COC/Test report a legal document

[Derlyn]

Today I had a house with 4 lights not working. The house had a COC and the wiring was a mess. I phoned the contractor and he told me he did not do the wiring or the COC but somebody that worked for him did it. He will investigate the matter and get back to me. A few minutes later a couple of students showed up and after telling them what is wrong and how to fix it, they fixed it.
But the wiring is still a mess, the geyser is still not bonded and the steel structure of the house is not earthed. A legal COC, sloppy COC or faulty COC?!

2 points, I think, worth mentioning are: ( please correct me if I am wrong )

1) Lights not working does not invalidate a COC. Lights are fixed appliances and as long as the supply is good up to the terminals on the fitting, it passes the COC test.

2) Geyser bonding: As long as continuity can be proven by the test described in 8.6.2 then no external bonding conductors are required.

8.6.2 Continuity of bonding

Test the continuity of the bonding between the consumers earth terminal and all exposed conductive parts using a supply that has a no-load d.c. or a.c. voltage of 4 V to 24 V and a current of at least 0,2A. In each case, the resistance shall not exceed 0,2 Ohms.

[Thys LOW Elektries]

On point 1) The wires from the lights were not connected in the draw box. The red and black wire going to the light was connected to the switch with no supply going to the switch. If make and break were tested, they would have noticed that the lights were not working.

Another thing that tweaks my motor is houses that get a COC with no lights in the house! Just bare wires poking out of the ceiling, how do they know if the lights are working or not, do the lights make and break? Do the two-way light switches work the way they should? Hence I only COC if there are lights that work, that I can test

[Derlyn]

On point 1) The wires from the lights were not connected in the draw box. The red and black wire going to the light was connected to the switch with no supply going to the switch.

Yep, a fail.

Just as an aside:

As far as geyser bonding is concerned, don't even try and explain to insurance companies that external bonding wires are not always necessary. They want to see them on the photos provided, whether necessary or not. ( Insurance companies are now insisting that plumbers send them photos of new geyser installations. Even the cold water pipes need to be lagged. Why, I don't know.

[Isetech]

We are fortunate the public have no idea what is going on with the COC/test reports, even though they are responsible for the electrical installation and insurance are way ahead of the game, they loose anyway you look at it, just pay pay pay.

You just have to look at the ques outside home affairs to realize how tolerant the public choose to be.

I suppose we shouldn't complain, it is like taking candy from a kid, eating it and making the kid pay for it. the best part, chances are being held accountable for doing it, less than 1 %.

I dont know why I waste my time complaining about it, the smart people get rich

I have 5 years to retirement, Its time I got smart and stopped wasting time complaining, if you cant beat them join them. I went rogue from around 2012 till 2015 and boy did I make money, that is when I cut back on all my expenses, like insurances, registrations, bargaining council registration, put my head down and made a killing.

Thank goodness I jumped on the solar band wagon when I did, that really turned things around, now I just have to get smart and start sub contracting all the work out. That way I dont take responsibility for anything. It seems the be the way forward in the solar industry.

It is also why I am busy creating a new consulting company, find a youngster who will be the face of the company, if the shyte hits the fan, I just slide out the back door, close it down, take the money and walk away. 2024 bossiness ethics

[Isetech]

I am with the insurance companies on the geyser bonding , we do it regardless of the test results.

We take a wire from the DB onto the geyser, then form the geyser to the cold water pipe and link it to the hot water pipe as close to the geyser as possible.

If the house has old steel pipes and no earth wires, we run a 6 mm earth from the incoming supply, to the main DB earth bar, make sure all the steel pipes are bonded together, then run a wire to the closest copper pipe, from the main DB to the geyser and link the hot and cold. It sounds like a waste of time and money, I sleep better at night.

The past 40 years working in the elctrical industry have taught me that its not the live wire that is important, the earthing and bonding that saves peoples lives, isnt that what the SANS regs are all about? I am sure it states that in the introduction.

Yep, a fail.

Just as an aside:

As far as geyser bonding is concerned, don't even try and explain to insurance companies that external bonding wires are not always necessary. They want to see them on the photos provided, whether necessary or not. ( Insurance companies are now insisting that plumbers send them photos of new geyser installations. Even the cold water pipes need to be lagged. Why, I don't know.

[Isetech]

Another reason why I started this thread, there is making mistakes (we all do) but when you are presented with a COC which clearly shows indicates that it looks like the person who completed the document didn't even get the information correct, surely there has to be so sort of punishment.

You given a COC, the document (I wish I could post it on this forum) is clear indication of how bad this industry has got, the customer contacts the person who did the installation ( not sure that the person signed the document has been to site) says the rules have changed in the past year, so they will return and fit indicator light, fuse disconnects, wireways on the solar cable, just to mention a few of the non compliant items.

Then a new COC is issued and this time, but this time as a member of the ECA, this is where the fight is going to start. I have forwarded a copy to another member of the ECA and requested they review the information.

At least the person has invested in a meter that can test Neutral loop impedance, so instead of posting "no meter" in the last COC, this time there is a reading.

It is like the last COC, there has to be a limit or line draw for our mistakes, having a socket outlet within arms reach of a bath tub (300mm), not connected to a safety supply nor an ELU, should be a criminal offence, not a quick call the contractor to go fix it, what happens if I didn't identify the problem, I wasn't even doing a COC'/test report. I just noticed the socket outlet while looking into something else. I immediately disconnected and cut the wires too short and isolated the wires, so that it could not be reconnected it without even asking the customer. Probably one of the most dangerous non compliant COC I have come across to date.

There is going to have to be some form of checking system implemented to verify that at least some of the COC's being issued are worth the paper they are printed on. Someone mentioned, but they must be correct because they are now done digitally, clearly that has not made any difference, you are going to have to get in a vehicle drive to the site and verify the COC's are being done properly.

[Isetech]

When are the public going to step up and demand this industry get their shyte together, surely people like Carte Blanche could do some investigations into this industry and the COC/test report racket, which by the way is costing the public hundreds of thousands if not millions of rands.

I know there are people out there who dedicate their time and effort into improving the industry, but clearly we need some form of accountability to kick in.

This is one of the reasons I am going to be joining the ECA in July when the new year opens for registrations, one to protect myself when I make mistakes, but also to join an industry that has been around for a long time and attempt to assist to make an positive impact in this industry, instead of just throw stone from the side line.

[Isetech]

The customer I am dealing with at the moment had no idea that his COC and solar installation was non complaint, as the responsible person he had taken the correct steps by requesting a COC for the installation, however was unaware of all the non compliant items (and there are a lot) present on the site and even the new COC/test report doesn't seem to be right, so I have advised them to take it up with the ECA. The R20 000 workmanship warranty doesn't cover my time investigating the issues, they would have to pay me as a consultant, then claim from the person who issued the COC.