Newton Electrical Contractors Ltd, Electricians in Harrogate provide Portable Appliance Testing at an extremely competitive rate in Harrogate, Ripon, Knaresborough, Skipton, York and Leeds. We provide our PAT Testing services to the Domestic, Commercial and Industrial sectors and use state of the art calibrated test equipment. Full documentation is provided on completion of the inspection and we lable all appliances with a pass date and date of next inspection.
Introduction:
The definition of a portable appliance is 'any item that connects directly or indirectly to the electricity supply, by the way of a removable plug.
Pat testing or portable appliance testing is a significant part of any health & safety policy. The HSE states that 25% of all reported electrical accidents entail portable appliances. The Electricity at Work Regulations place a lawful responsibility on employers, employees and self-employed personnel to meet the terms of the regulations and take reasonably practicable steps to ensure that no hazard results from the use of such apparatus. This requires the execution of a systematic and regular program of, inspection, testing and maintenance.
The Health & Safety at Work Act (1974) places such an obligation in the following circumstances:
- Where electrical devices are used by workers.
- Where the public may use appliances in enterprises such as hospitals, schools, hotels, shops, Let Properties etc.
- Supplied or hired appliances.
- Repaired or serviced appliances.
The frequency of Pat Testing governed by the risk of the equipment becoming faulty, which in turn depends upon the type of equipment and the environment in which it is to be used. The Institution Engineering Technology (formally the IEE) publish the "Code of Practice for In-service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment". This forms the foundation for portable appliance testing in the United Kingdom.
Landlord Legal Requirements:
Any person who residentially lets somewhere to live (such as houses, flats, bed sits, holiday homes, caravans and boats) as a commercial activity are obligated by law to ensure the apparatus they supply as part of the contract is safe to use. The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994 demand that all 230v electrical equipment (cookers, washing machines, kettles, etc), new or old, supplied with the lodgings must be safe. Consequently Landlords need to regularly maintain the electrical equipment they provide to ensure it is safe.
The delivery of goods occurs at the instance the tenancy agreement is signed. It is essential that assets are checked prior to the tenancy to ensure that all merchandise supplied are in a safe condition. An inventory should be made of the goods supplied as part of the tenancy agreement and of regular checks made on those goods. The record should indicate who, when and how the checks where carried out. It would be prudent to have the equipment checked at every change of ownership as you never know what repairs a previous tenant has made, if any. It would also be prudent to have the equipment checked at regular intervals afterwards. You should obtain and keep hold of all test reports detailing the apparatus, and keep an accurate record of the results.
Scope of Works
Portable Equipment Testing of Electrical Equipment involves the following:
- Earth bond continuity tests (class 1).
- Insulation resistance testing.
- Functional checks.
Earth Bond Test (Class 1 equipment only):
- Readings should show less than 0.1+R Ohms (where R is the resistance of the lead).
- Tested at a current of 1.5 times the rating of the fuse and no greater than 25A for a period of between 5 and 20 seconds or with a short-circuit test current within the range 20mA to 200mA.
Insulation Resistance Test:
- The applied test voltage should be approximately 500 Vdc.
- Class 1 heating equipment < 3kW 0.3M Ohms.
- Class 1 All other equipment 1M Ohms.
- Class 2 Equipment 2M Ohms.
- Class 3 Equipment 250k Ohms.
Optional Tests:
- Flash Test: No flashover or breakdown shall occur.
- Operation/Load test: Compare reading with stated details on nameplate.
Earth leakage test:
- Class 1 Handheld Appliances 0.75mA.
- Other Class 1 Appliances 3.5mA.
- Class 2 Appliances 0.25mA.