Periodic Inspection and Testing
by Admin
Posted on 09-07-2022 10:00 AM
Electrical Inspection and Testing Procedures
Regular testing and inspection of both fixed electrical installations and portable appliances, completed by qualified electricians, is the most effective way to ensure compliance with health and safety law. Identifying and rectifying defects helps to maintain safe functioning of electrical equipment.
Testing should consist of both scheduled visual inspections and tests. Electrical inspection and testing procedures are determined by the type of installation:
initial verification inspection and testing: for new build or alterations to fixed electrical installations
periodic inspection and testing: fixed wire tests of existing electrical installations
portable applicance (pat) testing: portable electrical appliances
testing should be performed by qualified electrical engineers, experienced in electrical inspection and testing procedures and use of the relevant testing equipment.
You should ensure that you receive and keep the paperwork for all completed electrical installation work and periodic inspection and testing. All certificates and reports should include schedules of inspections and test results. The type of certification or report you receive depends on the extent and type of electrical installation work, or inspection and testing, that you have had carried out. Electrical certification for new installations, alterations or additions electrical installation certificates (eics) and minor electrical installation works certificates (meiwcs) provide you, as the person responsible for the safety of an electrical installation, with a declaration that the new installation, or alteration or addition, is safe to use at the time it was put into service.
All electrical installations deteriorate with age and use. They should therefore be inspected and tested at regular intervals to check whether they are in a satisfactory condition for continued use. Such safety checks are commonly referred to as 'periodic inspection and testing'. From june 2020, private landlords in england are required to have a periodic inspection carried out on the installations in their rental properties every five years. This has been a legal requirement in scotland since 2015. Electrical safety first recommends that these checks are carried out wherever you live in the uk, to ensure the safety of your property and your tenants.
The five main aims of an electrical installation condition report are: record the results of the inspection and testing to make sure the electrical installation is safe to be used until the next inspection (following any work needed to make it safe) find any damage and wear and tear that might affect safety, and report it find any parts of the electrical installation that do not meet the iet wiring regulations help find anything that may cause electric shocks and high temperatures provide and important record of the installation at the time of the inspection, and for inspection testing in the future.
Do you need help with Electrical Inspection and Testing Procedures?
Your mind just might be full of questions as to why you failed an electrical inspection. While the reasons may vary, it is always better to know what to do before an inspection to avoid failure. Some of the main points are:
research: check all the possible norms and procedures that you might need to follow while installing different wires and cables.
Apart from this, a proper research will also help in ensuring that you do not stand clueless, while the inspector does the inspection. Proper equipment: the electric wires and cables in your house should be authentic in nature.
Private landlords must ensure every electrical installation in their residential premises is inspected and tested at intervals of no more than 5 years by a qualified and competent person. The regulations apply in england to all new specified tenancies from 1 july 2020 and all existing specified tenancies from 1 april 2021. 'new specified tenancies' is any tenancy created on or after 1 june 2020. Following the inspection and testing, a private landlord must: obtain a report from the person conducting that inspection and test, which gives the results of the inspection and test and the date of the next inspection and test supply a copy of that report to each existing tenant of the residential premises within 28 days of the inspection and test.