A warning from someone that use to work in some of the places being explored.

[HistoryBuff]

@Angie is there a way to turn off notifications to a dull thread?

Just asking for a friend

Go to the top of the thread and click on UnWatch. That stops the alerts.

 

[Wrench]

Ooooohhhhh thanks chuck

 

[Electric]

If you've seen something that isn't right, call 105 in the UK for the local DNO (AKA the electricity board) and report a dangerous situation to them.

I'm an Electrical Engineer, carry a 'voltstick', keep away and have called asking for feeds to be isolated in case of accident or a fire starts.
Once this was an open and vandalised 11,000V substation on a site, and another a part demolished pub where the three-phase incomer was pulled out of the ground and left exposed on a picnic table - photo below for those who may be interested and haven't switched off!

PS: Love the new way of putting photos in. It's so easy I've got no excuse for not reporting!

 

[Hayman]

I was told if you think something might be live, brush the BACK of your hand against it first.... really stupid thing to say. if you think somethig is live you do not touch it with any part of your body. or any thing not designed as an approved device to test electrics. Ive seen folk plated through stupidity. a current of 0.03A is enough to do you damge if it flows through you. Seriously if you dont know what you are doing... dont do it. Im an appointed person for HV certified to work on distribution and generation systems operating up to 11kV. A fault on an 11kv system could produce a fault level of 250MVA. that is serious amount of power. An electrical fault can develop temperatrues similar to the surface of the sun and also pressure waves that can damge your internal organs. unless you have the correct equipment there is no safe way to identify if a circuit is dead or not. and then you dont know if it is properly made safe and locked off unless you have full knowledge of the system and its operation. electricity along with other utilities should not be messed with !

Considering this website consists in the main of photos and reports by people illegally or illicitly trespassing on other people's land or in other people's buildings, I am very surprised by the righteous responses to my single line retelling what I was told – by an electrician! The best thing to have come from it – and the responses – is that anyone reading my initial posting, and the results, is that such trespassers will be more aware of the potential dangers from electric shock when going around derelict properties. With a lot of old buildings open to the elements – and thus having water seeping into electrical fittings and making everything damp – if there are any live circuits then for anyone simply being in their proximity is a risk in itself. All risks are relative.

 

[Ruggedscot]

Considering this website consists in the main of photos and reports by people illegally or illicitly trespassing on other people's land or in other people's buildings, I am very surprised by the righteous responses to my single line retelling what I was told – by an electrician! The best thing to have come from it – and the responses – is that anyone reading my initial posting, and the results, is that such trespassers will be more aware of the potential dangers from electric shock when going around derelict properties. With a lot of old buildings open to the elements – and thus having water seeping into electrical fittings and making everything damp – if there are any live circuits then for anyone simply being in their proximity is a risk in itself. All risks are relative.

yup wandered around a few places myself over the years.... just dont tell folks to do something that stoopid... thats all.

 

[Hayman]

yup wandered around a few places myself over the years.... just dont tell folks to do something that stoopid... thats all.

And where did I "tell folks to do something that stoopid [sic]"? Please show.

 

[CridlingJimbo]

And where did I "tell folks to do something that stoopid [sic]"? Please show.

Well you posted the words, and you then posted again trying to explain why they 'made sense'.

Advice from some dangerously under trained or complacent domestic electrician.

At 230VAC you may be lucky and just get a tingle but there are multiple fatalities from such contact annually, many amongst electricians.

 

[Dan1701]

I was told if you think something might be live, brush the BACK of your hand against it first.... really stupid thing to say. if you think somethig is live you do not touch it with any part of your body. or any thing not designed as an approved device to test electrics. Ive seen folk plated through stupidity. a current of 0.03A is enough to do you damge if it flows through you. Seriously if you dont know what you are doing... dont do it. Im an appointed person for HV certified to work on distribution and generation systems operating up to 11kV. A fault on an 11kv system could produce a fault level of 250MVA. that is serious amount of power. An electrical fault can develop temperatrues similar to the surface of the sun and also pressure waves that can damge your internal organs. unless you have the correct equipment there is no safe way to identify if a circuit is dead or not. and then you dont know if it is properly made safe and locked off unless you have full knowledge of the system and its operation. electricity along with other utilities should not be messed with !

Actually, you don't need all that much power to kill. Think about what you're likely to be doing when you touch something; one arm touching, one arm resting against a wall. What's right in the middle of you body?

Yes, your heart. Put a nice big voltage across your heart, and it'll stop. That's what a defibrillator actually does; it stops your heart in the hope that CPR and nature will re-start it all back in sync again. But remember, you're in an abandoned building, and you've not got CPR on hand right then and there; you've got at best your mate saying "What's wrong, was it live, what do I do, why won't you talk to me?"

One jolt and you may recover. One continuous discharge and that's you dead, stopped heart.

If you think the power is live, poke around with a voltage sensor, a plastic one, and bear in mind that this will only sense AC power. If there's still a rectifier going, or a bank of batteries, then there will be DC present and you won't detect that with a probe. Better, wear rubber gloves and don't touch electrical stuff and if the metal thieves have been in (or, worse, are still there), get the hell out and call in the police.

 

[Hayman]

Well you posted the words, and you then posted again trying to explain why they 'made sense'.

Advice from some dangerously under trained or complacent domestic electrician.

At 230VAC you may be lucky and just get a tingle but there are multiple fatalities from such contact annually, many amongst electricians.

I did not TELL anyone to do anything.

 

[night crawler]

These two photos are of an electrical distribution cabinet in the Rotherfield at Fair Mile, the contractors took me around the place before it was demolished, lot of wires in there which no doubt were not live but if it were WHY in Gods name would you want to stick your grubby mits in if it was live. One thing looking at they it's another poking around if you do not know what your doing.

 

[Ruggedscot]

These two photos are of an electrical distribution cabinet in the Rotherfield at Fair Mile, the contractors took me around the place before it was demolished, lot of wires in there which no doubt were not live but if it were WHY in Gods name would you want to stick your grubby mits in if it was live. One thing looking at they it's another poking around if you do not know what your doing.
View attachment 505092
View attachment 505093

Lots of things in here that could make money - there will be copper busbars and some of that switchgear could be pulled out and sold. Plenty of copper thieves know this. thing is that could be live it could be dead. And if its live you could be dead if you go about poking about in there. still some good pictures. Ive put a few of them in over the years and altered ones etc... thanks for sharing...