Who checks circuit protection in Hargeisa buildings?

Circuit protection skills gaps in Hargeisa matter because a breaker that is not matched to its cable and load protects nothing. In many buildings the distribution board is wired by whoever is available, the breaker is chosen from the shelf, and nobody records a trip test. The result is a board that looks finished but cannot be trusted.

Where do circuit protection skills gaps in Hargeisa show up?

They show up first on the distribution board and the protective device schedule. A qualified designer starts from the load calculation and the cable current-carrying capacity, then picks the breaker rating and curve. Where that step is skipped, the breaker may be larger than the cable can carry, or the earth leakage device may be fitted on the wrong circuit. Both faults stay invisible until a fault occurs.

A second gap is discrimination, the deliberate coordination so that the breaker nearest the fault trips first. Without it, a fault in one room can shut down the whole building or, worse, leave an upstream device holding while a downstream cable overheats. Ask for the schedule and compare it with what is actually installed. Walk a recent board and note whether every breaker has a label and a rating that matches the schedule. If no schedule exists, treat that as the finding.

What do mismatched protective devices do to a completed building?

A mismatch leaves the weakest link unprotected, and the fault current finds it. If the breaker is too large, the cable carries overload current until insulation degrades. If the earth leakage device is undersized or missing on a wet area circuit, a fault can energise a metal enclosure instead of tripping. Neither outcome is visible in a walkthrough.

On the coast and in humid periods, moisture and salt in the air can add to the problem by corroding terminals. Loose connections raise resistance and heat, which can cause nuisance tripping or a fire at the terminal. General practice for terminal torque and for periodic re-tightening should be confirmed against the manufacturer's instructions and the project specification. Ask the electrical supervisor for the test record: insulation resistance, earth continuity and the trip times for each protective device. If the record does not exist, the board has not been tested, whatever the finish looks like.

How do you check competence before you sign off?

You check competence by asking for the design basis, watching the work and demanding the test results. Start with the protective device schedule and the load calculation. Then ask the electrician to explain why each breaker rating was chosen. A person who understands the design can point to the cable size, the load and the curve. A person working from habit will change the subject.

Then set a few practical checks. Confirm that the breaker rating matches the cable it protects. Confirm that the earth leakage device is on the right circuits and trips when tested at the device. Confirm that terminals are torqued and that the enclosure is rated for its location. Confirm that discrimination between main and sub-main devices was considered, not assumed. For the local position on inspection and sign-off, ask the municipal engineer's office what it requires and whether it holds records for the building. For test instruments and their calibration, ask the laboratory or test house for its method and its rate in writing.

What to do next

Before the next board is energised, write one page: the protective device schedule, the cable sizes, and the test results with dates. Hand it to the electrical supervisor and ask for the gaps to be closed. If the supervisor cannot produce the schedule or the test record, commission an independent check on the board before handover.