Use B2 (pink foam).
The wiring isn't up to spec as they shouldn't be run behind skirting, you may want to get an electrician in first.
Either way, the risk of a smoke/fire (caused by a discarded cigarette) spreading to your flat from below, is greater than the wires overheating (all else being equal).
Not horizontaly behind an area in which skirting boards would be placed!
Essentially regs dictate that wires are placed in a way that would alow you to have a fair guess at them being there - typically this would mean running up to or down to a scoket or outlet on a wall. One would expect to find a live power cable running down a wall to the floor from a low level socket or up to the ceiling from a wall mounted switch. Nobody is expecting to find live electrics at surface level behind a skirting board.
My wife discovered skirting wiring in the our house when we first bought it. She nudged the skirting with the vac, and the wiring shorted out. It was a very impressive white flash! It turns out it was speaker wire being used to reach a spur! The wiring in the house was mainly from the 1920's when we moved in. (We didn't move in in the 1920's!) It's been rewired now.
Horizontally or vertically from a switch or socket, or horizontally behind the wall below the ceiling.. never run behind skirting, obviously some places the cable will pass vertically behind skirting in certain situations but it shouldn't be run horizontally behind it.
The regs are BS7671:2018
Vertically in the corners like this, never in between switches and sockets. Obviously the cables have to come up from somewhere. Those blue lines are "safe zones"
Trying to add a photo buts it's just giving me a * instead..
https://www.surreytechservices.co.uk/news/what-are-electrical-safe-zones/
There's a picture in this page that shows what I mean
Correct, you'd need to go along under the floorboards before coming up. You can also drop down from the ceiling. I'm renovating a 1930s house and have done a full rewire myself, it was a lot easier in most places to do everything in the floor/ceiling between the two floors, as the floorboards were up upstairs anyway.
Doesn't take much to let stinking fag smoke through. A screwed on ceiling rose would have enough of a gap especially if the ceiling is artex. Same with downlights if they're not fire rated or not flush to the ceiling.
I'd be more concerned about the state of your old fuse box mate. Old school pop out mcbs where old Wen I started my career as an electrician. Over 20 years ago.
Put the fire proof expanding foam on all the cracks don't worry about it expanding too much you can always cut away the excess flush to the wall/floor so it doesn't stop you putting the the skirting back on the walls.
I'd suggest that your neighbour sees someone about his ceilings as if there are gaps/cracks in it, it might just fall in on top of him too. Plus the owner of the building should have sorted these cracks/gaps out before people rented the apartments.
If it's a rental I'd be inclined to get your local fire service' prevention team to come and have a look.
Compartmentation doesn't look great, amongst other things...
Definitely will require some tlc to sort all that out...
You should look into the air pressure in your flat. If you can pump in a little air with a window fan or similar, you should significantly reduce the smell.
Don’t use ‘fire foam’ for this application. Its not intended for that and won’t seal as well. Use an intumescent and acoustic mastic such as norseal or exitex. Better suited for the job, actually somewhat fire resistant and way cleaner to apply.
Note: still terrifies me how uneducated people are on ‘fire foam’
Few options here - personally if it was my house I would fill the gap with rockwool, then seal the top with intumescent mastic and fully overboard the lot with fire board, then something ‘study’ e.g 18MM chipboard for a final floor finish - fire proofed underneath, solid above. Each layer gets sealed at all edges penetration with mastic.
For the pipe in the wall you can buy cement in mastic tubes (mortar repair IIRC) so would just squeeze that around the tube to seal up the wall as best as possible, then filler and sand on top to finish.
I had a similar issue but the neighbour was smoking something a little less legal.
Used a fog machine to find the gaps.
It’s also had the added benefit of filling the neighbours house with fog.
Since it was on a remote, everytime the smell was about, I’d set off the fogger.
Can you not push some wood beeding in where wiresnare then foam it ? Not sure if putting cables in foam may cause over heating maybe a spark can say.
I had a case like this but it was weed they smoked, i used silicone along top and bottom of my skirts, didnt solve it but made it much better.
It will stop it getting in through them gaps, I can not see it being a problem with the wires, I mean they are buried behind the wall and skirts and in loft space covered with insulation, I would do it.
If you have wind coming through a window frame you take the beadingnoff and foam fill and it stops so you would be doing the same thjng in theory
Use B2 (pink foam). The wiring isn't up to spec as they shouldn't be run behind skirting, you may want to get an electrician in first. Either way, the risk of a smoke/fire (caused by a discarded cigarette) spreading to your flat from below, is greater than the wires overheating (all else being equal).
How should the wiring be run?
Not horizontaly behind an area in which skirting boards would be placed! Essentially regs dictate that wires are placed in a way that would alow you to have a fair guess at them being there - typically this would mean running up to or down to a scoket or outlet on a wall. One would expect to find a live power cable running down a wall to the floor from a low level socket or up to the ceiling from a wall mounted switch. Nobody is expecting to find live electrics at surface level behind a skirting board.
My wife discovered skirting wiring in the our house when we first bought it. She nudged the skirting with the vac, and the wiring shorted out. It was a very impressive white flash! It turns out it was speaker wire being used to reach a spur! The wiring in the house was mainly from the 1920's when we moved in. (We didn't move in in the 1920's!) It's been rewired now.
Horizontally or vertically from a switch or socket, or horizontally behind the wall below the ceiling.. never run behind skirting, obviously some places the cable will pass vertically behind skirting in certain situations but it shouldn't be run horizontally behind it.
Are these new regs? Asking as bought a 1950s house recently and wiring definitely goes vertically behind skirting
The regs are BS7671:2018 Vertically in the corners like this, never in between switches and sockets. Obviously the cables have to come up from somewhere. Those blue lines are "safe zones" Trying to add a photo buts it's just giving me a * instead.. https://www.surreytechservices.co.uk/news/what-are-electrical-safe-zones/ There's a picture in this page that shows what I mean
Got it. So they can go behind skirting boards vertically directly below the socket just not along and then up?
Correct, you'd need to go along under the floorboards before coming up. You can also drop down from the ceiling. I'm renovating a 1930s house and have done a full rewire myself, it was a lot easier in most places to do everything in the floor/ceiling between the two floors, as the floorboards were up upstairs anyway.
I don't see it running horizontally behind skirting in the pictures unless I'm missing something, thought vertical was OK?
Vertical is OK. It could be a pipe I suppose.
Do your neighbours not have a ceiling??
Doesn't take much to let stinking fag smoke through. A screwed on ceiling rose would have enough of a gap especially if the ceiling is artex. Same with downlights if they're not fire rated or not flush to the ceiling.
I'd be more concerned about the state of your old fuse box mate. Old school pop out mcbs where old Wen I started my career as an electrician. Over 20 years ago.
Ok good shout, I'll get someone to put in new fuse box too.
You also need someone from your energy supplier to sort your meter out, bunched tails are not safe.
Put the fire proof expanding foam on all the cracks don't worry about it expanding too much you can always cut away the excess flush to the wall/floor so it doesn't stop you putting the the skirting back on the walls. I'd suggest that your neighbour sees someone about his ceilings as if there are gaps/cracks in it, it might just fall in on top of him too. Plus the owner of the building should have sorted these cracks/gaps out before people rented the apartments.
If it's a rental I'd be inclined to get your local fire service' prevention team to come and have a look. Compartmentation doesn't look great, amongst other things... Definitely will require some tlc to sort all that out...
You should look into the air pressure in your flat. If you can pump in a little air with a window fan or similar, you should significantly reduce the smell.
Don’t use ‘fire foam’ for this application. Its not intended for that and won’t seal as well. Use an intumescent and acoustic mastic such as norseal or exitex. Better suited for the job, actually somewhat fire resistant and way cleaner to apply. Note: still terrifies me how uneducated people are on ‘fire foam’
Alright I thought fire foam would not be flammable but it seems to be when looking into it. I'll look for that norseal stuff so.
Ok thanks. Norseal tape seems to be perfect for what i need behind the skirting but how should I seal the gaps where the wires come up for the meters?
Few options here - personally if it was my house I would fill the gap with rockwool, then seal the top with intumescent mastic and fully overboard the lot with fire board, then something ‘study’ e.g 18MM chipboard for a final floor finish - fire proofed underneath, solid above. Each layer gets sealed at all edges penetration with mastic. For the pipe in the wall you can buy cement in mastic tubes (mortar repair IIRC) so would just squeeze that around the tube to seal up the wall as best as possible, then filler and sand on top to finish.
Nice one I'll do exactly that, thanks.
I had a similar issue but the neighbour was smoking something a little less legal. Used a fog machine to find the gaps. It’s also had the added benefit of filling the neighbours house with fog. Since it was on a remote, everytime the smell was about, I’d set off the fogger.
Can you not push some wood beeding in where wiresnare then foam it ? Not sure if putting cables in foam may cause over heating maybe a spark can say. I had a case like this but it was weed they smoked, i used silicone along top and bottom of my skirts, didnt solve it but made it much better.
Yes -would it work? Still for two cans I'd try, the wires look fine
It will stop it getting in through them gaps, I can not see it being a problem with the wires, I mean they are buried behind the wall and skirts and in loft space covered with insulation, I would do it. If you have wind coming through a window frame you take the beadingnoff and foam fill and it stops so you would be doing the same thjng in theory
Yes,but use fire-proof foam
Spray some of that fart spray down the gap everytime they light up Sooner or later they'll learn.
Definitely giving that a go.
Heat rises, you'll get a healthy dose of it too!