How to find and fix a broken wire in the wall with your own hands

A cable break in a hidden electrical wiring is a nuisance that does not happen very often, but makes you spend a lot of time, nerves and energy on finding and eliminating it. Perceptibly, it will hit your pocket, because you need to find a damaged area in the wall, get to it, repair it and repair it again. For this work, you will have to pay a significant amount to a specialist. You can save money if you can handle the troubleshooting yourself. From this material, you will learn how to find a broken wire in the wall, and what you need to do to fix the problem.

Finding a cliff: procedure

The search for a break in a hidden wire, regardless of the cause of the damage and the devices used to search, is carried out in the following order:

• De-energize the wiring before looking for a damaged cable.
• Sometimes, to reduce the resistance level, the wire insulation is burned.
• To search, you can resort to the acoustic or induction method, as well as use a transistor receiver or an ordinary household multimeter.
• Professional electricians use locators in their work. These devices make it possible not only to quickly find an electrical line, but also to find all current-carrying conductors, and also find out whether they are energized or not. For greater efficiency, certain types of such devices are used in conjunction with generators.

It is worth mentioning the newest technology of power grids, which not so long ago began to be used in European countries, but unfortunately in Russia, it is not yet practiced. A feature of this installation is the integration of beacons (markers) into cable conductors when laying lines.

If an open circuit occurs in such a network, then the locator, on a signal from the beacon, will help you quickly find the location of the malfunction. This allows you to save significant time and quickly restore the functionality of the wiring.

Acoustic and induction methods for finding the break point

The acoustic method for detecting a break in a hidden wiring assumes the presence of:

• A generator that connects to the wire.
• Acoustic signaling device.
• Headphones (headphones).

During the search, the wire is tapped using the listed items. When you reach the place where there is a break in the electrical wiring, a sharp click will be heard in the headphones. To get the result, you need the generator to be tuned correctly, to the frequency that is needed.

The induction method for finding a break in the wiring hidden in the wall involves connecting the generator to the power conductor. After setting the load level on the generator, testing is carried out similarly to the acoustic method, using headphones and a special signaling device. The difference is that along the entire length of the line, up to the point of damage, a signal will be heard in the headphones, which will significantly increase when it reaches the point of the break and disappear behind it.

Finding a broken wire in a concrete or brick wall

To determine the location of damage in a wall made of bricks or representing a concrete slab, you will need a transistor receiver, with which hidden electrical wiring is detected. It should be borne in mind that in brick and concrete buildings, all cables are directed horizontally and vertically, and rotate exclusively at an angle of 90 degrees. Knowing this, you can't go wrong with your cabling diagram.

The indicator should be guided along the wall above the cable, along its entire length. In this case, along the entire path, the device will emit a sound signal, which will disappear when it reaches the point where the conductor breaks.

So, we figured out how to find a break in the wiring. If you do not have the necessary devices or are not sure that you can correctly determine the location of the cable break and can repair it yourself, the best way out of the situation would be to invite an electrician. Professional electricians have experience in this work and have the necessary electrical equipment, which means that they will be able to find the malfunction and eliminate it within a fairly short time.

The whole diagnostic process is clearly visible on video:

But if there is a great desire to save money and learn this procedure yourself, then we proceed to the next stage - repairing the faulty line.

The procedure for eliminating a break in a hidden cable

After finding the exact break point in one of the above ways, the wire should be connected. To do this, you must first turn off the phase, and then open the cable gutter with a hammer about 10 cm to the left and right from the place of damage. Then the broken core must be carefully separated from the conductor without breaking the insulating layer on other cables.

The further procedure is as follows:

• Spread the ends of the broken cable apart.
• Using a perforator and a special crown, drill a recess in the wall. It must be large enough to fit the junction box.
• Insert the box into the hole and fix it there with alabaster, then place the cables in it.
• Connect and insulate damaged wires.
• After removing the damage, close the box with a lid.
• Plaster the previously opened section of the groove.

If the damaged cable is located inside a special tube, then it must be carefully pulled out, and in its place, using a pulling device, tighten a new conductor.

The video shows the process of wire recovery:

After sealing the electrical groove, do not apply voltage to the repaired cable until the plaster is completely dry.

The above process is carried out when repairing a broken phase. The restoration of the neutral wire is carried out in almost the same order, with the exception of the initial stage. When repairing a scratch, first of all, the damaged cable must be separated from the bus. Then zero is attached to the phase. Further work is done in a similar sequence.

Features of recovery of copper and aluminum conductors

It is best to solder the damaged copper wire. For this operation, you will need a repair jumper, which can be used as a piece of the same cable. The soldering procedure must be performed as follows:

• Place a heat shrink or a sturdy plastic tube over the strand of the torn wire.
• Twist the edges of the jumper together with the conductors to be repaired.
• Solder the junction.
• Apply several layers of electrical tape tightly to the repaired area.
• Slide the heat shrink (plastic tube) over the connection to provide additional protection. It must be airtight so that in case of wetting, the wall does not begin to pass current through itself.

The easiest way to connect aluminum cables in the wall is with the WAGO terminal, a fast and reliable method. Then the junction must be wrapped in several layers of insulating tape and, if possible, apply a layer of sealant to it.

You can also find the place where the wire is broken using an active indicator screwdriver (with a battery). Video example:

Conclusion

In this article, we figured out how to find a fault in a hidden electrical wiring and repair a torn cable on our own.Now, taking into account the recommendations outlined, you, if you wish, can do this work with your own hands, without turning to electricians for help.