Question: We have old cabling in our 1930s building. Surely this is a fire risk. How can I get this actioned?
I live in an Art Deco building built in the 1930s. There are 5 units in the Building that have had rewired done in the ceilings. The committee is sitting on the decisions to carry out the rewiring in the remaining 7 units.
Surely this poses a fire safety risk? How can I ensure the repairs are completed as soon as possible?
Answer: Take action via the owners corporation and strata to push the need to finalise this upgrade by making sure everyone understands the dangers of old cabling.
I would love to give you a simple answer to that one. Back in the 1930’s most wiring was copper wrapped in tar and Canvas. Highly flammable stuff wrapped around an electrical wire that is likely to heat up if load is applied to it – particularly in winter! Yes, it probably does pose a safety risk.
From a fire safety perspective, there is nothing in the fire safety inspections or legislation that says anyone should be inspecting or enforcing it. The requirement to do it is the owners corporation’s choice.
The only other enforcement angle for that is via Council or the fire brigade, putting a fire order on the building, which will get enforced. Though, the blowback for what else they may require you to do may not be pleasant. This is because the Council’s job in New South Wales under the legislation is to bring every building up to a current level of life safety, which is a pretty broad statement. This essentially means if they end up in your building and give you a fire order, you may end up with lots more fire protection systems than was required or installed in your building in the 1930s. This is obviously a great thing for safety and peace-of-mind, but often comes with a substantial financial burden.
I would suggest that your action should be via the owners corporation and strata to push the need to finalise this upgrade by making sure everyone understands the dangers of old cabling. There’s quite a lot of information on the internet regarding old cables and the risks associated with them.
This post appears in the July 2022 edition of The NSW Strata Magazine.
Rob Broadhead
2020 Fire Protection
E: rob.broadhead@2020fire.com.au
P: 1300 340 210
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