Electrical Safety Inspection

Many people don't realise that just like their car they should have their electrical installation of their property checked out by a qualified electrician to make sure it's electrically safe, the good news is that unlike your car this doesn't have to be done every year but (providing it's in a good condition) every 10 years.
The electrical installation check is known under a few different names such as;

• Electrical Safety certificates.
• Landlords safety report.
• Landlords safety certificate.
• Electrical safety test.
• Periodic Inspection & Test

However It's real name is a Periodic Inspection Report or PIR.


Periodic Inspection Reports

What is a Periodic Inspection Report? PIR

A periodic inspection report is a report on the condition of an electrical installation, it is not as sometimes mistakenly known a safety certificate but a report on how safe the electrics are. It is essentially an MOT for your properties electrics. The report is usually a six page document (depending on the size of the property to be inspected & tested) and consists of
• Details of the electrical installation,
• Items inspected and tested and
• Observations & recommendations.

Why Have a Periodic Inspection Report?

As with cars the electrics within a property degrade due to general wear and tear and age or what was safe working practice 40 years ago is not today, therefore it is advisable to have a PIR completed on a property to check to make sure it’s ‘road worthy’. There are many things that are either are not seen or known about the general state of an electrical installation and these should not be overlooked, Just because a light comes on when a switch is flicked does not mean that it is 100% safe. A wire may be loose, a fuse or MCB (Miniture Circuit Breaker) may be over rated and not protect the cable which may overheat (this especially happens when too many adaptors are used in one socket) or it could be a DIY attempt gone wrong, all of these could start a fire. After having a PIR you may find it would be better and safer to have a house rewire, take a look here for having your house rewired

What is involved in a Periodic Inspection?

Firstly and most importantly an inspection of the electrics is carried out. Are there signs of damage, wear and tear or ageing components? The consumer unit or fuse board, main supply, earthing, sockets, switches and light fittings are checked to make sure the cables supplying them are installed properly and are suitable for the intended purpose and continued use. Cables that are concealed in walls under floors or in conduit or trunking however are not inspected, as this would not be practical. Any observations that are made during the inspection are noted and given a code, listed below:
• Code 1 Requires urgent attention
• Code 2 Requires improvement
• Code 3 Requires further investigation
• Code 4 Does not comply with British Standard 7671 this does not mean it is dangerous
After the inspection a test of the installation is carried out and the results noted on the report.

When Should I have a Periodic Inspection Report?

If you don’t have a PIR for your property then it would be advisable to have one done sooner rather than later. But generally a Domestic property should have a PIR every 10 years or change of occupancy. The frequency that a PIR should be carried out on other types of properties varies dependant on use and can be anything from 1 –5 years.


I hope you found this post useful

Paul Jennings

House Electrical Rewire

I find a lot of the time people don't really know how things work when they need their house rewired, and why should they? it's the sort of thing that most people have done probably once in their lives ever!
So I've put this post together from the information page from my old website, you can view my new site here Hertford Electrician

Electrical Rewires

Below you'll find some tips for electrical house rewires;

1. Before getting an electrician in to look at your property to quote or estimate for your home to be rewired, you should write down exactly what you want in each room and if possible supply a copy to the electrician. another great idea would be to draw a plan of each floor of your house and mark out where you want each electrical point.
   
   
2. As ever, you should get at least 3 quotes, but you should go with the one you feel most comfortable and that you see will give great value rather than the cheapest, you are making an investment in your property after all. The cheapest one will possibly cut corners, you have to ask yourself does it seem unrealistically cheap is it 20%+ less than the others?
   
   
3. You should ensure that you are going to employee the services of a professional electrical company with good electricians and that they are registered with one of the electrical bodies such as the NIC EIC, ask for the electrical companies registration number and then check this with the electrical body either via their website or calling them. If they are members of any other organisation you should check this too.
   
   
4. Make sure you get a detailed estimate or quote that includes cost of labour, materials and certification, also a schedule of all the work to be carried out, This should mirror you list that you gave the electrician doing the survey when they came round to quote for your house to be rewired.
   
   
5. Prices vary for an electrical rewire from property to property and can range (for a 3 bed house) from £2500 if you were to have just standard light fittings and sockets to £4000+ if you wanted the best brushed chrome fittings and down lights (these should be fire rated), extractor fans, security & garden lighting. Something else that can affect the cost of a house rewire is the structure of the building: Is it old Lathe and plaster with floor boards or are the walls rock solid with a chip board floor. Having a lot of furniture around especially heavy furniture will also be worked into the cost as it takes time to move it around to get under the floor boards or to the walls that you want electrical sockets on.
   
   
6. Having a rewire is a messy business even for the most professional electrical contractor especially when you are having your electrical sockets and switches chased in to the wall or down lights cut into the ceiling! It would be a good idea to put away items that you don't want to get dusty, If possibly you may wish to put them into storage.
   
   
7. Once work has begun, If you have any questions or wish to make changes, you should bring this up with the qualified electrician doing your rewire as soon as possible, Any delay and you could find it expensive as if work has already been done you'll have to pay for it.
   
   
8. At the end of the electrical rewire, you should receive 2 certificates one should be one for the electrics that includes data on the inspection and testing of the new electrical installation from the electrical contractor and one should be from building control to say it's been registered. These are both required if you've had your house rewired and you may have trouble selling your house in the future without them.

Welcome

Hi and welcome to the Electrical Advice Blog,
This Blog is all about giving advice on almost all electrical matters in the UK, It is not here however to give advice on how to do your own electrics. It's more a what should I expect to happen when I get my house rewired or is my electrician ripping me off!

I'll give advice and tips on electrical safety inspections, having a fuse board changed, your house rewired new electrical sockets.

So how do you know I'm qualified to give out this advice?
I run my own electrical contracting company in Bengeo Hertford, Hertfordshire and have done since May 2005 and I've been an electrician since 1995, I believe I do a fantastic and professional job. I also like to think that I'm honest and have integrity, and run a good company.

Why do I give out this advice?
I give out this advice for many reasons;

• To help people understand a bit about the electrical trade.
• To help people understand what happens when they have electrical work done.
• So people don't get ripped off by the cowboys that have given us a bad name.
• So people will have a better idea if the work is being done properly.
• To build a name for myself and my company.

I hope you find this blog useful and will post some questions for me and give me feedback on what you'd like to see here!

Thanks

Paul Jennings
Hertford's Electrician