horror of horrors

[Guest lahive]

The worst thing I ever come across was working as an apprentice. We got called to a pub in Hertfordshire who were having false alarms on a PIR in the upstairs lounge. Upon investigation I found the 8-core feeding the sensor had two cores choc-blocked onto another 6-core stapled up the wall. Wondering where the 6-core cable went, I traced it back. It went down the wall and was stapled across the skirting, before disappearing into the back of a mains socket. I still don't believe this to this day: the mains had been taken from the back of the socket and was joined into two cores of the same cable feeding the PIR. So brown and orange carried the 240v supply and the rest fed the PIR. Worse, the cables were all stapled across skirting that ran below several windows with full-length curtains.

We never found our who installed the alarm, but if the place had burnt down and people had died I think murder charges would have been appropiate!

[Brian c]

[Service Engineer]

Hows about finding out that the bellbox your crowbaring off the wall is wired with alarm cable directly to the mains supply, just powering the little red light at the bottom......

Flippin DIY`ers

Luckily I managed to cling back on to the ladders on my way down.

The customer swore the alarm installer must have done it

[Chris Teague]

I once took over a system that had 2 x 1.5mm twin & earth cables going into the Bell Box (12vdc thankfully) not quite as bad as yours Dave, but it had 6 core alarm cable on the Bell Outputs back at the Panel. Never did find the JB. I'd love to have seen it.

Started all over again as a new install on that one.

[Guest Handy Andy]

I took over a system that had only been fitted 3 months previously,repetitive false alarms etc.

I told the client that the system(Omnicron aaahhhh!) needed replacing & quoted him. Later that week he rang me to arrange installation. It was a straight forward job (bungalow)or so I thought.

The Omnicron panel was sited in the main hallway with all the wires tacked down the wall, Yes this was fitted by a so-called professional! I know now that what happened next learned me the hard way not to trust any cabling. I started to cut the 6 core wires running down the wall - thats the last I remember until I woke up on top of their hallway table smashed to bits. The PLONKER that fitted it had wired one of the 6 cores directly into the fuse box on the live feed!

Needless to say I ran into the fitter by chance in a wholesalers - he left without buying anything!

[bellman]

These people should be prosecuted for things like that, you could have been killed !!!!

...and he'd have left with more than a telling off Grrrr

[Brian c]

Agreed

[Guest Handy Andy]

:!: Try this one! :!:

A client of mine rang me to ask if would see to her next door neighbours security light when I did her service because it had stopped working and they could not contact the company that fitted it.

After servicing her alarm I went next door and introduced myself to her neighbour. on seeing the security light I was absolutely disgusted. the mains cable came out of the OVERFLOW PIPE from the toilet cistern! I went upstairs and traced it coming out of the cistern lid up the wall into the attic. I immediately condemned it and remove the wiring. I asked the woman why it had been done like that and she replied that she had asked the same question to the fitter who said "I've broken my drill bit"!

These sort of people want electrodes attaching to their testicle! (Pi**ock)

(A picture was taken & passed to the Local Trading Standards officer)

[Guest Handy Andy]

[]

GOOD GRIEF, is there nothing people wont do!!

24635[/snapback]

I say someone needs to make a blacklist of these idiots before someone is seriously injured!

[Guest RICHL]

Part P will sort it all out, wont it??