Codebreakers #51

Need help with cracking those EICR codes? The technical team at NAPIT, with the help of the 18th Edition Codebreakers publication, answer your latest coding queries. Click on the photos for a closer look!

CHRIS ELLIOTT: THIS RANKS AS ONE OF THE WORST INSPECTIONS I’VE EVER CARRIED OUT!

Unfortunately, a lack of understanding of basic installation techniques and disregard for safety often produces this kind of work. There are five issues to look at here, and I’ll work through them in no particular order:

Firstly, and possibly most important, the cpc has been cut and not terminated appropriately. This is also leading to a failure to supply a cpc throughout the length of the circuit and to each termination point. It is very likely that there is only a cpc at the first downlight position, and then it’s unlikely to be terminated correctly.

Secondly, there is too much of the sheath of the twin and earth cable stripped back, leaving an excessive amount of single insulation exposed.

Thirdly, there is no cable clamp used to support the cables, albeit there is one of the screws for it. This leaves the cable unsupported and can cause the internal terminations to become loose if there is any strain on them. Even if the cable clamp was in place, it would most likely damage the exposed single insulation, as it is not designed to be subjected to those kinds of forces.

Fourth, it’s very unlikely that the manufacturer’s instructions have been taken into account for the terminations or the ceiling penetration, as I’m confident this isn’t in line with the example fitting displayed in their fitting instructions.

Fifth, and more of a concern possibly, is that there may be more like this in the installation, so any EICR sampling may need to be expanded, or a code to highlight the further investigation of similar fittings may be prudent. As we know from the inspector’s correspondence, there were 34 downlights, all in a similar condition.

As you can imagine, there is only one way I’ll be going with the coding here.