise you will have had some issues already if its just cut? 

Yeah that's my thoughts. The cut end has just been outside in a tube where it would get wet etc. I'll isolate and open the box up and take a gander. 

[Bender]

One of my most dazzling moments with electricity was pairing back a 2.5mm swa cable that had been laying on the ground with a cut end for over a year, asked site owner if it was definitely isolated, yes said he, I then proceed to wedge it against an earth rod, no sparks, good enough for me.

 

As I cut through the live  the blinding flash disintegrated the blade on my knife, luckily the short was mostly done at the point of cut and not through me.

 

Never belive anything anyone tells you where your life is concerned  

 

[Guest]

21 minutes ago, Bender said:

One of my most dazzling moments with electricity was pairing back a 2.5mm swa cable that had been laying on the ground with a cut end for over a year, asked site owner if it was definitely isolated, yes said he, I then proceed to wedge it against an earth rod, no sparks, good enough for me.

 

As I cut through the live  the blinding flash disintegrated the blade on my knife, luckily the short was mostly done at the point of cut and not through me.

 

Never belive anything anyone tells you where your life is concerned  

 

Especially in this house. Any assumption something has been done properly is misguided. I'll be very cautious. If it comes to it, I'm more than happy to get someone in to check through it all and I'll crack on with one of the other jobs that need doing.

[Mississippi Bullfrog]

Our last house had something similar. At the back it fed a fountain pump and at the front it went nowhere but had obviously been put in for lighting around the drive. They were both live even though the front one went nowhere.

 

The house before that we inherited an electric system half of which bypassed the fusebox because it was too old to cope with the load.

 

The washing machine socket was fed by a wire running up to the bathroom razor socket held in with matchsticks. The outside shed socket was fed by a two core wire running round the aluminium kitchen window frame. This had perished so the frame was live. It had no earth and wasn't fused.

 

There were live wires buried in plaster in our daughter's bedroom so when you soaked the wallpaper off the lights came on by themselves.

 

The previous owner was a keen DIYer.

[Fleck]

KFC metro centre 10+ years ago. I got on the cold store roofs to connect the armoured cables the sparky couldn't be bothered to do so I could commission them. I banged the end of the cables down on the metal roof skin and BANG! The freezer was 3 phase too I can confirm the MCBs work

[Bender]

32 minutes ago, Fleck said:

KFC metro centre 10+ years ago. I got on the cold store roofs to connect the armoured cables the sparky couldn't be bothered to do so I could commission them. I banged the end of the cables down on the metal roof skin and BANG! The freezer was 3 phase too I can confirm the MCBs work

Keeps you on your toes