RCD Fault

[Sadlercomfort]

Hi Guys,

I thought I'd mention a fault I found yesterday.

My brother had an intermittent RCD fault, so I ruled out the socket and then the cooker first because I know the fault is common in these appliances. Turns out it was the washing machine that was tripping the RCD, so I opened it up and checked for leaks and damp area's.

What suprised me, was the RCD fault was contained in the none rewirable plug. Which I thought was quite rare, considering the seal around the plug. The 200M Ohm test veryified this after I snipped the plug.

Ash

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

That's interesting. So there was leakage to ground within the moulded mains plug? Were there any cracks in it? Do you think moisture had got into it?

 

[Sadlercomfort]

Yeah, there was leakage to ground from the live when I tested the plug as seen in the picture. There was no cracks and no signs of corrosion.

There is an overflow pipe for the outlet of the washing machines waste located close to the socket. Although I had thought this is a stupid place to put an overflow pipe, at first I dismissed it would be a problem due to the height of the pipe.. it would have been hard to flood.

My brother mentioned that his washing machine had been leaking, but after inspecting inside this first.. I'm sure the leak came from that overflow pipe. I assume the thin crusty layer on the plug is dried moisture.

Ash,

- I advised my brother to keeping testing his RCD, at least until they inspect his plumbing issues

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

Hmm. An overflow pipe near the power socket sounds like a BAD idea. And not Michael Jackson's idea of BAD.

Yes if there's a crusty layer on the surface of the plug, it will probably contain salt and other impurities, and will be the reason for the leakage. If you still have the plug, you could try washing it in soapy water and measuring it again.

It's just as well that your brother has an RCD. Without it, you wouldn't have found out about this until the leakage path became potentially dangerous.

 

[Sadlercomfort]

Thats what I have said, The socket is a spur and doesn't look like it was installed professionally.

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

Can you move or extend the pipe so it's away from the socket? Even just putting the end of it below the socket should help, I would think.

 

[Sadlercomfort]

The socket is the same height as the U bend, just as the plumbing comes from behind the cuboards. It might help if I halve the length of pipe coming from the U bend. It will reduce the risk until the plumbers come out to move it, or fix a quality sealed waste pipe instead of an open-type one.

Funny how were talking about plumbing on an electronic forum, surely people should know the risks when installing these things?

 

[KrisBlueNZ]

Yes they should. Maybe it was done by a "home handyman"?