Adding a plug socket - round a corner

[roundthebend]

Hi
I have a long rectangular room with 3 sides being external walls, the other being an internal one. It's a modern house so the internal wall is just a stud partition.

The room has 4 double sockets all on the same ring, and all mounted on the external walls.

I would like to add an additional double socket midway along the internal wall so I can hide power cables behind the TV unit which is in that location.

My plan was to take a spur from the nearest existing socket, and run the power cable horizontally to the new location. To do this will mean routing around the corner inside suitable trunking for regulatory compliance.

An easier option would be to run the cable down to the floor and in the small gap below the plasterboard, but I'm pretty sure that's not compliant with regulations.

I've struggled to find information about whether this approach will be compliant with regulations, or if I'd need to take the cable vertically up to the ceiling and then around the corner in the safe zone before dropping it back down to the new location.

Please advise about regulations, and also with any tips on how to run the cable and what trunking to use.

Thanks

 

[EFLImpudence]

Horizontally is fine.
There will be a socket on both walls indicating that a cable may be concealed.

Under the floor is fine.

Not sure if you meant buried in the wall - but if the cable is visible, you may run it anywhere.
Trunking is not a requirement but looks better.

 

[roundthebend]

Horizontally is fine.
There will be a socket on both walls indicating that a cable may be concealed.

Under the floor is fine.

Not sure if you meant buried in the wall - but if the cable is visible, you may run it anywhere.
Trunking is not a requirement but looks better.

Thanks. I was pretty sure that horizontally would be fine since a socket would be on both walls.
Should I use trunking (or rather conduit) inside the wall?

My idea of running cable down to the floor and then buried in the wall behind the skirting doesn't seem to be a compliant one. I specifically don't want the cable to be visible, otherwise I'd just use an extension lead.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Should I use trunking (or rather conduit) inside the wall?

Depends on the situation; you don't have to.

My idea of running cable down to the floor and then buried in the wall behind the skirting doesn't seem to be a compliant one.

Yes, it's perfectly acceptable and quite normal.

I specifically don't want the cable to be visible, otherwise I'd just use an extension lead.

Quite, it just wasn't clear from the first post.

 

[roundthebend]

If I can get away with running the cable around the floor and behind the skirting then that'll be the neatest for me as I'm replacing the skirting anyway. I haven't seen any mention of that approach or anything that suggests it's compliant. Mind you, I haven't seen anything that explicitly outlaws it either.

 

[EFLImpudence]

You must go under the floor. On top of the floor behind the skirting is not allowed.

 

[roundthebend]

You must go under the floor. On top of the floor behind the skirting is not allowed.

Ah, then I will go horizontal inside the wall as the floor is concrete.

 

[Simon35]

Ah, then I will go horizontal inside the wall as the floor is concrete.

Not a floating timber floor on top of concrete?

 

[roundthebend]

Not a floating timber floor on top of concrete?

Well, when you put it like that.....
Yes, my intention is to lay laminate/engineered wood floating on the concrete. So, perhaps I could lay the cable on the same level of concrete as the floor?

 

[John D v2.0]

As long as it's 50mm below the finished floor surface you're in the clear.
I spent ages cutting up celotex to avoid having too close to the surface or enclosed in insulation.

 

[roundthebend]

As long as it's 50mm below the finished floor surface you're in the clear.
I spent ages cutting up celotex to avoid having too close to the surface or enclosed in insulation.

There's no way I could get the cable 50mm below the finished surface. Even with a chunky solid wood floor!
I'm not following your last sentence though. Celotex is wall insulation right? Are you saying it's hassle to chase out the plasterboard to run conduit?

 

[John D v2.0]

Celotex insulates anything, makes no difference what it's in. In my case it was between the floor joists.

 

[roundthebend]

Celotex insulates anything, makes no difference what it's in. In my case it was between the floor joists.

As my house is <5 years old, I think I should expect Celotex in the walls. My intention is to cut a horizontal channel and use conduit. I've got about 3 metres to do along the wall so I'll encounter some vertical studs which will make fishing the cable through too much hassle so I may as well cut a channel and accept the patch up job that's required.

 

[Iggifer]

As my house is <5 years old, I think I should expect Celotex in the walls. My intention is to cut a horizontal channel and use conduit. I've got about 3 metres to do along the wall so I'll encounter some vertical studs which will make fishing the cable through too much hassle so I may as well cut a channel and accept the patch up job that's required.

Don't do that, you'll weaken the plasterboard a lot more than necessary. You will have a stud at the very beginning of the wall, so make a hole there to get into the wall, then either buy some cheap rods or straighten a wire coat hanger, poke them in until you find the stud, cut a nice square out with a padsaw (keep this) drill a hole and repeat until you get to your deisired socket position.

You'll probably end up with 5 or 6 patches to do, and because you've still got the nice squares of board, piece of cake to patch up

 

[roundthebend]

Don't do that, you'll weaken the plasterboard a lot more than necessary. You will have a stud at the very beginning of the wall, so make a hole there to get into the wall, then either buy some cheap rods or straighten a wire coat hanger, poke them in until you find the stud, cut a nice square out with a padsaw (keep this) drill a hole and repeat until you get to your deisired socket position.

You'll probably end up with 5 or 6 patches to do, and because you've still got the nice squares of board, piece of cake to patch up

OK, nice advice. Should I use conduit only between the studs or not at all?