Bad consumer unit wiring

[ban-all-sheds]

The flats are leasehold, but unfortunately (or fortunately?) the management of the flats is controlled by the flat owners as a collective. This means the bare minimum is spent on the upkeep, so no chance of getting it all rewired on any regultions basis.

Perhaps you could interest a few more people in the idea of electric showers or cookers....

In answer to ban-all-sheds, funnily enough living in south london you'd expect more people to open the cupboards and have a play around! we get lots of graffiti but for some reason the kids don't like to mess with the electrics.

Perhaps you could encourage them to do so...

I'm beginning to think I have a mess on my hands if I want to get an electric shower installed!

A lot of work, that's for sure....

 

[plugwash]

yeah BAS most of your points are spot on

the space issue is why i suggested a 4 way metalclad switch CU with rcbos on the sockets and shower rather than a split load board

using a switchfuse unit to feed a CU in the flat via 16mm armoured is definately a reasonable idea though

running 6 meters off a 3 phase intake without using any henlys seems pretty dogy most setrvice cutouts i have seen have 2 terminals on each section so on the neutrals you will have 3 tails in 1 terminal but that is in the recs part of the install so not really your concern

 

[ban-all-sheds]

What makes you think it's 3-phase?

 

[AdamW]

When installing this kind of arrangement, wouldn't it be easier to run a 3-phase supply into such an arrangement instead of the mother of all single phase supplies, then take different flats off different phases (i.e. mucking up the balance of the 3-phase, but over the whole grid it would average out)

Obviously this installation doesn't appear to make anything easy! I reckon the sparks were getting paid by the hour on that one "let's run 4 cables to each flat instead of one!"

If you wanted to make sure that any necessary rewiring got done, you could always start going down there, pull a main fuse and melt the fusewire. That way everyone gets angry with it and will go for a rewire

 

[plugwash]

from looking at the wiring it appears there is a 3 phase 100A per phase intake run to the 6 seperate single phase meters

 

[supersparks]

well, if it aint 3 phase that gives em 16amps each(6 flats right?) so they can run their immerson, 2 lightbulbs and have their doorbell....lucky people! (thats said in jest before i have some know all telling me they could also run their freezer )

The flats are leasehold, but unfortunately (or fortunately?) the management of the flats is controlled by the flat owners as a collective. This means the bare minimum is spent on the upkeep, so no chance of getting it all rewired on any regultions basis.

thats an even better case!! if anything happened to someone the courts would p!ss all over them....(and sell them a sofa!)

I think I'd be tempted to use 16mm, put a simple fuseswitch in the cupboard and put a new CU in my actual flat.

funny you say that bas, your spot on, the place im going tomorrow has that done...its just a shame that the consumer units are under the sink and its a total cockup to say the least (yes im writing a report to the owners- in on my third pad of paper!)

you wont be able to pull the fuse without the other occupants permission, and you will most probraby need the landlords permission aswell as they own the communal area this is in (right?)

what i want to know is; how far are we talking these flats being from the fuse boxs?
we talking other side of the street or backing onto the flats?

and you probrably will manage to get a spark to do it, but he will probrably take 3 or 4 days just writing down faults hes found...


oh and...id blodey hate to be adding a light from a jn box...."so this cable is to that flat, this one to that, that one there...and this one...wtf is that"


lol

 

[BR]

well, if it aint 3 phase that gives em 16amps each(6 flats right?) so they can run their immerson, 2 lightbulbs and have their doorbell....lucky people! (thats said in jest before i have some know all telling me they could also run their freezer )

We'll not quite but anyway, the point made regarding the distance of these cu's from the flat is very relevant with regard to issues of volt drop etc. I would have to agree with Ban on his Switchfuse idea and a local cu, supplied via 16mmsq SWA. This seems like the best solution. Although 16mmsq SWA is expensive

However I would take the issue up with your landlord first. A letter from an electrical contractor stating that the installation is hazardous might also be useful. Contacting your electricity company might also help. I don't know about Britain but in Ireland ESB take the installation of any consumers equipment in the metering cabinet very seriously even for temporary installations.

 

[plugwash]

if you had read up it said that it was a tenants copperative

so if he applied force with the authoritys to get that area dealt with he could mae himself very unpopular with the other residents

 

[Multiplex]

Ok the electrician has been and gone. Turned into a two day job!

What he did was run 30m of cable up to our flat drilling 34cm deep holes through our concrete walls (and nipped our hall light cable in the process!!).

At the CU there was one 45amp cartridge fuse already there for an unused cooker supply, so it all turned out to be nice and simple.

Have tested the shower and so far it's all working.

Simon.