Head sparky, Peter Briggs, takes us through the electrical final fix…
Fitting and fixing
All the fancy fittings are put in, including the down-lighters. The boiler, electric heaters, towel rails, extractor fans and smoke detectors are all connected up. The protective plastic is removed from the socket tops and light switches, and they are screwed into place.
All the fittings must be dead straight, and checked with a spirit level. Everything must be perfect in time for the handover.
Problem solving
"Normally I wouldn't have seen the place for two or three weeks", says Peter, "and in that time things can change."
For example, we put in a cable supply to the tops of the windows. We were going to have electric roller blinds up there, but in the end we decided against it. That meant that we had to remove the boxes and fill over. Obviously if they want to install the blinds in the future they can.
In the bathroom we had to fit low voltage striplights into a tiny gap, about 2 inches (5cm) wide. It would have been easier if we'd done this earlier. We had to use specialist tools to get the fitting in properly.
Testing
Finally it's time for the last set of tests. The insulation and continuity of the system is independently checked, both visually and with instruments. Electricians who perform this test have a special qualification, called a 2391.
As part of this test the fuse board is broken down and the circuits are tested. All earth bondings are checked too.
The Trainees
Looking back probably the worst moment was when Dan screwed through the communications cables.
I had David one-to-one for a while. He's very talented but he's over-confident, making silly mistakes. When I told him that he had left the copper 'buzz bar' out of the fuse box he stormed off. But you can't just storm off when you feel like it.
Greg Males picked it up well. With that lot there's always a lot of banter. It's been good fun.
