Dodgy drill
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Dodgy drill
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Bought at a Car boot sale for £2 - BARGAIN - at least it would seem so! In reality it is a potential death-trap - putting people at risk because the seller hadn't bothered to have the drill checked or tested before selling it.
The testing took less than 10 mins and would have been inexpensive - the store holder had several for sale!!
What was wrong then ? There were three faults all meaning a failed inspection and test Two were dangerous One was a potential ELECTROCUTION
13A Plugs today are to have a plastic insert in both the L and N pins of the plug to prevent touching the pins which could become live when not fully inserted into the socket. The plug on this drill was an old type without these inserts or shrouds. The flexible lead had sustained damage and some of the insulation was missing. This was covered only with insulation tape which is not a satisfactory solution.
Part of the test and inspection involves testing the safety earth for integrity. The drill in question was double insulated which basically means that no safety earth connection is required because the insulation is extra sufficient to prevent the casing or extraneous parts from becoming live through a fault. The PAT tester checks this insulation with a high voltage to test 'dielectric strength'. It failed and showed a breach of the insulation allowing the metal collar of the drill to become potentially live during use! (It was found that excess grease which was heavily contaminated with carbon and metal filings/drillings had got into the motor and this coupled with damaged windings had caused a bridge to the casing....ouch!)
If in doubt - CHECK IT OUT PAT testing is a legal requirement in many situations Back to Domestic Back to Venues |
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Thank you for visiting the website of 'The Boat and Tool Shack' Be sure to call again soon shipmates ! Mobile : 07811 528912 Email : contact@theboatandtoolshack.co.uk Last updated: Monday July 13, 2009 18:29 |
