six-point socket's tidbits of Home Improvement, small projects and other stuff.

[six-point socket II]

Yeah, for sure!

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[FestitaMakool]

Oh..my, that was close Oliver  [blink]
You got payback for your “routine check” to say the least!

I noticed the crimping, they’re not allowed here anymore, have been for years, exactly because of the potentially case of not crimped and clamped properly. Did you notice if your electrician used the same method with the replacement?

BTW, nice pliers. Handy huh [wink]
I’ve got countless uses for mine, From nut holding to holding damper shafts in RC hobby and every other in between. The angled jaw makes it a problem solver too.

 

[six-point socket II]

Incredibly handy pliers, I don't understand how they slipped underneath my radar for so long ... Probably, because it's incredibly hard to buy tools that are literally made in my "front yard" locally here. ....

The electrician crimped it, but with the correct pliers (Knipex 97 55 04) and in line with VDE/standard/code.

I'm not sure we can solely blame the crimp in this instance, if you look through the first pictures, you see that one of the fuses has some "build up" as well as the contact plate inside the screw terminal.

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[Bob D.]

Oliver, in your photos of dissecting the wire, there appears I see some green in between the individual copper strands of the conductor. It looks like corrosion from moisture, but there shouldn't be any moisture in the panel. But that corrosion might have led to higher resistance which would cause more heat when a high load is present.

 

[six-point socket II]

Hi Bob,

you are right, there was plenty of verdigris. I have no idea how that happened - as that panel, and everything else inside that cabinet is definitely dry.

Would you happen to know, if this could have happened while it cooled back down? I think it's really an interesting question if it was (part of the) cause, or if it formed later.

I showed it to the electrician, he had no explanation.

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[bertv]

Maybe that verdigris was the result of a electrochemical reaction between two kinds of metals. Some copper grease would be helpful, I think.

 

[sancho57]

Wow Oliver you are one lucky man looks like the good Lord was looking out for you.

When I lived in the UK, we rented a house close to the base. Didnt know it at the time but the owner was a slum lord collected rents and did nothing to the homes. Well one Sunday evening we were all relaxed sitting in the Living Room watching T the wife had Lasagna cooking in the oven. The smell was all over the house which led us to be relaxed right?

Well the smoke alarm went off and found our main panel/commercial unit on fire. My son ran to get a fire extinguisher  and called the FD. I looked to see if I could close the main breaker but in the UK they are not on the main panel (as I learned which is different than the US). The FD came put the fire out, smoke damage all over the kitchen. We called the Land Lord nope couldnt get in touch with her.

Found billeting at the base took about a week to get the panel replaced and we could move back in, took another couple of weeks for the slum Lord to get decorators in to plaint the walls repair the damage and clean the mess.

Turns out that in the UK land Lords  are supposed to have the electrical systems checked out periodically. Which my slum lord didnt do.

We were grateful that we were home when it happened bc if we were traveling we'd come home to nothing but a burnt up house.

So you my friend are very lucky to. Thank goodness you found it before anything serious/ deadly happened.

 

[six-point socket II]

Thanks man! Happy to hear you were also able to avert a disaster!

Given the current housing market situation, many so called land lords are either totally unexperienced, have no idea what being a land lord means and what it takes, or they actually can't really afford to let, because they need to put every single penny, they get in rent, towards the mortgage. ... Seen it so many times ...

It's only getting worse.

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[HarveyWildes]

Here's a little still life from my latest adventure/endeavor down in the basement, nothing special, just consider it a "sign of life".  [big grin]
...

Oliver - so glad you did that check on your electrical!  Interesting how life works sometimes.

You are the first person I know who has intentionally created a tool still life for the sheer joy of it.  I think that makes it art rather than marketing.  Were you drawing on an artistic tradition, or did you (somewhat whimsically, I would think) come up with the idea yourself?  If not a tradition, I'm thinking that it might be fun to start one.

 

[Bob D.]

Hi Bob,

you are right, there was plenty of verdigris. I have no idea how that happened - as that panel, and everything else inside that cabinet is definitely dry.

Would you happen to know, if this could have happened while it cooled back down? I think it's really an interesting question if it was (part of the) cause, or if it formed later.

I showed it to the electrician, he had no explanation.

Kind regards,
Oliver

I guess a lot would have to do with the conditions of the space where the panel is located. Is it indoors where the temperature and humidity are fairly regulated, or is it in a shed attached to the house that is not heated. If you told us where it is located I missed it I guess. But in any case if the humidity varies greatly the moisture could have wicked up the conductor under the insulation. Wide temperature swings would accelerate this. And after a few years it might get as far as a few inches.

I have seen this happen in coax cable used outdoors if the connections are not sealed correctly and periodically inspected and maintained. Moisture can work its way up the cable from the connector and ruin the cable. On smaller coax like RG6, 9913, or LMR400 or 600 about all you can do is cut it back to clean cable and install a new connector or if that's not possible replace the entire cable which can get expensive at $1 or more per foot when you have 3 or 4 hundred foot runs.

 

[six-point socket II]

Hi Bob,

I'm sorry, I thought since I had shown the whole build in this thread, that that was a given. Again, sorry!

Here's a shot from when it was still work in progress:

That's where it is located. Basement (indoor), dry & warm.

And just for reference, this shot from when it was finished.

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[Bob D.]

Oh, yes, you did post those shots. I didn't realize this was in the same space you've been working on. My mistake.

So the radiator is a two pipe hot water system not steam, but did the radiator ever have an automatic air vent on it in the past? I don't see one now which is why I ask.

If yes maybe the source of the high humidity in the area, and especially being directly under the panel.

 

[bertv]

So the radiator is a two pipe hot water system not steam, but did the radiator ever have an automatic air vent on it in the past? I don't see one now which is why I ask.

In EU-heating systems automatic air vents are rare (at least they are in the Low Countries). And mostly installed on the (combi)boiler. Venting is done thru the device you can see on the upper left corner of the radiator, by hand, with a special key (that is always missing when you need it).

 

[six-point socket II]

Hi!

The original radiator had no automatic bleeder valve, it worked just as Bert described. All of the new radiators I put in got an automatic bleeder valve: hygroscopic bleeder valve ->https://www.amazon.co.uk/Caleffi-Hygroscopic-Radiator-Bleeder-Automatic/dp/B01M8IGKO3

But these only let a minimal amount air out - if present - and close within a fraction of a second if there is the slightest bit of moisture in the air.

But I can place a humidity logger there and see what it says over a couple of days maybe weeks. Actually that's a good idea!

Kind regards,
Oliver

 

[six-point socket II]

Third time's the charm, or so they say. I didn't succeed the first two times at leaving "the internet", this time it has to be final.

For me it's the end of an era, on March 1st, I didn't renew my - first ever - bought domain. I was so young when I bought it back then, my parents actually had to sign the contract for it. Yesterday I cancelled the whole contract, which means that also all of my other Domains will have vanished in a couple of weeks. No more step by step farewell, but a clean cut once and for all. I made up my mind over this an hour ago, while enjoying a nice cigar in my garden.

With this in mind:

Bye!

Kind regards,
Oliver