On 21/10/2014 23:30, Uncle Peter wrote:
On Tue, 21 Oct 2014 22:03:40 +0100, ARW
wrote:

"Uncle Peter" wrote in message
news
On Tue, 21 Oct 2014 21:06:07 +0100, ARW
wrote:

"Uncle Peter" wrote in message
news A woman just told me she had her house rewired because it hadn't been
done
for 30 years. Have you ever bothered? I mean if it works, why not
just
leave it? Wire doesn't rot.


30 years seems short time for a rewire unless there is also a major
refurb
going on.

I've always heard 25-30 years stated as the recommended rewiring
schedule.
She was refurbishing the house BECAUSE it had just been rewired,
leaving a
mess.


Don't listen to small talk.

It appears she did. And when I said I had fuses she was horrified.

Most women are 'horrified' about the things that blokes take for
granted, like :-

Non-fluffy towels
Pampas green bathroom suites
Free standing fridges (as opposed to built-in)
Effective Baxi Bermuda back boilers with radiant fire in front
Single glazing in otherwise sound, well painted windows.
Vauxhall Astras

I have all the above, except for the back-boiler, and that only went
because the twots that built the house in 1976 threw all the cement
snots inside the cavity walls and even inside the class 2 flue blocks.

The only 'problem' with houses built with modern PVC wiring but before
1984, is that the CPC is only 1mm. After 1984 it was 1.5mm. With
rewireable fuses this (AFAIK) extends the cut-off time before the fuse
blows after a serious fault. But there are fault conditions that will
still kill but not blow the fuse. RCD's together with equipotential
bonding will prvent this. Fitting MCB's on their own, in place of
rewireable fuses will not save lives. In fact in densely occupied areas
like central London the capacitance(??) in the supply system can melt
cheaper MCB's before they can cut off.