Colour it confusing

Back in my teenage days there was a singer called Donovan, this guy had a hit record that started “Yellow is the colour of my true love’s hair, in the morning, when we rise ...” He then went through the colours – blue for eyes, red for lips etc. It was a dead cert to be changed by our teenage sense of humour and the words quickly became green for her face, blue for her nose, red for her eyes, and after that it just got silly.

The other day I was reminded of the song as I read the proposals to change all our tried and tested wiring colours to fall in line with the European Norms.

We have been using the continental Brown, Blue and Green/Yellow on flexible wires and plugs for some years and I am probably now among the minority of people that can remember the old round pin plugs that were wired Red for live, Black for neutral and Green for the earth ... and before anybody like Peter Moss starts writing in and saying I am wrong ... yes I know it is called a CPC (Cable protection Circuit) and not earth, but we all know it as the earth wire so, for this article, earth wire it is. Peter and I have been friends for years and I know I have just pulled the rug out from under him by not giving him the opportunity to correct me. Never mind Peter, I will buy you a drink at IFSEC if not before. We usually get plastered together at least once over an evening meal during IFSEC week!

Europeans by the back door

I am fully aware that the idea of conforming to European Standards is an affront to the dignity of many of us who are fiercely loyal to the crown and country, but how many of us are aware just how much has happened so far? We have all been using the DIN plugs on our hi-fi systems for years and these were adopted from the German Standard. Then there are the IP codes for weatherproofing on outside lights etc and of course we decimalised our coinage years ago. Probably it was seen even then that some day we would have a common European coinage, which reminds me that I recently saw a “Save the Pound” sticker in the back window of a Mercedes!

Euro-standardisation has been coming in by the back door for many years and it’s only when something flares up like the change of wiring colours or our coinage that we suddenly realise the changes are here, perhaps we ought to stop beefing about it and see how we can best make it work for us. Don’t forget, the continentals often have to put up with having the British way foisted on them.

Anyway, we have been using Brown, Blue and Green/yellow for years now, whilst the house bashing (permanent fixed wiring) colours have remained at Red and Black with the Green/Yellow earth sleeving. You have to watch it though when trying to tap into a circuit where the sparky has used the alternative three phase colours of Red, Blue and Yellow with the CPC (sorry, earth wire) remaining at Green/Yellow for a double switch circuit in a hall/landing. More than one alarm installer has come unstuck trying to connect into a double switch circuit and found the system without power when the switches are in the wrong position. This is just one of the reasons why it is recommended NOT to tap into a lighting circuit for your fused spur.

However, we digress, they are proposing to change the wiring colours and that is what we need to be aware of. The proposal is that we change the fixed installation colours to Brown and Blue (with the Green/Yellow earth). It makes sense when you think about it, when we get everything straight then we can all work happily on the continent because we are all singing from the same hymn sheet. But then we throw the cat among the pigeons ... we introduce new colours for the three phase.

They are proposing to give us a choice, we can use three Brown wires (which I can see causing some three phase motors to perform some pretty nifty reversing tricks when we get it wrong) or we can use Brown, Black and Grey to replace the old Red, Blue and Yellow. The first thing that should be obvious is that we now have a Blue wire from the old three phase that has changed from Live to Neutral and we have a Black wire that has changed from Neutral to Live. It is going to be somewhat confusing and I can guarantee that some poor sod will get mixed up and grab the wrong wire and his teeth will light up like fairy lights, but I suppose we have to bite the bullet and conform at some point, I reckon the sooner the better.

The real problem is that we are going to be faced with the two wiring colour systems running alongside each other for the next 40 years or until we have replaced all the old colours. That problem will be compounded by the fact that at some time we will face a system that was installed to the old colours with additions and alterations in the new colours, an interesting mixture leading to a confusing and possibly very dangerous situation.

As a sparky friend of mine observed, it’s a case of the three T’s – test it, test it, and test the bugger again. Just don’t take chances; mains power has a tendency to be quite unforgiving, as another friend found out. He and I were firemen together and attended one particularly large fire in the early hours of the morning. We had been working hard for some time and we were getting on top of the job. It had burned down to our level and we were damping down. The flames had gone and we were now in the dark

He decided to go for a pee and found a little room just off the main building so he went in there. Very soon we heard a scream and on investigation we found that in the dark he had watered the main incoming electrical switchgear and got a shock in an unfortunate place, it was only his rubber boots that saved him. Apart from having to nurse his credentials for a few days he seemed to have not suffered any permanent damage and later went on to father two children, but it was a near thing.

When you think about it, a modern wiring job will probably last 40 years or more so an appren-tice starting his electrical career today is going to retire before the problem goes away, it makes you think. The real upshot is it should make you test and check and not take chances. Anyway the proposed amendment to (BS 7671) was issued for public comment in April so I presume it won’t be too long before the you-know-what hits the fan and we are festooned in wires of all colours ... and the headache that comes with trying to sort it all out will be as nothing compared with the head-ache it gives you when you get it wrong.

We are going to be faced with the two wiring colour systems running alongside each other for 40 years

I make no excuse for reminding you – When the new colours come in DO NOT take chances, DO NOT assume you have got the right wires because the colours are familiar, and check, test and check again before you electrocute yourself. Alternatively, make a will and pump up your personal insurance. Yes, it is that serious.

Just taking things a step further, are you issuing a Minor Works order for your fused spur? A lot of companies are not doing it, even though the main reason for the certificate it is to protect yourself in case of litigation as well as assuring the customer that the job has been done right.

Let me remind you of a couple of points – the last person to work on the circuit is responsible for the safety of that circuit and for the safety of the people who use the equipment attached. So, if you fit the fused spur you are responsible not only for the spur but the ring main you have attached it to. Even if you can get a copy of a certificate for the installation of that ring you cannot be sure that no one has interfered with it between certification and you adding your bit. Come on, we have all seen amateur and DIY jobs on electrical wiring that leave us cold and the customer vulnerable – and you are thinking of adding your fused spur to this? Do you enjoy risking your reputation and carrying the can.

Let me remind you once again the worst case scenario is that someone fries and they hang the blame on you. Then, if they can prove your negligence, you are facing a manslaughter charge and a probable jail sentence. The irony is that you may have done the job right but not found a lethal fault left by someone else. So my advice, as always, is Get Yourself Trained – buy the proper meters, do the job right and issue the proper certificate. It is your ‘get out of jail free’ card.

The problem of the right certificate is also an issue: I have seen certificates where it just states, “This installation has been wired to comply with current wiring regulations” ... and they seriously think that this will suffice. The first thing that will happen in a court of law is that they have just proved their ignorance and incompetence and their ‘get out of jail’ card has just become the mill stone that sinks them.

Your certificate needs to state where you have connected into the main supply, the exact location of your spur and all the necessary readings. You then get the customer to sign it and leave them a copy as evidence. There are various aspects to these certificates that might not be obvious up front. One is if you give an exact location of the spur (which not many people do on the home produced product). It is a form of evidence if some-one has moved it after you have completed, or possibly worse still, if someone has added other circuits to it and up-rated the fuse to suit. The readings you put down may also have changed if someone interferes with the ring main after you connected in. Once again your certificated list of readings is your only form of proof.

Always keep the original certificate

It is worth remembering that although the customer cannot be held responsible for the job or the contents of the certificate, they can be held witness to the time and date it was issued. Just as a reminder – always keep the original, never give it back to the customer. Always give them the copy. This way you do not leave yourself open to an accusation of forgery by trying to show a copy of the customers signature and not the original in court. Bearing this in mind you may get a customer that insists on the top copy. The answer to that is easy, separate the copies and both of you sign both copies of the certificate. Whatever happens you MUST come away with an original signed copy to save your bacon.

The rule then is to always produce a proper certi-ficate. If you are not sure or want to take the easy route then pre-printed forms are available from ACT meters and Select Business Forms, both of whom often advertise in Security Installer.

  Alternatively they can be obtained from the ECA and the NIC EIC.

These little points may seem trivial but they are good habits to get into and possible lifesavers. Always use a proper certificate.

The other day I came across a photocopy of a page or two from the NIC EIC Connections magazine and it was interesting to note that there are some cases where a Minor Works certificate is not appropriate, one of these being if you install a new circuit.