ᐅ Hit an electrical cable while drilling. What should I do?
Created on: 7 Jun 2019 13:50
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benkler1401B
benkler14017 Jun 2019 13:50Hello everyone,
I wanted to install child safety gates on the stairs in our house (built in 2018) and accidentally drilled outside the designated installation area, hitting an electrical cable at the height of the tile skirting.
At first, the residual-current device (RCD) tripped, but since I wasn’t sure of the cause, I reset it. Surprisingly, all the circuit breakers stayed on, so I continued drilling. Just at the last millimeter of the hole, the basement circuit breaker tripped (I was drilling on the ground floor). I reset the basement breaker and tested the hole with a voltage tester, moving it back and forth—no voltage was detected.
Now I would like to ask you: what should I do next? What would be the most practical approach? Just fill the hole with some silicone and insert a wall plug? Or how would you proceed?
Thank you very much, best regards
I wanted to install child safety gates on the stairs in our house (built in 2018) and accidentally drilled outside the designated installation area, hitting an electrical cable at the height of the tile skirting.
At first, the residual-current device (RCD) tripped, but since I wasn’t sure of the cause, I reset it. Surprisingly, all the circuit breakers stayed on, so I continued drilling. Just at the last millimeter of the hole, the basement circuit breaker tripped (I was drilling on the ground floor). I reset the basement breaker and tested the hole with a voltage tester, moving it back and forth—no voltage was detected.
Now I would like to ask you: what should I do next? What would be the most practical approach? Just fill the hole with some silicone and insert a wall plug? Or how would you proceed?
Thank you very much, best regards
Usually, you need to chisel out the wall a bit at that spot.
You have at least damaged the insulation of one conductor, possibly also reduced the conductor cross-section.
Cut out the damaged section and reconnect it. Sometimes re-insulating might be enough.
Alternatively, go to the person who messed up the cable and have them fix it.
Simply filling it with putty is not safe and could theoretically lead to an electrical fire.
P.S. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you screw the stair gate there now.
Those things are made of metal, which would be absolutely disastrous.
You have at least damaged the insulation of one conductor, possibly also reduced the conductor cross-section.
Cut out the damaged section and reconnect it. Sometimes re-insulating might be enough.
Alternatively, go to the person who messed up the cable and have them fix it.
Simply filling it with putty is not safe and could theoretically lead to an electrical fire.
P.S. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you screw the stair gate there now.
Those things are made of metal, which would be absolutely disastrous.
benkler1401 schrieb:
What can I do now?First, check if you actually hit an electrical cable. How many watts does your drill have?
Has it always worked without problems?
Was it under heavy load while drilling?
H
hampshire7 Jun 2019 19:55Escroda schrieb:
First, check whether you have actually detected a live electrical cable. This is a systematic approach. Always separate fact from assumption.
A tripped residual current device (RCD) is an observation. A fact.
Detecting a cable is an (obvious) assumption. It needs to be verified.
Judgments about the quality of the electrician’s work, which have already been made here, are completely unhelpful at this point.
What does a cable detector indicate at the spot where there supposedly should be no cable?
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