I fancied a cup of tea while working in the garage and didn’t want to keep going back into the house so I fetched the kettle etc and plugged it into the garage.
When I turn the kettle on, the consumer unit buzzes.
It’s a 13 amp plug and on a 32 amp circuit and it’s does it even when the kettle is the only thing plugged in so I don’t think it’s an overload issue. Also I’ve used power tools on the same plug without issue.
There’s only one socket and some lights going into the unit, the socket is on a separate mcb to the lights.
I don’t think it’s the kettle as it’s fine when used in the house.
Any thoughts on why it buzzes and what can be done?
Best Answer
Buzzing is a clue that there is a bad connection. This could be a bad breaker contact. On this side of the pond I have had top name brand breakers do this. My solution at least short term is turn that breaker on and off 10+ times with nothing plugged in. This seats the hammers in the breaker displacing the crud that was causing the problem. If the buzzing quits that solved the problem for now. I say solved the problem for now because if the arcing was severe it may return when this circuit is heavily loaded and then it's time to replace the breaker. It could be a loose wire lug also but I have found the breaker to be the cause most often even in large 3 phase systems the on off seats the hammers and things may be normal.