House wiring age

mrlegend123

goodValue said:

A recent survey stated that the lifetime of wiring is only 25 years.

Whereas a recent post suggested that 40 year old wiring would normally be ok.

Are the any Building Industry Standards that say what the life expectancy of wiring should be?

25 years props okay (no work done since build). 40 years props not okay (no work done since build). obviously both would not be to current standards.... I am a time served and degree qualified electrical engineer and not a house bashing electrician so housing knowledge is limited. I have seen industry standards making recommendations for houses to be rewired and updated after 25 years. it's all about electrical safety. 

GDB2222

We have a house in the family that was built 50 years ago, and the original wiring is fine. My home was rewired 20 years ago and the cables serving the fluorescent lights in the kitchen cooked from the heat after 15 years. The insulation was damaged enough to trip the MCB. The rest of our wiring seems fine, though.

PVC insulation lasts a very long time, but it does break down if subject to heat. Some installations will have the wiring installed right next to very hot central heating pipes, for example. Maybe not all the way along, but just crossing over in one place, perhaps. So the insulation breaks down in that one place, and hopefully trips the RCD. Tracing that fault may involve taking up lots of flooring, so it’s quite a  palaver. 

VeronicaReid

The Government will pay at least 80 per cent of employee wages up to a maximum of £2,500 a month.