Hi folks,

I recently bought a bargain priced one bedroom flat. The building appears
to have been converted from a 4-storey house into 4 separate flats in the
mid-80s. Unfortunately during the conversion it would appear that several
shortcuts were taken.

I have been doing little bits n pieces of DIY around the place, in the
majority I have been decorating, but I have also replaced a couple of the
pendant lights. It was when I noticed the rubber insulation around the
cables and the lack of an Earth wire I got worried.

Does anyone know how old my wiring is likely to be? What is the legal
position on earth wires in lighting circuits?

BTW, I checked the power circuits and they seem to have been rewired
recently (in the last 20 years at any rate).

--
Fishter
unhook to email me | http://www.fishter.org.uk/
I'll bet your hobby is Taxidermy

Fishter wrote in message ...
Hi folks,

I recently bought a bargain priced one bedroom flat. The building appears
to have been converted from a 4-storey house into 4 separate flats in the
mid-80s. Unfortunately during the conversion it would appear that several
shortcuts were taken.

I have been doing little bits n pieces of DIY around the place, in the
majority I have been decorating, but I have also replaced a couple of the
pendant lights. It was when I noticed the rubber insulation around the
cables and the lack of an Earth wire I got worried.

Does anyone know how old my wiring is likely to be? What is the legal
position on earth wires in lighting circuits?

BTW, I checked the power circuits and they seem to have been rewired
recently (in the last 20 years at any rate).

Hi.

My first question would be what condition is the rubber in? If its
shot, falling apart, it needs doing asap. OTOH?


Regards, NT

Does anyone know how old my wiring is likely to be? What is the
legal position on earth wires in lighting circuits?

The lack of earth isn't much of an issue, especially if you avoid metal
fixtures. The rubber issue is much more serious. It has an expected 25 year
life and hasn't been installed for 40 years. Obviously, it lasts better in
some cases and worse in others, but it should need replacing by now. How
urgent it is might be determined by an insulation resistance test, although
even if it passes, it should really be replaced. You could always install
wall lighting in every room. ;-)

Christian.