PAT Testing Question

Bellycaster

We have to have our stuff tested for a Wedding Venue we are playing later in the year. I want to double check something. Do the amps need to be connected to the speaker cab whilst PAT Testing. I understand the amp plug goes into a Pat Testing machine, but apparently the amp does not Power Up when switched "on" so to speak.

My Pedalboard PSU takes a kettle lead, so I assume that can plug into the Pat Tester without any consequence to the pedalboard?

Thanks.

ICBM

You don't need the speaker cab connected. The power switch of the amp must be on, but since it's not receiving mains power, it can't produce any signal. You can test the power supply in the same way.

Kittyfrisk

Some good advice here https://www.lastminutemusicians.com/articles/musicians/pat_testing.html
and here https://www.hse.gov.uk/electricity/faq-portable-appliance-testing.htm

dano

Bellycaster said:

We have to have our stuff tested for a Wedding Venue we are playing later in the year. 

I always recommend to people when it come to safety that you should "want" to have your stuff tested regularly so you know you're safe, along with Joe public 

Bellycaster

dano said:

Bellycaster said:

We have to have our stuff tested for a Wedding Venue we are playing later in the year. 

I always recommend to people when it come to safety that you should "want" to have your stuff tested regularly so you know you're safe, along with Joe public 

It is good advice. I only had one fail today and that was the Smooth Hound Adapter as I knew it would, it's started to split near the join of the plug.

Bellycaster

After all that, the venue never even bothered to ask for certificates or bothered to look at the gear for stickers. Lol. I'm glad one of our guys was qualified and I didn't have to mess around getting a stranger in to do it.

Danny1969

Bellycaster said:

After all that, the venue never even bothered to ask for certificates or bothered to look at the gear for stickers. Lol. I'm glad one of our guys was qualified and I didn't have to mess around getting a stranger in to do it.

There isn't any legal requirement for stickers or a certificate ... just advice that it may prove useful to have them for your own records.
There's also no qualification ... just that the person doing the PAT testing should be "competent" 

We play the game too though in terms of spreadsheets we can email in to the venues and have stickers on the kit.  I do also actually visually inspect all the gear then run earth continuity and insulation tests. 

lustycourtier

Bellycaster said:

After all that, the venue never even bothered to ask for certificates or bothered to look at the gear for stickers. Lol. I'm glad one of our guys was qualified and I didn't have to mess around getting a stranger in to do it.

They never do, or would even know what they are looking at if they did. Im a PAT tester and the amount of times venues have requested (and argued) when Ive told them theres no such thing as certificates and its just best practice. I helped a friend recently who runs a small pub and they brewery demanded every item was tested (about 150) and he was quoted £12 an item. Took me about 2 hours to test and list and cost him a few beers. 

ScreamingDave

For my old band's first gig, the venue insisted all our gear had to be PAT tested.  We paid a guy to do it.  (He was a joy to meet, actually: one of those people who enriches your life just by chatting to them.  He was a former circus ringmaster and was the electrician and elephant trainer!)  We rocked up, showed the event manager at the venue the PAT log and he checked a few bits of gear for stickers, then pointed us to a socket to plug into.  it had a big sign over it, saying, "DANGER: Do NOT use".

He seemed impervious to the irony.

Bellycaster

ScreamingDave said:

For my old band's first gig, the venue insisted all our gear had to be PAT tested.  We paid a guy to do it.  (He was a joy to meet, actually: one of those people who enriches your life just by chatting to them.  He was a former circus ringmaster and was the electrician and elephant trainer!)  We rocked up, showed the event manager at the venue the PAT log and he checked a few bits of gear for stickers, then pointed us to a socket to plug into.  it had a big sign over it, saying, "DANGER: Do NOT use".

He seemed impervious to the irony.

Sad thing is, I'm hardly shocked (no pun intended).