Constantly tripping RCD in Wimbledon
tripping RCD in Wimbledon
We were called out to a house in Wimbledon where the householder had a problem with his RCD attached to his home cinema circuit. It just kept tripping as soon as he tried to reset it and he was worried that he was facing a big bill to replace or repair his system. So he called us in and fairly soon we traced the problem to a damaged cable and soon had the problem solved.
Although we would like the business, unlike our client in Wimbledon there is not always a need to call out a qualified south west London electrician for an RCD that is constantly tripping.
Why does an RCD keep tripping when you try to reset it?
The usual reason why an RCD keeps tripping is an overloaded circuit. The more appliances that you connect to a circuit, the greater the current that flows. A higher current creates more heat in the circuit so an unprotected and overloaded circuit is a huge fire risk. That is where the RCD comes in. If too much current flows in a circuit, it will trip out in a few milliseconds and cut the electricity. Unless you remove enough appliances, every time that you try to reset the RCD, it will trip.
Another common reason is that there is a faulty appliance connected to the circuit. The job of an RCD is effectively to remove the supply to unsafe electrical circuits so it will do its job and continue to trip until the fault is removed.
RCD tripping with nothing plugged in
First of all, unplug the appliances from the circuit and reset the RCD. If that is not possible and the RCD continues to trip, the problem is most likely with the circuit, it is very rare that the RCD is at fault. This needs a qualified electrician to diagnose and repair the fault.
Finding the cause of a tripping RCD
If the RCD does reset, plug in each of the appliance and switch them on one at a time. If one of them causes it to trip, then that is the appliance that needs attention or replacing.
If it is cheap to replace, for instance a kettle, there is no point calling a qualified electrician to look into the problem further. If you have bought a replacement and the RCD trips with the new item too, then that is the time to call a qualified electrician.
If you find that an expensive to replace appliance is causing a constantly tripping RCD, call a qualified electrician. The electrician can investigate the problem fully. They will also be able to tell you what needs doing to prevent the RCD tripping without replacing the expensive appliance, saving you a lot of money.
If the RCD does not trip with any of the appliances, then the likely cause was overloading of the circuit, you just need to be more careful about how many appliances you use on the same circuit.
Electricians in south west London
If you are having problems with a constantly tripping RCD in Balham, Clapham, Streatham, Tooting, Wimbledon or anywhere else in south London, if you need a qualified electrician to look at your issue, call us on 020 3199 8930.
