Topic: 🔍 Fault finding
Fault finding - how-to guides
Diagnosing tripping MCBs, flickering lights, dead sockets, buzzing switches and other common faults.
10 guides in this topic
Written specifically for UK domestic wiring - BS 7671, TN-C-S / TT earthing, and the fittings you actually find in a British consumer unit.
Fault-find a dead socket outlet
A step-by-step guide to tracing why a UK socket outlet has lost power - consumer unit checks, plug-in tester, neighbouring socket tests, and opening the socket to inspect the wiring.
Read the guideFault-finding a flickering or intermittent light
UK guide to diagnosing a flickering or intermittent light -- checking the bulb, LED and dimmer compatibility, loose connections, and when the problem points to a wiring fault that needs an electrician.
Read the guideHow to fault-find a dead or flickering lighting circuit
A systematic UK guide to fault-finding a dead or flickering lighting circuit: checking the consumer unit, testing at the switch and rose, diagnosing cable and connection faults, and knowing when to call an electrician.
Read the guideHow to fault-find a ring circuit
Step-by-step fault-finding for a UK ring final circuit that keeps tripping its MCB or RCD -- the unplug test, checking individual sockets, spotting corroded terminals, and when to stop and call.
Read the guideHow to fault-find a tripping MCB in a UK home
A UK guide to diagnosing why a circuit breaker (MCB) keeps tripping - distinguishing overload from short circuit, the step-by-step unplug test, and when to stop and call an electrician.
Read the guideHow to fault-find an electric shower
A UK guide to diagnosing a non-working electric shower - testing the supply, MCB, heating element, solenoid valve, thermal cut-out and pressure switch with a multimeter, and when to call an electrician.
Read the guideHow to fault-find garden lighting
A systematic UK guide to diagnosing dead or flickering garden lights: checking the RCD, FCU, cable joints, connectors and fittings in the right order before calling an electrician.
Read the guideFault-find electrical problems in a new-build home
How to spot and document electrical faults in a UK new-build home: socket testing, RCD checks, consumer unit inspection, NHBC warranty claims and when to get an independent EICR.
Read the guideFault-finding when your RCD keeps tripping
A UK guide to diagnosing an RCD or RCBO that keeps tripping. Safe steps to work out whether the fault is an appliance, damp, or wiring, and a clear point at which to stop and call an electrician.
Read the guideFault-finding dead conservatory sockets
Step-by-step UK guide to tracing why conservatory sockets have gone dead - checking the consumer unit, testing the circuit, finding loose connections and knowing when to call an electrician.
Read the guideOther topics
🔧 Installation & wiring
Wire, fit and install - cable runs, sockets, switches, consumer units, cookers, showers, outdoor circuits.
🛡️ Safety & testing
Safe isolation, initial verification, insulation resistance, earth-fault loop, continuity, bonding.
🔁 Replace & upgrade
Swapping old kit for new - light switches, sockets, fusewire, fuse boxes, consumer units, luminaires.
📖 Understand & explain
How your home electrics actually work - cable colours, ring vs radial, MCB vs RCD, live vs neutral, current vs voltage.
📋 Planning & regulations
What is notifiable, when to call an electrician, choosing consumer units and EV chargers, BS 7671 basics.
⚡ General guides
Working with cable, wiring accessories and everyday tools around the home.