Posted By Ron Hunter Following the recent post discussing potential use of 220/240v on construction sites and relying on RCD Protection, I thought I'd share the gist of a report published in the Autumn 2006 Edition of the Electrical Safety Council's "Switched On" publication which discusses failure rates of RCDs in domestic premises. The full report detailing the findings of the first phase of a recent survey on RCD reliability is avaiable at www.electricalsafetycouncil.org.uk. Summary points include: Average failure rates of 7.1%, falling to 2.8% when the units are tested regularly via the integral test button; The primary modes of failure were ingress of fine particles (dust) and moisture ingress causing components to stick; electronic devices no more reliable in practice than electro-mechanical ones.

Posted By Peter Leese Yes, thanks Ron. A bit more ammunition... A pity it is mainly based on Italian figures though, it would have been better with a broader brush.