Forums Forums Local News Major Electrical Disaster - Birkenhead

Electricity is off in parts of Birkenhead, from what I know at the moment it may be some of the large area covered by the sub-station at the top of Temple Road/ Singleton Avenue but it might be a bigger or smaller problem.

A large surge occurred and it is thought that the phase wiring was crossed and 400V was supplied to houses instead of 250V.

Equipment has blown up in houses (I know of some), Scottish Power are on their way round houses and the fire-brigade is in attendance in case any equipment has gone on fire.

Exactly what equipment is damaged won't be found out until electricity is back on.

I wonder who will be responsible for it? The grid operators or the Jokers who rip you off for the energy you buy, like Scottish Power, Eon, and Npower?

Still, I think more equipment will survive these days. Much modern electronics uses switch-mode power supplies and they usually accept a wider range of voltages. Whether the 'tank' capacitors will stand the peak voltage of around 500v is a bit doubtful though I suppose. How long was it on?

Just rang my brother who lives off Singleton to offer room in fridge/freezer. No problem reported or known. DD could you point me in the direction to find information on the reported "disaster"??

I didn't know if its just one street (or one phase of a street). Parkhill Road is affected.

I guess the mistake didn't happen for long before it tripped, people have a lot of kit connected, many things have spike suppressors in them which will all have appeared as a short circuit.

I expect spike suppressors would cut out pretty quickly to protect themselves. They are designed for spikes rather than extended periods of high voltage. They would get hot, and they have thermal cut-outs that switch the power off when they have absorbed their rated energy.

It may be just one phase that is affected, so it would hit only every third house. Sounds like a major cock up. I wonder how it happened?

This used to be a common thing when the electric was fiddled by an amatuar.. The street or a couple of streets went out. I wonder !!

Turns out the voltage might have been high for quite a period of time, a digital clock was playing up (alternating bright and dim) then sometime after a power adapter blew to smithereens.

Boiler doesn't work any longer, TV dead, digital phone dead, main fusebox may have a fault even though it was checked earlier.

Various people looking at various bits.

It is just the one road it has been said. I bet parking is going to be a laugh with contractors everywhere.

I don't see how the voltage could go up to 400V without affecting everything back to the substation, to do this one phase must have been earthed (neutraled) which would normally blow the substation trips/fuses. You can only get 400V between two phases, each phase is 250V to earth/neutral.

I'm only reporting on from my relations, I have a completely different disaster where I am.

Mistakes happen. United Utilities built an underground sewage pumping station about 100 yards from my home. When it was commissioned and started operating, I noticed that the lights in our house periodically dimmed for half a second before coming back up to full brightness. I assumed it was the pumps starting up and imposing a particularly heavy load as they accelerated to speed and complained to the electricity people.

They came and installed a spike detector in my study, which of course showed nothing. I suggested they find a recording voltmeter which they had to hire, and that showed a 40 volt drop periodically. A few days later a crestfallen engineer came and told me that only one end of the ring that was supplying us and the pumping station had been connected. Reconnecting it cured the problem completely. He was grateful for my bringing it to his attention, but not, alas, grateful enough to give me a year's free power! Or even ten minutes free power!

Fault was blamed on an old underground street junction box, the fault had started before 6:15am and eventually blew at 7am. There were 10 houses involved. A generator was put in place the afternoon of the fault occurring, repair was made later that day I think.

The support company being used by Scottishpower is Haste Ltd who do seem to be quite good, based in Leicester..

List of things that got destroyed in one property.

Washing machine (repaired today)
Nokia mobile phone charger blew up (replaced yesterday with genuine Nokia item).
Central heating timer (replaced yesterday with genuine item but a temporary fix had been done a few days ago)
Microwave oven.
On call system (Haste won't deal with this but I assume any costs will be refunded).
Cordless phone charger.
Answerphone
Fluorescent strip light
Mains extension block (now replaced)
Tablet charger
Mains panel fuse (now replaced)
Numerous fuses in mains extension blocks (now replaced)
Router
Digital alarm clock
Intruder alarm dead and produced scorch marks on wall (man coming out tomorrow, this had accidentally been overlooked by occupants and Haste)

Raffles Road area Birkenhead had a power cut this evening ( Monday ) Friends road it was about every 3rd house that was out. He missed the Liverpool match....just as well>>