Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?
Simon.

On Wed, 7 Jan 2009 03:55:14 -0800 (PST), sm_jamieson
wrote:

Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?

Perhaps they intend to replace the feeder cable at the same time -
although I'd have thought that they'd charge a (hefty) fee for that...

--
Frank Erskine

In article
,
sm_jamieson wrote:
Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?

If all they were doing was replacing the main fuse, this doesn't actually
mean 'working live' IMHO. So it means they must be replacing the header or
incoming cable.

--
*This message has been ROT-13 encrypted twice for extra security *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 7 Jan, 13:04, "Dave Plowman (News)" wrote:
In article
,
* *sm_jamieson wrote:

Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?

If all they were doing was replacing the main fuse, this doesn't actually
mean 'working live' IMHO. So it means they must be replacing the header or
incoming cable.

Replacing the incoming cable would involve moling and a hole in the
house as well as in the pavement. I guess they'll change the header
and fuse block etc in the house.
I'll just have to wait as see what they do.
Simon.

On Wed, 7 Jan 2009 03:55:14 -0800 (PST), sm_jamieson wrote:

Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?

At a guess, you have an old metal-clad bitmen-filled cutout. Strictly
speaking, the main fuse is part of this assembly, but people tend to refer
to the whole thing as 'the main fuse'.

They'll dig down to the service cable, make a temporary cut, change the
termination on the end of the cable and then put a straight joint onto the
cable. Time you're actually off, about an hour, give or take.


--
The Wanderer

Whenever I look for something, it's always in the last place I look.

In article ,
The Wanderer writes:
On Wed, 7 Jan 2009 03:55:14 -0800 (PST), sm_jamieson wrote:

Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?

At a guess, you have an old metal-clad bitmen-filled cutout. Strictly
speaking, the main fuse is part of this assembly, but people tend to refer
to the whole thing as 'the main fuse'.

They'll dig down to the service cable, make a temporary cut, change the
termination on the end of the cable and then put a straight joint onto the

And how to they aviod doing that live ;-)

cable. Time you're actually off, about an hour, give or take.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

On 07 Jan 2009 18:50:06 GMT, Andrew Gabriel wrote:

In article ,
The Wanderer writes:
On Wed, 7 Jan 2009 03:55:14 -0800 (PST), sm_jamieson wrote:

Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?

At a guess, you have an old metal-clad bitmen-filled cutout. Strictly
speaking, the main fuse is part of this assembly, but people tend to refer
to the whole thing as 'the main fuse'.

They'll dig down to the service cable, make a temporary cut, change the
termination on the end of the cable and then put a straight joint onto the

And how to they aviod doing that live ;-)

Oh, plenty of approved procedures for live work on various bits of lv
equipment, the problem is working on - for instance - a metal-clad
cutout[1], which can't easily be carried out, mainly coz it may well
involve a lump hammer, a chisel or old screwdriver and perhaps a gas
torch......

[1] which don't exist anywhere on the system coz lots of chief engineers
reported many years ago to the appropriate ministry that all these obsolete
items had been changed......[2]

[2] Not that I'm cynical, you appreciate.


--
The Wanderer

It pays to buy things you dislike. They last much longer.

sm_jamieson wrote:
Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my house main
electricity fuse (to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have to dig a hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?
Simon.
In my case it was simply open a substation door, and change a fuse..

On 7 Jan, 11:55, sm_jamieson wrote:
Balfour Beatty are coming on jan 14th to upgrade my housemain
electricityfuse(to 100A). No fee is involved. I've been told they
cannot work live, and so will have todiga hole in the pavement (I
assume this is to disconnect something). But surely there is no magic
switch under the pavement ?
Anyone know what they will actually do ?
Simon.

Just to report back ...
Well they came, located the cable with a cable detector, dug a hole,
then said they couldn't find the cable. At the same time, the guy
inside said "what's the problem". I said I just wanted 100A fuse and
an isolator, and british gas had said the fuse had to be done by e-on
first, then they would put in a isolator. Well, he had a good look,
said the termination is fine. Its old brown plastic, but no problem
with it. And he also told me the digital meter contains an isolator !
Its under a plastic flap with a small screw, and a label saying
"electrical contractors only". I also noticed the meter says 100A on
it.
So the guy changed the main fuse to 100A (think it was 60 before), and
I have an isolator anyway. Saves paying british gas for one !

I reckon the cable runs under next doors path and hallway, then splits
both ways into the meter cupboard under the stairs. Anyone know what
depth electricity cable is usually installed (1930s house).

Apparently, tomorrow someone will follow up and replace part of the
block paving they dug up. Of course if they'd asked first, they would
never have had to dig the hole at all.

Simon.

sm_jamieson wrote:
both ways into the meter cupboard under the stairs. Anyone know what
depth electricity cable is usually installed (1930s house).

450mm

--
JGH

In article ,
sm_jamieson writes:

I reckon the cable runs under next doors path and hallway, then splits
both ways into the meter cupboard under the stairs. Anyone know what
depth electricity cable is usually installed (1930s house).

18" would be quite typical.

Of course, subsequent landscaping and building can change that.
My father managed to find his electricity cable just below the
front lawn ~50 years ago after landscaping to level the garden,
although fortunately it seems to have been laid inside a sewer
type pipe.

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

"jgharston" wrote in message
...
sm_jamieson wrote:
both ways into the meter cupboard under the stairs. Anyone know
what
depth electricity cable is usually installed (1930s house).

450mm

--
JGH

....nah, them milliwhatsits hadn't been seen in Engerland by the
1930's - them was genuine English inches - all 18 of 'emG

AWEM

On Wed, 14 Jan 2009 17:53:03 -0000 someone who may be "Andrew
Mawson" wrote this:-

...nah, them milliwhatsits hadn't been seen in Engerland by the
1930's - them was genuine English inches - all 18 of 'emG

As I understand it the UK government promised to convert weights and
measures to metric in Victorian times. They should have done it well
before the 1930s and it is their incompetence which has prevented
this sensible change being made a hundred years ago.


--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54

"David Hansen" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 14 Jan 2009 17:53:03 -0000 someone who may be "Andrew
Mawson" wrote this:-

...nah, them milliwhatsits hadn't been seen in Engerland by the
1930's - them was genuine English inches - all 18 of 'emG

As I understand it the UK government promised to convert weights and
measures to metric in Victorian times. They should have done it well
before the 1930s and it is their incompetence which has prevented
this sensible change being made a hundred years ago.


--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP
prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54

It's all those Scottish MP's sitting in Westminster and clogging up
the various Ministries - they should all be sent back north of the
border to wreak havoc in their own back yard I reckon G

AWEM

On Wed, 14 Jan 2009 20:19:31 -0000 someone who may be "Andrew
Mawson" wrote this:-

It's all those Scottish MP's sitting in Westminster and clogging up
the various Ministries - they should all be sent back north of the
border to wreak havoc in their own back yard I reckon G

Scottish MPs have never had a majority in Westminster. Indeed, all
the MPs from Scotland, Ireland [1] and Wales have never been able to
outvote all the English MPs. Therefore, any problem caused by
Westminster is always the fault of English MPs:-)

I am aware that there are some MPs originally from Scotland who
represent English constituencies. George Galloway and Malcolm
Rifkind are two examples. However, they are English MPs as they
represent English constituencies. In the same way there are MPs
originally from England who represent Scottish constituencies.


[1] Whether we are talking about Ireland or Northern Ireland,
depending on the period.



--
David Hansen, Edinburgh
I will *always* explain revoked encryption keys, unless RIP prevents me
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/00023--e.htm#54