How to test the earthing of my house ?

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Mark

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#22628 3-Jun-2008 16:25

Hiya,

I'm looking for a box of tricks that plugs into the mains of my home and reports on how good the earth is ... I've suspicious feeling that the earth of my house (or at least one room) is poor.

So I'm looking to either buy or hire a testing kit and checking things over .. then I guess I'll have to pay someone to fix it :-(

Mark

xcubed

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#135237 3-Jun-2008 17:19

DSE and Jaycar used to sell these plug tester devices that were designed to show if your sockets where wired correctly. They were just a little round grey plug with 3 neon lights on the back. If two were lit and one wasn't, your socket was wired correctly. (I can't see them listed on either site, but they may still stock them).

Trouble is, they are simply a quick and dirty wiring check, they won't check for intermittent issues or issues where you have a poor connection.

The only other devices I've seen are for testing power leads and extension leads for earth leakage, not the sockets themselves. And I get the impression that they're not cheap.

The best bet would be to get an electrician in. Yes, it will cost money, but if you suspect there's dodgy earthing in your house it could (in theory) save a family member from getting electrocuted from a faulty appliance.

sbiddle

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Biddle Corp

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#135250 3-Jun-2008 18:34

What makes you suspicious something is wrong?

You should have an earthwire on the outside of your house somewhere (typically near the meterboard on new houses) that will have a rod into the ground, this runs back to the earth and neutral on your switchboard.

Bung

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#135280 3-Jun-2008 19:38

xcubed:
The only other devices I've seen are for testing power leads and extension leads for earth leakage, not the sockets themselves. And I get the impression that they're not cheap.

Are you referring to testers for the RCD associated with some sockets and extension leads? Jaycar sell one that also does the tests that the simple plug testers did for $24.90 (QP-2000).

Mark - Agree with sbiddle, spill the beans on what the problem appears to be. The answer may be somewhere else :)

xcubed

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#135297 3-Jun-2008 20:36

Bung: Are you referring to testers for the RCD associated with some sockets and extension leads? Jaycar sell one that also does the tests that the simple plug testers did for $24.90 (QP-2000).

Yeah, that's the sort of thing I was refering too.

Mark

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#135314 3-Jun-2008 21:32

Well the suspicion comes from my SGI machine being unable to sync to video sources .. it's a picky machine anyway, but it does require a good ground. I'm certain the machines not at fault as I have 2 of them and both exhibit the same.

To be honest I've not done a enough testing to say it is or is not the house earthing yet, it might be limited o my study, as soon as the new twins give me 30minutes of peace I'll drag the machine around different rooms! :-)

And yes you are right an electrician would be better and I will get it done regardless I think as the house is from the 40's.

Mark

Bung

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#135325 3-Jun-2008 22:11

This might help. Some early PDL sockets (200 series??) were notorious for faulty connections esp. earth if the cord had been pulled sideways. You can usually see broken plastic on the face plates around the entry holes. Check the rest of the house as well, faulty sockets won't hold childproofing plugs either. New sockets can also have built in safety shutters.