Red Kite Electrical, the company for electrical problems on Caversham Park Village

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Caversham Park Village -is your wiring suffering from 'green goo'?
There may also be other issues with your wiring.

They threw the book away when they built Caversham Park Village. The book of good building practice that is.

Many of the houses on the Village were built when PVC coating for electric cables was new technology. PVC from this era (approximately 1965 to 1971) contains a chemical which, over time, can begin to break down creating an unpleasant and unsightly sticky green substance -known in the electrical trade as green goo. Shown below is a ceiling rose removed during a recent job in a Village house.

ceiling rose with green goo

Bad green goo is a cosmetic problem. Serious cases can spoil decorative finishes such as wallpaper. It is also a hazardous substance. But most importantly it is a sign that wiring is potentially unsafe -because the insulating barrier between the conducting copper in the electric cables is breaking down. If you are concerned about green goo in your home you should contact Red Kite for a free no obligation opinion.

Two other common faults with CPV wiring;

  1. The main equipotential bond wires to the water system is usually missing. This is an electrical earth for your water pipes to prevent them from holding a dangerous mains voltage if a live wire touches them. On CPV it is a wiring regulation that is 'honoured more in the breach'. It is a fundamental requirement of the current wiring regulations that a satisfactory bond is installed before any changes are made to the fixed wiring.

  2. The fuse board. The old wired fuse boards installed throughout the Village when it was built are now obsolete. They must be swapped for a consumer unit before any changes can be made to the wiring.

Two further issues, that whilst not technically faults make CPV houses difficult to work on;

  1. Five amp round pin socket outlets. These are very rarely used today, but very common in CPV. You should be very careful to ensure that if you fit round pin plugs to an appliance that it can safely be run on a 5 amp circuit. The socket outlets cannot be changed for for standard 13 amp sockets without rewiring. If in doubt call Red Kite for an opinion.

  2. Cinder block walls. Very popular in the 1970's as a cheap building material, and therefore almost universal in CPV. Considerable skill is required when chasing out runs for cabling in this inferior block or it may disintegrate. Red Kite has considerable experience in doing so successfully.

If you are concerned about green goo or any other aspect of the electrical safety in your CPV property you should contact Red Kite for a free no obligation opinion.