I drilled into an electrical cable!

[Dinging]

Hi All,
While doing some work at home over the weekend I managed to drill into a electrical cable which supplies a ring circuit for the sitting room and study. I was using a battery powered drill and was drilling into plasterboard so did not have a great amount of pressure on the drill, it went through the plasterboard and then into the cable and tripped the switch and main fuse board. I was OK if not a little shocked (excuse the pun). To see what damage I caused to the cable I cut out the plater to see if I could view the hold I drilled and the cable was covered by some plastic trunking. The hole is very small so I turn back on the electricity and everything is working OK. To replace this cable up to the main fuse box would be a nightmare, removing wooden floor, skirting, plaster etc but I also need to be sure the house does not burn down. Anyone any advice on what I should do here, should I assume if the electricity is working on that circuit that all is OK and if there is a problem the switch will trip.

Regards,
Dinging.

 

[Carpenter]

In short no! The insulation has been damaged and electrical safety has been compromised. Consult an electrician straight away.

 

[xt40]

dont assume its ok. it might work but over time could stark to arc which eventually leads to heat build up and possibly fire im not an electrician so dont rely on my advice but i would cut the cable and rejoin it with a heavy duty junction box ( the round black type - 60 amp i think) . i wouldnt be too bothered about the trunking.

 

[MugsGame]

Also, if there's trunking, you may be able to pull a replacement cable through while removing the existing cable. Again, consult an electrician though!

 

[monkeyboy]

I did that too once. My elec engineer mate advised I could cut out the damaged piece and splice in a new piece with one of thise connector blocks ( look like lego ). The insulate tape the whole thing back up again.
ensure the spliced wire is of the right size too.

I would say talk to a spark but if you get advised it is simple enough to do it your self.

 

[bacchus]

My elec engineer mate advised I could cut out the damaged piece and splice in a new piece with one of thise connector blocks ( look like lego ). The insulate tape the whole thing back up again.

AFAIK, you are not allowed to use these screw terminals in space that are not accesible, e.g. being plasterboard. That's in theory, practice is way different!!.
But it is ok to cut out the plasterboard, install a dry-lining box and use screw terminals which remains located inside the box. A bit messy if there is no slack in the cable, as you may have to use 2 boxes.