Old paper and lead service cable under wooden suspended floo

[kai]

Old paper and lead service cable under wooden suspended floors.

What are your views in having an old decaying lead/paper service feeder under your living room/ hallway floor? Mice under floorboards?

It is probably fused at something up to 800 amps at the substation.

Do you feel a bit at risk, as this potentially dangerous situation exists in thousands of homes across the UK?

 

[westie101]

Number of incidents involving this situation I've come across or known about in 42 years

NIL.

Decay of any type affecting the lead also is NIL even where buried in harsh ground conditions

Though I'm sure the DNOs will happily replace them all along with all the disruption of digging up gardens, lifting floors etc. not to mention the costs (recovered by your bills) to do it all.

However if it is thought to be an issue the correct route to raise it would be via the Department of Energy & Climate Change who are responsible for The Electricity Act
or
OFGEM who control the expenditure of all the DNOs

Though as the next 5 years expenditure has just been agreed it will be at least then before any action could be taken.

As for the 800A fuses they will only be used in city centres, mainly London for the rest of the network they will be more usually 400A or below as there are no mains capable of carrying a load of 800A

 

[RF Lighting]

Millions of houses like this all over country. It's tough old stuff that pilc.

 

[Lectrician]

Most of the towns around here would be condemned!

 

[Guitarguy]

The majority of the pilc cabling is still in as good condition today as the day it was installed. It's better than the plastic stuff that's put in today. It might look scabby but in most cases it's perfectly good unless the lead sheath has damaged in some way or has been overloaded.

Proper cable

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Do you feel a bit at risk, as this potentially dangerous situation exists in thousands of homes across the UK?

Not as much as I would feel at risk as I would if I lived next door, where I'd have an electrical installation which would lose its earth if my neighbour broke/cut/disconnected a thin wire in his under-stairs cupboard....

 

[bernardgreen]

if my neighbour broke/cut/disconnected a thin wire in his under-stairs cupboard....

This dependance on the next door neighbour is one of the un-foreseen ( or quietly ignored ) disadvantages ( hazards ) that were introduced to many houses when the use of water pipes as earths had to be dis-continued due to plastic water mains.