Have you ever heard or seen green goo in electrical installations? You may or may not be familiar with this phenomenon, however, if your home was built or rewired between 1965 and 1971 then there is a likelihood that this will or is already affecting you.
Those who are experiencing green goo in your property will notice the dark green substance seeping out of switches and sockets. It looks somewhat like Fairy Liquid and is tacky to the touch. In some cases, it is not so obvious and will remain unnoticed until some electrical work is carried out. In severe cases, you will find it dribbling down the wall beneath your electrical outlets.
The concerns about green goo range from the problems it can cause to the safety of the electrical installation to how it can affect your health.
The bottom line is that it is a fault of the manufacturing practice that was employed in the making of early PVC cable. Without getting too technical and discussing the makeup of PVC (polyvinyl chloride), PVC requires a plasticiser to be added to make it pliable for use in cables. Early plasticisers reacted with the copper in the cable when it reached a given temperature.
A lot depends on the loading and usage of the electrical installation. The warmer the conductors (cables) get, the more the plasticiser leaches. This can result in the cable becoming brittle and eventually breaking down. The goo substance itself can also cause issues with the functionality of accessories.
Unfortunately, if an installation is seriously affected then the only real solution is to have it completely rewired. Simply replacing outlets or accessories will only serve as a temporary aesthetic solution, as the underlying problem still exists.
As for health concerns, contact with the green substance can cause ill effects such as dermatitis and rashes. Therefore, precautions should be taken to prevent skin contact.
If you have concerns about your property, a simple insulation resistance test can be carried out by a qualified electrician. This will tell you whether your cable has deteriorated.
Crannis Technology Services Ltd are here to help you with all your electrical needs. Give our friendly team a call today on 01793 629629.
For further reading.. check out one of our other blogs here Is Your Home Electrically Safe? Here’s What You Need to Know
An excellent source of information is also https://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk
