Periodic Inspection and Testing and completion of an Electrical Installation Condition Report ‘EICR’
The aim of a periodic inspection and test is to produce a report on the condition of an electrical installation and to ascertain whether it is safe for continued use.
If available, previous inspection and test documents should be sought prior to starting a periodic inspection and test as they are an important resource in detecting any deterioration of an electrical installation.
The periodic is a two-step approach made up of a physical inspection of the installation and also the electrical testing of individual circuits and devices.
Periodic Inspection:
To standardise periodic inspections Appendix 6 of BS7671:2018 has a general list of items to be inspected within an electrical installation. Look at the ‘Condition Report Inspection Schedule’ for additional information.
When inspecting you are looking for signs of excessive wear and tear, deterioration, defects or any dangerous conditions. This includes checking the correct installation and selection of protective devices ‘circuit breakers and RCDs’, cable types and sizes, the presence of main earth, bonding as well as protective conductors.
Depending upon its physical condition the inspection can be undertaken with no or partial dismantling of the installation as required. Care should be taken not to cause any damage to the installation or to the building fabric when doing so.
Care should also be taken when dismantling any equipment and safe isolation procedures should always be followed when needed.
Periodic Testing:
The whole spectrum of electrical tests is employed on the necessary circuits and devices including when appropriate…
With the circuits isolated. Continuity of protective conductors, continuity of ring final conductors, polarity, and insulation resistance.
With the supply energised. Loop impedance (Ze) and prospective fault current (Ipf) of the supply.
With individual circuits energised. Loop impedance (Zs) and for devices if they are present the disconnection times of RCDs with a fault current 1x and 5x their rating, which is usually 30mA.
Functional testing of switches and isolators etc to ensure proper function should also take place including the operation of any present RCD integral test buttons.
Sampling:
It is not normally necessary to inspect and test every single circuit, point and accessory within the installation due to the size and the costs that may be involved. However, you should inspect and test enough of the installation to be able to form an educated opinion on its overall condition.
Guidance Note 3 provides information on selecting the most appropriate parts of an installation to inspect and test, known as sampling.
Reporting:
The findings of the inspection and test are used to produce a report on the installation’s condition. This report is based upon the model form in Appendix 6 of BS7671:2018 called the ‘Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR)’ and must include a ‘Schedule of Inspections’ and a ‘Schedule of Test Results’.
Any signs of damage, deterioration, defects, dangerous conditions, or non-compliance with BS7671 should be noted on the report along with the classification codes C1, C2 or C3 against each observation.
Classification Codes:
C1: Danger present with a risk of injury. Immediate action should be taken to make these safe. e.g. Exposed live parts.
C2: Potentially dangerous. Urgent remedial action is required. e.g. Zs value exceeding maximum permitted value.
C3: Improvement required. No immediate or potential danger. e.g. Missing or incorrect labelling.
F1: Further investigation required. Applies were the inspection or testing has revealed a possible problem which could not be full identified due limitations placed upon the inspection and test. This can be a problem as it must be assumed that after further investigation a C1 or C2 classification code would apply.
Regulation 651.2 NOTE2: “Existing installations may have been designed and installed to conform with previous editions of BS7671, applicable at the time of their design and installation. This does not necessarily mean that they are unsafe.”
“A good example of this and quite common is in older domestic installations is where there is no RCD protection on the bathroom lighting circuit. Although it would not be compliant with BS7671:2018 701.411.3.3 if it was done today, as it wasn’t a requirement of the regulations when the installation was completed then providing that the inspection and tests results were okay a classification code C3 would be okay.“
Conclusion:
If any classification codes C1, C2 or F1 apply to any observations made during the periodic inspection and test then the conclusion must be that the installation is in an ‘Unsatisfactory’ condition.
If only observation codes C3 apply or no observations are made, then the installation is in a ‘Satisfactory’ condition.
Reference:
Part 6 Chapter 65 BS7671:2018 ’18th Edition’
Appendix 6 BS7671:2018 ’18th Edition’
Guidance Note 3: Inspection & Testing