British Gas / DNO problem.

[electrician786]

I had to do a job today, I had to install and connect some tails and earth from British gas isolator to the consumer unit. The problem was that I found no MET supplied by British gas / DNO, so I phoned the British gas engineer and he told me to just take the 100A fuse out and then take off the cover over the neutral off and connect my earth, it was a pme system. I told him the fuse was sealed and that I was not permitted to cut the seals, he said its not our responsibility to leave an earth, it was the DNO responsibility. In the end I had to call british gas and arrange for another visit so they can install an earth. Right old mess.

 

[Evans Electric]

Just another example of the wonderful British supply system that remains in the 1950's . We supply you with 230V single phase and there may or may not be an earth because our system is so badly maintained .

I see Electrician 786 in in B,ham .....have you tried to get an earth connection in Sutton Coldfield area. ?

 

[electrician786]

That's about the third time I have found a new install by the DNO without an earth, it's shocking. No Evans I haven't, is it harder to get an earth there?

 

[Steve3948]

Just cut the seal off and connect your earth. Then give them a call and say you had to cut seal so you could connect your earth and when they have time can they pop in and re-seal.

They never will !!!!!

 

[ProDave]

Most supply heads have knock outs you can punch out to give access to the allen key heads of the earth terminals and knock outs in the side for the cable entry. So you can fit your earth without having to break the seal or pull the fuse.

Always a bit nervous punching the knockout out though, I worry about breaking the whole neutral cover, but it hasn't happened yet. If it does break then it only exposes the combined E / N block, but a humble call to the DNO would be needed.

Also, you don't need to pull the fuse very far to release the neutral / earth cover. I find if it's only been sealed at the top, then just withdrawing the fuse a little will allow the cover to come off without breaking the seal.

 

[Steve3948]

Most supply heads have knock outs you can punch out to give access to the allen key heads of the earth terminals and knock outs in the side for the cable entry. So you can fit your earth without having to break the seal or pull the fuse.

Dave a lot also have a little red plug/stopper, which you pull out exposing the screw connection, replace after connecting, job done.

Unless in black felt pen you see "No PME aavailable" :shakehead

 

[electrician786]

Dave good points, but the DNO have installed the cut out next to a wall so I can not get access to the side of the cut out to connect my earth. I've put the EC into an earth block, ready for British gas.

 

[SLIPSHOD & SLAPDASH]

Dave good points, but the DNO have installed the cut out next to a wall so I can not get access to the side of the cut out to connect my earth. I've put the EC into an earth block, ready for British gas.

Leave a tail for them to connect to or that will be another excuse not to do it !

 

[ProDave]

Dave good points, but the DNO have installed the cut out next to a wall so I can not get access to the side of the cut out to connect my earth. I've put the EC into an earth block, ready for British gas.

There's usually room for TWO neutral tails out of the top.

So if you can get the cover off, connect your earth into the top spare neutral connection. (there's no knock outs for the screws for that connection so you need the cover off)

It all goes into the same block of brass after all, so I can't see an issue using that instead if they have blocked off access to the side entry official "earth" terminals. If you get the DNO to do it, I'll bet that's where they will connect it if they can't get it into the side.

 

[Evans Electric]

That's about the third time I have found a new install by the DNO without an earth, it's shocking. No Evans I haven't, is it harder to get an earth there?

The joint boxes in the ground are cast iron and the earthing was originally clamped . From what I'm told ,these are rusting away and you can't get a decent Ze reading. Also they usually refuse PME .

I put 4 rods in on a job there and still got no reading whatsoever, something to do with the soil .

 

[CraigMac]

If its a new style Cut Out certainly in the Manweb area, there is a little grommit to pull out and the electrician can attach the earth behind it, and them specific screws are standard ie screwdriver, all other screws are used with the series 7 Hex key

 

[steptoe]

headbang

I dont believe what Im reading here

people are recommending connecting an earth to a supply that has no earth connection left, and with NO regard as to the suitability of earthing or otherwise!?

is this a massive wind up just for me?

or do we actually have members I thought of good standing acting like d!ckheads?!

if no earth connection has been left then its up to the installer to provide one,

not simply assume they can connect to the DNOs neutral!

 

[springcrocus]

I'm just finishing up on a house that has been converted from one into two, with the second half having a new supply. I was hoping to be on-site when the new supply was installed but couldn't make it. There was no earth supplied but it had a PME sticker on it. They also had to put a new pole in.

I phoned the local depot about it and the engineer said Yes, it's a PME, just stick your earth in the head.

Anyway, having a quick butchers at the new pole, I saw that there was no earth coming down the pole, just the overhead to the house and the overhead from the previous pole. Wandered along to the next pole and same again, no earth down the pole, just two overhead supplies and the loop. I don't know what they think the M stands for in PME, probably "minimal".

Put my spike in and the installation is running quite comfortably as TT, thank you, with a Ze of 42 ohms at the MET with bonding disconnected.

Edit: The reason I posted this is because many people seem to want to use PME as the easy option. Does no one assess the job nowadays and decide for themselves whether it's suitable? I decided to TT this place because I felt that using the suppliers neutral was a greater risk than providing my own earth. It appears that many others would have just connected to the head with no further thought to the matter.