Advice from you electricians please.

[barracuda816]

Hi all,

I have been doing electrics to 17th edit for a good while, but have exclusively used trunking. I am trying to get experience with domestic and eventually get on a cps.

I have replaced an old bakerlite fuse dist board but he has run the wiring himself. To me it looks messy but will be plastered (ref method B iirc) but is it acceptable/how should the wiring transition from board to wall.

 

[barracuda816]

Sorry guys, i dont know how to rotate the image.

 

[Dee J]

Well the cable glands on the consumer unit ensure you've met the IP rating, and the concealed cables will be in the 150mm corner zone. But that cable run is a bit of a mess - is it going to be buried deep enough to prevent the plaster cracking. What have building control said about the first fix?

 

[the snooper]

 

[brightspark]

i think we need sidewinder here to make his comment 1st instead of last after everyone else has replied i allready know the answer

 

[gaz1]

id rather use box trunking than that method

by time chiseled that lot in it would have been cheaper to buy it and drill it to the wall and looks much better

 

[Robotstar5]

I'd cap or box it, males any future changes easier

 

[Shedendman]

No sparky here,but yes i'd have boxed that all in

 

[rikrobson]

If you are not happy with the installation then why would you sign it off?
I presume it's the guys house though. If he's happy with it being plastered and the installation complies to standard then it should be OK.
Is he going to box the CU in and then plaster or plaster then box?

 

[barracuda816]

Thanks guys. I would have used trunking myself but he doesnt want trunking, he wanted it buried. What is capping? He will be plastering then boxing (Malking sure there is still good acessability). Im Happy with all but the routing at the moment and im thinking i will definatly be sorting that too. You are right, i wont put my name to anything that im not happy with.

 

[barracuda816]

Thanks Snooper

 

[Robotstar5]

Thanks guys. I would have used trunking myself but he doesnt want trunking, he wanted it buried. What is capping? He will be plastering then boxing (Malking sure there is still good acessability)...

Galvanised or plastic capping or I've sometimes used oval conduit both allow the the cables to be replaced for future changes.

 

[barracuda816]

Thats lovely, just the job. Ill be re doing that mess, and getting rid of the twists (i hate twisted twin+earth).

One last question, where the cabling protrudes from the wall to go the the distribution box whats the best way to do that? just plaster or using conduit?

Thanks guys.

 

[brightspark]

theres no regulation that the wires -have to be covered before there plastered. they are set in the safe zone .presumably-- the new db circuits are all rcd protected . i personaly would have put plastic capping over them in case the -cable was close to the surface and someone comes along at a later date and scrapes wallpaper-off --and slices up the cable-with a scraper

 

[normspanners]

and getting rid of the twists (i hate twisted twin+earth).

thats the proper amateur way isnt it??--------- off the side of the reel ------ hehe was helping someone last week to get some cable through a underground duct, I turned up when the cable was in, and the fish rope had broken again for the third time. how did you run the cable off the reel ? they looked at me blank, HUH---- what in the Fu ---world --- difference will that make ??

 

[Dee J]

One last question, where the cabling protrudes from the wall to go the the distribution box whats the best way to do that? just plaster or using conduit?
Thanks guys.

Its a good idea to have something protect the cable as it emerges from the plastered surface - so the plasterer doesn't damage the cable with the edge of the float. could be capping or conduit - whatever you can arrange. of course you could have buried the cable in the wall behind the consumer unit too, and brought them into the back of the box... Makes a tidy job of an exposed unit, but doesn't really matter with something that's being boxed in.

 

[barracuda816]

I have done that before in plastic consumer units but this is the first metal one I have fitted (part of the regs as of Jan anyway) and I didn't really want to go at it with a hole saw as it has no pop outs on the back. Thanks for the advise guys

It's not tidied up yet as I ran out of time today but it looks a lot better.

​

 

[Wendelspanswick]

Yes I saw large discounts on the plastic CU's at the wholesellers as they try and offload the stock.

 

[dobbslc]

The problem of fires in consumer units won't be fully solved by having metal ones anyway, it's the meter tails that usually start the fire as they are often loose in the main switch due to a new meter thats been fitted and the meter installer not checking the connections in the d/b afterwards.
And yes, twin screw terminals would help here too.

 

[gaz1]

ive heard about it from the lecci installer whilst doing last job out where it was stated that the new installs have to be within metal consumer boxes to me its back to the old metal consumer units that was once used before instead of the new ones that came in years ago of the plastic ones

during the discussion the fires within the plastic ones was mentioned