Our free online course will provide you with sufficient information and guidance to conduct testing in your own organisation.
Sign Up NowYou can watch our how guided videos on You Tube to find out what is involved in PAT Testing and how to PAT Test. Our You Tube channel has various chapters from the introduction, showing you how to work the PAT Tester, and explaining why we do PAT Testing. Through to what to do if a piece of equipment fails the test.
https://www.youtube.com/@ParkerBellCoUk-PAT/videos
There is more information available – especially if you need help because equipment has failed unexpectedly. The chapters are clearly labelled and if you can’t find the help you need, you can call us on 01392 364933 9am – 5pm, Monday to Friday (Excl. Weekends & Bank Holidays)
The videos compliments our already successful free online PAT Testing course:
https://www.onlinepattestingcourse.co.uk
Any competent person can do PAT Testing. You just need to know How to PAT Test and how to keep records. The videos are particularly helpful for Charity Shops, Repair Cafes, Maintenance people and tradespeople needing specific PAT Testing guidance.
The PB500VX is our latest machine which is IET 5th Edition and British Standard compliant.
For technical support and guidance. Call us on 01392 364933 or email sales@parker-bell.co.uk
Download our Free Quick Start Guide now:
Other guides are available here:
PB500VX Quick Start Guide
PAT Testing sequence
How to switch on/off & useful tips:
Where to find more information
The Parker Bell website www.parker-bell.co.uk has lots of useful information. Free PAT Tester training can be found at www.onlinepattestingcourse.co.uk. You can call us and get technical support Monday to Friday 9am until 5pm on 01392 364933 or by emailing sales@parker-bell.co.uk.
Visual Inspection
PASS
Update the visual inspection section of your register/log. You should now know the Class of the equipment you are testing.
FAIL
Minor faults can be rectified if you know how to, e.g., changing an incorrect fuse or broken plug. You can then proceed to test.
Other repairs will need to be carried out by an electrician or competent person and your action recorded in your register/log.
Using the PB500VX
Insulation Resistance
The PB500VX displays the Insulation Resistance voltage of a test when initiated as either:
representing a 500 volts Test
representing a 250 volts Test
The machine is initially set to 500 volts. You can change the value to 250 volts during the test of surge-protected equipment. It will revert to 500 volts for subsequent tests. For further information see the Set Up Guide on page 12.
Leakage Limits
The PB500VX default setting displays the maximum reading in mA for both Class I and Class II as shown in the table below:
| Equipment | IET 5th Edition Values |
| Class I | 5mA |
| Class II | 5mA |
Class I Test
Only carry out the PAT test once a full visual inspection has been completed and passed
Class I equipment is earthed and has 3 wires in the plug. Earth, Live and Neutral.
PASS
Update the appropriate section of your register/log.
FAIL
No Earth – See Page 12.
Long Lead Test -Page 10.
X Riso – See X Riso Fail Guide – Page 12.
X Ileak – See X Ileak Fail Guide – Page 12.
Class II Test
Only carry out the PAT test once a full visual inspection has been completed and passed
Class II equipment has two wires in the plug: live and neutral. This symbol is often displayed on the manufacturer’s label.
PASS
Update the appropriate section of your register/log.
FAIL
X Riso – See X Riso Fail Guide – Page 12.
X Ileak – See X Ileak Fail Guide – Page 12.
Class II FE Test
Only carry out the PAT test once a full visual inspection has been completed and passed.
Class II FE equipment has three wires in the plug; a functional Earth, Live and Neutral. This symbol is often displayed on the manufacturer’s label.
This equipment is tested as a Class II because the earth wire is not protective. See Page 5.
PASS
Update the appropriate section of your register/log.
FAIL
X Riso – See X Riso Fail Guide – Page 12.
X Ileak – See X Ileak Fail Guide – Page 12.
IEC Lead Testing
Only carry out the PAT test once a full visual inspection has been completed and passed.
IEC Leads should be recorded and labelled separately.
PASS
Update the appropriate section of your register/log.
FAIL
No Earth – See Page 12.
Long Lead Test – Page 10.
X Riso – See X Riso Fail Guide – Page 12.
Short/Open/Cross – See Polarity Fail Guide – Page 12.
Extension Lead Testing
Only carry out the PAT test once a full visual inspection has been completed and passed.
Extension leads should be recorded separately.
PASS
Update appropriate section of your register/log.
FAIL
No Earth – See Page 12.
Long Lead Test – Page 10.
X Riso – See X Riso Fail Guide – Page 12.
Short/Open/Cross – See Polarity Fail Guide – Page 12.
Mains Power Outlet/Socket Test
Only carry out the PAT test once a full visual inspection has been completed and passed.
PASS
Update the appropriate section of your register/log.
FAIL
LN / LE / NE X Fail – shows incorrect wiring. Do not use the socket and contact an electrician.
Long Leads Tests.
*If the equipment you are testing does not have a long lead you should seek a better earth connection.
If the PB500VX displays Long Lead Test? the display will pause for approx. 9 seconds before continuing the test sequence. You will see an X displayed next to Rpe and an overall Fail.
Note. You must not press the cord button for a second time unless you are certain you have carried out the calculation on page 11, otherwise you may have a false positive outcome.
Long Lead Earth Resistance Calculation
| Cable CSA | Ohms per metre |
| 0.5mm2 | 0.039Ω |
| 0.75mm2 | 0.026 Ω |
| 1.0mm2 | 0.0195 Ω |
| 1.25mm2 | 0.0156 Ω |
| 1.5mm2 | 0.0133 Ω |
| 2.5mm2 | 0.008 Ω |
| 4.00mm2 | 0.005 Ω |
The above table shows the ohms (Ω) per metre value for the CSA (cross sectional area) of the lead.
The maximum figure is calculated by multiplying the length of the lead in metres by the Ohms per meter value for the lead’s CSA plus 0.1 ohm. The CSA is stamped on the lead.
| Lead length |
| 0.1 Ω |
| Calculation result |
| Ohms per metre |
Remove or repair the equipment if the figure shown on the PC500VX is above the calculated figure.
No Earth – probable causes
X Riso Fail Guide
If your surge-protected equipment/extension lead has failed the 500 volts Riso insulation resistance test, the setting can be changed to 250 volts by repeating the test as follows.
Press and hold down the Cord button for 5 seconds until a beep is heard. A small triangular symbol with an exclamation mark will briefly flash at the bottom of the screen. Release the button and the Riso test will be done at 250 volts. The Riso test will then revert to 500 volts for any subsequent tests.
Remove or repair equipment if it still fails.
X Ileak Fail Guide
The maximum value for Class I, Class II and Class IIFE is
5.0 mA. Any reading above is a fail.
Polarity Fail Guide
If your equipment/lead/socket is incorrectly wired, the screen will indicate the reason such as short, open (not connected) or crossed.
Set Up Guide
The PB500VX Set Up Menu allows:
Entering the Set-Up Menu:
Press and hold the Class II and the Cord buttons at the same time until the SETUP menu displays.
Saving and Exiting the Set-Up Menu.
To save and exit press the Class II and Cord buttons together. If this is not done the PB500VX will remain in the Set Up menu mode.
Yes. Charity Shops can sell used electrical equipment. Follow these steps:
You PAT Test electrical equipment for resale in the same way as you PAT Test anywhere else. The only additional factors are ensuring that the item you are testing has not been recalled by the manufacturer and ensuring that a wiring diagram is included. You should also check if there are any specific trading standards affecting your local area. You should be able to do this on the county council website.
Our Charity kit is ideal for repair cafe’s and charity shops. It includes everything you need to get started. If you would like to know more about what is included with the kit, please look here
Not necessarily, there is no mandate saying you must pat test every year. You should do a risk assessment to determine the frequency of PAT Testing.
Some items such as IT equipment in an office with a single user and is rarely moved may only need to be tested every 4 years. While an electric drill used daily may need to be tested every three months. It is ok to have different schedules of testing according to risk and therefore it is ideal to take your PAT Testing responsibilities in house.
The IET 5th Edition has updated its guidance regarding the maximum Pass value for the touch current ILeak test. Please see the diagram below:
This means that if your equipment passes the visual inspection and all other tests, providing the ILeak fail is equal to or lower than 5.0 mA the equipment can be passed.
The correct equipment is a Pass / Fail PAT Tester such as the PB500V. A machine which provides a Pass / Fail outcome after carrying out the test.
You can read more about this in the free HSE (Health and safety executive) publication hsg107 Maintaining Portable Electrical Equipment dated 24th August 2015 para 50 refers
The responsible person should complete a risk assessment to determine the frequency of PAT Testing for your business. The following factors should be considered when deciding the frequency.
This list is not exhaustive. Please assess according to your own business specifics. Low risk equipment such as desktop PCs are typically considered low risk items if they are rarely moved, without multiple users. Whereas electrical equipment using water, equipment used by multiple users, or easily dropped is considered high risk.
If you would like to discuss the best way to conduct your risk assessment, please feel free to call out technical team on 01392 364933 or email your question to sales@parker-bell.co.uk