As the title really, all of the sockets in the house have gone off.
There is a RCCD type trip switch which has gone off and won't stay on. I have unplugged everything I can find in the house but still no joy.
Turning of the circuit breakers to the d'stairs, upstairs sockets etc., makes no difference.
Anyone got any ideas, I'm up for smacking it with something if that will help.
Matt
Perhaps check if anything is wired off a spur from a socket - like a shaving plug in the bathroom or a shower or a fridge or similar?
As the rewire I did on our house got tested and passed today I'll give it a go (was a sparks in my youth).
If you are confident and the consumer unit (c/u) allows it, disconnect the cables that go into the top of the circuit breaker for each of your socket circuits.
Do all circuits to start with.
Then see if the RCCD will reset.
If not also disconnect the neutrals from the neutral bar in the c/u. This should isolate the circuits from the whole system and the RCCD should go back on.
If it does then reconnect one circuit at a time to try to see where the fault is.
If the RCCD won't go back on chances are it's the RCCD that's knackered. Bummer. Don't open the freezer door (stays colder longer that way and food won't defrost) and get a sparks in, in the morning.
Hope that's clear...it's late and I'm not thinking too straight.
if you can take all of the lightbulbs/lamps out of the fittings and see if that lets the RCD reset
If you have a tumble dryer unplug it. If the RCD now stays in you need to clean the tumble dryer capacitor.
RCB trip means a probable leak to earth. If you have unplugged everything then it's in the wiring not an appliance (you did switched off oven, fridge other hard wired appliances?).
If you have MCB's (Circuit Breakers) on each ring (way in the distribution board) then switch them all off, reset RCB and switch each ring on until it trips. Isolate the trip ring, reset RCB and proceed with the rest. This will get you partially working.
Otherwise the only advice is wait until tomorrow for a qualified professional to diagnose the problem.
Bathroom light is a common culprit
Can't find anything else in the house that should be on and isn't.
I'm not sure I'm as confident as you with electrics Kip so I'll probably follow your second line of advice and call a sparks in the morning.
Might carry on with trying lights and all that sort of thing, it's something to do!
Thanks guys
Matt
I fully agree with Muddy@rseTony in waiting for a professional to check the problem out. Only do what I suggested if you can isolate the whole consumer unit and you are confident of your skills. Bear in mind that confident and able are two different things.
How come you're managing to post this?
One of they new-fangled internet 'phones?
But then how is the router working?
Too many unanswered questions....
I suspect foul play. I think the OP is trying to lure an unwitting STWer to their house, and then overpower them and incarcerate them in their basement for 25 years, using them on a turbo trainer generator arrangement to power their home. In fact I'm sure this is what the evil plan is...
I would suspect their might be some sort of disturbing sexual element to this as well, but I won't go into details on a family forum.
Beware, people, for danger lurks at every turn.
Firstly, don't take the front of the consumer unit off if you aren't entirely sure what is going on in there.
As has been mentioned already, switch all the circuits off that are protected by the RCD. If entirely unsure, switch all the circuits off. Try resetting the RCD. If it dosen't reset, there is is a neutral earth fault, or a faulty RCD.
Unplug all appliances from socket circuits and switch off any fused spurs. Does this work? If not, I suggest getting an electrician who can check properly which circuit has the fault, of indeed if the RCD is at fault. You can't do this properly without the proper test meter.
If you happen to be in the Sheffield area, do a search for Eco Electrics and give me a call. I can get out to you tomorrow to sort it out.
try what muddyarse says - turn every circuit off on the board, turn the main RCD back on and then one circuit at a time until it trips.
If you can't turn it on with every circuit off then its a faulty RCD
Is the 'test' button jammed in?
I had something similar happen a while ago, and had me stumped as well.
It turned out to be one of the elements in our immersion heater.
If it's just happened out of the blue - ie you haven't been doing work to any of the circuits - then it could be a loose wire connection in either the dist board, socket or junction box.
I had an rcd tripping at the weekend and three circuits appeared to be the problem. It wasn't any of them though. There was a loose neutral in a spured socket on a different circuit.
I assume you don't have a plug socket tester?
Strange this is - our RCCD powered off Monday! could not find the fault at all - WE just waited 30mins and reset the power switch and all was back to normal - Wife suspected the iron as she said it seemed hotter than normal? tested the iron on the evening and it was completely ok.
Now, apparantly - and dont shoot the messenger, there are some big solar storms kicking off and it is said that these can have the potential to affect electrics - coincidence or something else?
Your problem is the neutral her mate....one of the circuits is shorting /has leakage to earth and as RCD's work on an earth imbalance between either live and earth or neutral and earth just switching off circuits and unplugging appliances wont solve this as the earth and neutral paths are commoned together back at the source....ok jargon over...what you need to do is disconnect neutrals from the board until the RCd stays on, that is the circuit that has the fault on it. It is a short term fix and will need sorting properly but it gets the power back on....PS i dont recommend you do this unsupervised but the choice is yours.
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