Hi came across a lighting fault today and didn't have time to go into it deeply will be going back Monday. I wondered what you all thought or if you had come across anything similar. I used my kewtech tester to test a light after I had changed a faulty switch. It was showing 197 volts on my meter and would get a zs reading. I dropped the light down and found 238 on L - N, 180 on L - E, and 50 on N-E. This was also the case at other lights on this circuit. The other lighting circuit was fine and normal though, so were the sockets. Thanks for any input

I would expect the kewtech showing 197 and your 180 l-e is the same reading as just variation between equipment out out of calerbration etc.

However the fault seems pretty common enough,

Dougie

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Dougie
Power Plus Electrical.co.uk

My mission is to live as long as possible......so far so good!

Earth

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Those who make no mistakes do very little work!!......

Earth, as In no earth ? How does that explain the voltages ?

Yup 100% sure your earth is shot, keep testing closers supply to on same cpd and won't take too long o find

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Dougie
Power Plus Electrical.co.uk

My mission is to live as long as possible......so far so good!

So you reckon a earth is out somewhere ? Why the voltages as they are ?

Do a cpc continuity test with a wander lead when you go back and it will have come adrift somewhere.

You need something to measure the voltage against, so you got OK voltage between live and neutral because the neautral was effectively providing a good zero to measure the live against.

If the earth was good you would have got the same reading. As you are using a high input impedance tester you will still measure something even if the earth is disconnected or poorly connected. V=IR so the 180ish volts you measured is the product of a tiny current but very high input impedance of the meter. If you had used an old analog meter I think it would have registered zero volts.

John

I am on such a fault tmrw. il let you know the outcome.

i had one of these before Christmas. ive never seen so many junction boxes and chocolate boxes under a floor. i gave up after a couple of hours and rewired the ground floor lights in the end. fortunately no carpets with lots of floors already up by the plumbers. (they do have their uses. )

definately in my top 5 of worst diy installations i have seen


Gary

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Specialised Subject. The Bleedin Obvious. John Cleese

I did get the same reading with my multimeter too

As Gary, and I dare say many others, weird measured voltages like that are down to bad cpc continuity.

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Those who make no mistakes do very little work!!......

How did you get on sk ?

I got her parents to babysit and we drove to Bournemouth for the weekend instead. Strange place.
Will let you know in the week.

Got mine done today, as you all said no earth continuity. A earth was loose in a light fitting, thanks all

Cheers for reporting back mate, glad you got it sorted.

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Those who make no mistakes do very little work!!......

yeah, same outcome here - was a cpc that had come out of connector block.
What's worse is that it was the only damned fitting on that floor that I had installed: un-##**ing-believable!!
(I took down nearly every other fitting and pulled up treated floor boards.

Get rid of that new fangled digital meter thingy and get an old AVO. You will then find you don't get spurious readings from floating earths.