IET Warns: Neutral Current Diversions Can Hit 67 Amps ⚡️

coming up on this week's news the IET has revealed  that neutral current diversions can hit up to 67   amps the government says you can put a heat pump  at your neighbour's fence and the NICEIC unveils   a route to recognition for experienced domestic  electricians welcome to Electrical News Weekly   whether you're listening in the van on site or  down at the wholesale counter I'm Joe Robinson   and I've been through the best of the electrical  industry news to save you the trouble and if you  

think you've spotted the two words that I've  been challenged to slip into this week's show   comment with them below for the chance to win  a prize the author of the wiring regulations  

is warning the trade this week about the high  currents that can be found in a neutral current   diversion a survey by the IET has revealed that  currents can reach up to 67 amperes during the   fault the average current measured during the  incidents compiled by the survey was 12 amps   one electrician reported no current at first  but when a neighbour switched something on   boom 43 amps suddenly appeared it's all down  to network impedance and load distribution  

in another case a gas installer investigating  sparks on the gas installation pipe work when   a nut was undone recorded the presence of almost  4 amps now gas engineers are being trained to use   volt sticks and network rail has gone so far  as issuing them to staff for the same reason   neutral current diversion can happen in  the event of the loss of a protective earth   neutral conductor on a TNCS electrical supply the  installation then loses its intended connection  

to neutral and earth the current is diverted and  will find its way back to the supply transformer   any way it can one common route for it is  through shared metallic pipe work such as   gas and water pipes the IET warns that many TNS  supplies may not be as pure as you might think   it strongly advises treating TNS as PME unless  you know for certain that it's TNS back to the   transformer the survey also revealed that the  majority of incidents are not being reported to  

the DNO only 49% of electricians said that they  called in the issue the IET says the right thing   to do is to call 105 and get it logged i'll popped  a link to the full advisory in the show notes the   government has rewritten the rules this week for  installing heat pumps it's scrapping the major  

planning requirement that the kit be located  at least one meter away from the neighbouring   property the change could open the door for  millions more installations across England Octopus   Energy says that over a quarter of its customers  were affected by the 1 m rule in London that   rises exponentially due to the number of terraced  houses previous concerns over noise are less of an   issue with newer devices but units will still be  required to operate below a certain volume level  

the planning changes also include a relaxation  of the rules for the size and number of heat   pumps that households can install however consumer  groups are warning that the high upfront cost is   still a major barrier to installs in response  the government says it's exploring innovative   financing models such as heat pump subscriptions  in other news the NICEIC has unveiled two new ways  

for experienced domestic electricians who've  been flummoxed by the existing system to get   recognition for their skills the organisation has  expanded its experienced worker assessment program   to include a new route for sparks who specialise  in residential work this means they can now work   towards a recognised level three qualification  opening doors to new jobs opportunities and   industry recognition the NIC has also launched  a new entry test for seasoned professionals who  

don't have a level two qualification this test  is open to sparks who typically have over 10   years as a practicing electrician it assesses your  core knowledge and understanding and if you pass   you can move on to the full EWA the first exam  window opens in July 2025 and the NICEIC will be   the first approved centre to offer it the body  says it's responding to increasing demand from   electricians seeking formal recognition of their  skills the link to the full requirements is in  

the show notes thousands of UK energy customers  are set to receive payouts of up to £1000 each   following a stinging review by the regulator  ofgem into how suppliers were switching people   onto prepayment meters without their permission  over 70 million pounds is being handed out some   customers will get 4 to500 depending on how  badly their supplier botched the process but   there's payouts of £1,000 for what Ofgemcalled  inappropriate installations that's where the  

meter was forcibly fitted in ways that completely  ignored the rules the scandal blew up in 2023 when   energy prices soared energy firms often remotely  switched smart meters to prepay mode or worse   sent agents with locksmiths and even the police to  forcibly install new meters British Gas especially   came under fire when it was revealed that its  agents broke into the homes of vulnerable people   to fit the meters customer Aaron King from Kent 

lost his job and fell £160 behind on his energy   bills the next thing he knew agents had broken in  installed a prepayment meter and charged him over   400 quid for the police and locksmiths companies  coughing up include EDF Eon Octopus and Scottish   Power sounds like some customers are getting  vengeance to me in product news this week there's  

been a recall of a small quantity of Aico heat  detectors a number of EI 3014 models was produced   with plastic coverings which incorrectly stated  that they could also detect carbon monoxide this   could have resulted in customers being unaware  that the alarm they have installed is for heat   detection only and cannot detect carbon monoxide  this British-made product therefore doesn't meet   the requirements of the general product safety  regulations of 2005 says the Office for Product  

Safety and Standards the issue has been isolated  to a small production batch and affected consumers   have been contacted directly i've put the affected  batch numbers in the show notes now following on  

from our triumphant time spent at CEF Live last  week with Robus and Marshall Tufflex we've got our   next trade show visit coming up Gary and I will  be heading back to the NEC on Tuesday the 24th of   June to hang out with Hive on Stand 5 H80 at the  Installer Show so if you missed us the first time   round pop down to say hello and check out all  the amazing kit that they have to offer we hope   to see you there now welcome to our electrical  news weekly feature where we focus on a specific  

product area this week we're feeling the cool  breeze of HVAC Zhender has unveiled the ComfoAir   Q600 with Comfa Climb which combines space heating  and air tempering in a single unit this clever bit   of kit sets the air temperature and dehumidifies  it before it's distributed to individual rooms   this results in your customer having their chosen  air temperature during both warm and cold periods   the Q600 provides passive house certified levels 

of heat recovery efficiency as well as passive   dehumidification and F7 filtration it also meets  building regulations Part 0 for overheating if  

you're not familiar with it extractor fan world  is the UK's leading ventilation e-commerce site   it sells all types of domestic extraction and air  treatment kit having been in the game for 15 years   these guys know what's good and what sucks when it  comes to fans one of its recent innovations that's   attracting a lot of attention is its decentralised  mechanical extract ventilation fan or DME for   short you can think of the DME as a standalone 

extractor fan that's packed with clever features   it can help improve indoor air quality and prevent  mold and condensation issues by continuously   extracting stale air and moisture the latest  addition to the platform's tornado range is deep   breath the ST100 dMEV HT as well as looking cool  this fan boasts an integrated humidistat and timer   function fully adjustable air flow settings and a  near silent operation the boost setting delivers a  

whopping 35 L/s through its high pressure axial  impeller making this one of the more powerful   fans on the market the unit can be installed with  constant and switch live connections allowing the   fan to be triggered through both humidity and  manually it can also be installed with only a   constant live for automatic triggering by humidity  only extractor fan world offers next day delivery   and is rated 4.8 out of five on Trustpilot switch  gear maker Doepke has unveiled a special RCD for  

heat pump installs the brand has echoed recent  warnings that standard type B RCDs may trip   unexpectedly when subjected to leakage currents  above 1 kHz or worse the detection circuit may   be blinded this will result in the device  not detecting residual currents under fault   conditions that's because under current standards  type B RCDs don't provide protection above that   frequency in heat pumps however the inverter can  operate at frequencies of up to 20 kHz doepke says  

this is a recognised issue for larger inverter  applications in industrial installations the   brand's type B RCCBs by contrast will operate  up to 150 kHz far beyond even the VDE standard   the company's DFS HP comes in two and four-  pole options and features an optimised short   time delay this delay circuit reduces unwarranted  tripping resulting from transient peaks associated   with heat pump control the company has produced  a type B RCD application guide and I've put the  

download link in the show notes the Vort Invisible  Mini is a compact heat recovery ventilation unit  

perfect for both homes and commercial spaces  it recovers up to 80% of thermal energy while   ensuring low 64 watt power use and whisper quiet  operation designed for void mounting it suits   studio flats small apartments and hotel rooms  key features include two speeds compatibility   with 100 mil and 125 mil ducting and multiple  versions with summer bypass full summer bypass   and a humidity sensor for automatic speed control  its EC brushless motors and high efficiency heat  

exchanger guarantee 100% filtered fresh air all  packed in a discrete IPX2 rated casing Vaillant  

is currently marketing its latest heat pump the  Arotherm Plus the Arotherm Plus is the first heat   pump from the brand to use the refrigerant R290  this natural refrigerant is highly efficient and   more environmentally friendly than standard  refrigerants it's available in outputs from   3.5 to 12 kW and has a super low global warming  potential of just three that's our electrical news   weekly roundup of products or people that we think  deserve some attention next week lighting controls  

that you won't want to alter or delete now our  learner of the week this week is Max Young max  

is a super enthusiastic electrical installation  student at Hugh Baird College in Bootle Merseyside   he did his first ever post on LinkedIn this week  to showcase his college work with a little help   and encouragement from Gary who noticed the post  he then put up some more of his work by the very   next morning and within 12 hours of joining  LinkedIn he'd been approached with a potential   work experience opportunity needless to say he  was absolutely buzzing about it Gaz says it's  

a brilliant example of how it's never too late to  start and how powerful LinkedIn can be for young   people trying to break into the trade finally a  reminder that there's still time to win a pair  

of tickets for the Oasis reunion in the Schneider  Electric promo the company is offering two premium   club hospitality tickets in its what's the story  promotion the Oasis tickets offer some of the best   seats in the stadium and access to exclusive bars  you'll also get Oasis merch and a £50 Uber voucher   to get you home afterwards runner up prizes are  pretty cool too they include Ticket Master and   Apple Music gift cards in values from 50 quid to 

250 quid to enter spend £250 on Schneider products   at participating wholesalers and you'll receive  an entry ticket simply scan the QR code on your   competition entry ticket to access the entry  form the competition closes at the end of June   2025 now if you're wondering what to watch next  we recommend the review of Gordon and Gary's trip  

to the InterSolar Show in Germany that's because  it's packed with pretty awesome innovations in   photovoltaics batteries and EV chargers all  of which will be coming to a wholesaler near   you soon i've put the link to that in the show  notes and our usual reminder that we're in the   market for your stories your projects and your  recommendations as we'd like to share them with   the wider eFIXX community over the next few  weeks we'll be featuring lighting controls  

product innovations and wiring accessories  so send us pictures of your installs or  

let us know if you've come across any new kit or  companies that are making your job easier or any   products that you think deserve a shout out and  just before we get to your favourite bit of the   show where I reveal last week's challenge words  and winners we want to thank our premium partners   we couldn't make the news without you first up  they're the people who've created the Swiss Army   knife of solar inverters along with all weather  batteries very much the boy scouts of the solar  

industry at Sunsynk doubling down on terminal  screws in their top quality circuit protection   products and building innovative isolating units  with built-in surge protection it's WhiteCliffe   Electrical Distribution next with deep commitments  to the economy the environment and the electrical   community they're so much more than an electrical  distributor the self-styled experts in shifting   boxes is Niglon up next for all your circuit  protection needs they're like having an Italian  

Star Striker in your premiership team it's Lewden  Palazzoli in an age of energy uncertainty if   you're looking for your next EV charge point to  install then helping you charge into the future   with confidence powering the future together it's  Rolec and now suspend your disbelief like you   suspend a cable tray if you need to get any piece  of building services equipment into the air and   keep it there then check out Zip Clip with their  new award-winning Lumo consumer unit and offering  

complete product support from their highly trained  team it's CPN Cudis and with over 5,000 product   lines from heating lighting ventilation to wiring  accessories if you need it they've got it it's   electrical distributor CED Group don't forget to  use the code eFIXX30 to claim your 30% discount   on top quality light fittings from Philips and  Ecolink download the Lumxpert app today and make   your life easier and less expensive it's the light 

of our lives Signify and the best thing to come   out of Yorkshire since stainless steel the home  of EV Ultra and other groundbreaking and quality   products it's Doncaster Cables click the links  in the show notes to find out more about these   great brands if you think you know the words I've  smuggled into this week's show pop your guess into  

the comments we'll take all the correct guesses  and select one at random to be the winner of an   eFIXX goodie bag prize answers submitted after  about lunchtime on the Thursday after release   will not be entered into the draw now because  of my time off last week we're going to reveal   two weeks worth of winners today for the episode  that went out on the 27th of May the challenge   words were perplexed and sachet and I had to  be extremely generous with the spelling on that  

last word but the person to be plucked from our  electronic hat was Jason FKM5MQ who I think has   won a couple of times before so great work Jason  and for the episode that went out on the 2nd of   June the words were frogmen and deleterious and  the winner for last week was good friend of the   show Dave Friselle 3882 he also sent me a lovely  comment about my week off it didn't influence his   winning the competition but it's nice to be  nice well done both make sure you click the  

link in the show notes to claim your prize thanks  for listening to this episode of Electrical News   Weekly make sure you subscribe to receive the next  update thanks for listening and until next time   have a great week stay safe out there and remember  there's no such thing as a torque calibrated arm