I've been having great fun planning and rewiring the kitchen room, a new consumer unit and all new cabling. Earlier this week was an opportunity to disconnect the existing circuits and get the new up and running.
Experimenting with the existing setup finally showed me that the entire kitchen, lights, power, even the point that the old electric cooker was connected to, was all run from a 10A circuit breaker. Just like Christmas there is a surprise in every box that I open in this house.
The supply to the distribution box for the entire house was made with a 3 core plus earth cable. As can be seen below, the earth conductor is actually being used to supply the third circuit and the real earth conductor is a supplementary cable, no doubt added some time later.
These cables formed the main incoming supply to the kitchen, where the oven was connected to and 3 circuit spurs were also taken from, the damage you see is not due to me removing the cables.
This power outlet has an earth connection but it's simply threaded through a hole and bent over, making a subtle contact but probably perfectly safe we assume?!
So far I have rewired the lighting runs, including a CPC, and put all new tubing and cables to the numerous power outlets. And the new walls are starting to be installed.
More in the next episode.