Shower door earth bonding?

[GrahamGKD]

I'm fitting a new shower door to my shower enclosure (electric shower) and can't figure out whether it should be earthed or not. The old door wasn't earthed. The whole house is protected by 30mA RCD.

If it does need bonding should that be back to the consumer unit earth block or just to the CPC for the shower?

Thanks in advance.

 

[GrahamGKD]

I just phoned the manufacturer of the door (Lakes Bathrooms) and they assured me it doesn't need to be earthed. I will be interested to hear what others on here think though?

 

[cumbriasteve]

Well none have mine have ever been earthed separately, the earth goes from the shower unit to a ground earth on copper water pipe beneath the consumer box, as well as earthed into the consumer unit, it was installed by a qualified leccy so I am hoping that's the correct way.

 

[rtbcomp]

I would leave it un-earthed. My reasoning being that if the shower developed a fault the frame could become live.

This shouldn't happen if the RCD and building earth were OK, but you only get killed once.

There was a case a while back where a faulty heater in a bedroom caused the bath taps to become live through the earth bonding, resulting in the death of someone in the bath.

 

[Dee J]

A shower door is not part of the electrical installation and is not likely to become live under fault conditions, so it no more requires earthing and/or bonding than do shelf brackets, door handles etc

 

[rtbcomp]

It did used to be the case that even metal window frames had to be earth bonded.

 

[DanielW]

It did used to be the case that even metal window frames had to be earth bonded.

Don't remember doing this when I did houserewires for the BIL(Qualified electrician) on some house that had 1970's metal iron frames,otherwise he'd have told me to bond the frames.

 

[rtbcomp]

Post #2

http://talk.electricianforum.co.uk/topic/13784-supplementary-bonding-under-the-15th/

 

[the snooper]

It did used to be the case that even metal window frames had to be earth bonded.

I remember that I worked in a machine shop and all the windows were earthed it was rediculous earthing things that had no chance what so ever of becoming live

 

[DanielW]

not that I'm a fully qualified electrician mind but I cannot see for the life of me see how a non bonded metal window or shower enclosure is going to give you a shock

I remember that I worked in a machine shop and all the windows were earthed it was rediculous earthing things that had no chance what so ever of becoming live

The wiring regulations get updated practically every year,I'm guessing that these bonding of all metal work stem back to the 50's? regulations which were pretty ridiculous in some aspects of wiring layouts

 

[DanielW]

Post #2

http://talk.electricianforum.co.uk/topic/13784-supplementary-bonding-under-the-15th/

Plastic pipes and casings do not need to be bonded. The earth bond required to metal parts of a bathroom heater and shower can be very unsightly if taken to their next connection in the line, and it is permissible to connect the earth wires from these directly to the earthed electrical connection from which they are wired. Please note that if a bath is used for medical treatment or disabled people special considerations may apply and expert help should be sought.

Section 701 in the 17th Edition deals with rooms that have a bath or a shower installed.

Supplementary equipotential bonding (between waste pipes, metallic service pipes and earth connections of bathroom equipment) is no longer required if, and only if, the main bonding between metal service pipes can be proved to be continuous. If so, the need for bonding (yellow and green) cable is unlikely to be necessary.

Zone 3 has also been removed from the 17th edition.

You are now allowed sockets in a bathroom if they can be placed at least 3 metres from the boundary of zone 1. Any such socket however, would need to be a spur socket or the end of a radial circuit as any circuit entering a bath or shower room must terminate there. Also please note:

• All circuits now need 30mA RCD protection.
• Cables in walls of bath or shower rooms have to be protected by a 30mA RCD.
• Shaver socket outlets are permitted as long as they are 3m from zone 1.

 

[DanielW]

When I used to do the bonding in the bathroom on the water pipes I asked my BIL one day why he wants me to bond the pipes in the kitchen sink,bathroom pipes ec ectera when we done the bonding at the main inlet pipe coming into the house.......don't bloody confuse me.... but you have a point and i don't write the regulations pal.