Box in Electric supply

[EdTurtle]

Hi all.

The electricity supply for the house runs under the concrete garage floor, then up the wall to the board. I am trying to finish/board the wall, but this cable is around 50mm from the wall (mostly less than that but it then comes away from the wall to attach to the chipboard with the meter etc). The cables for the house wiring are clipped to the wall above (bare blocks). i had wanted to s&c render, but i would need to have 50mm render - seems too much to me.

If i batten the wall with 3x2 CLS i would then completely cover the cables and incoming supply, and would make life easier to install cabinets; they wont need to be trimmed to go round the cable; i just need to cut a hole in the back to go over the board.

Question is, is it ok to do this - it would be very clear where the cable is. Does it need a certain amount of clearance around the supply cable; 63mm would give about 10mm.

Thanks

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Question is, is it ok to do this - it would be very clear where the cable is. Does it need a certain amount of clearance around the supply cable; 63mm would give about 10mm.

This needs a photo!

 

[EdTurtle]

suppl (2).jpg

• EdTurtle
• Sunday at 1:03 PM

suppl (1).jpg

• EdTurtle
• Sunday at 1:03 PM

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Question is, is it ok to do this - it would be very clear where the cable is. Does it need a certain amount of clearance around the supply cable; 63mm would give about 10mm.

What you are proposing, sounds fine, just make sure your supplier has good access to the cut-out and meter.

 

[JohnD]

What is it about a visible cable that offends you?

 

[EdTurtle]

What you are proposing, sounds fine, just make sure your supplier has good access to the cut-out and meter.

Thanks, assuming if i leave a few cm either side of the wooden board (and a bit more below where the cable is) it'll be ok?

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Thanks, assuming if i leave a few cm either side of the wooden board (and a bit more below where the cable is) it'll be ok?

Yes!

 

[EdTurtle]

Yes!

Thanks - just making sure thats what you meant by good access to the cut out and meter. I will have to use a 900 cabinet i think due to the size of the board and layout of the room. It will therefore be two doors and a centre bar in the cabinet - but if needs be the cabinet will lift off the wall.

 

[EdTurtle]

What is it about a visible cable that offends you?

Easier to fit a cabinet on a flat wall than to try and cut 500mm out of the bottom of the cabinet

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Easier to fit a cabinet on a flat wall than to try and cut 500mm out of the bottom of the cabinet

Be very careful, where you put screws through that board, that you do not put one through that mains supply cable, or you might short the entire area out, and the repairs will be very, very expensive.

 

[JohnD]

When I worked for an Electricity company, we had a safety bulletin come round about someone who drilled into the side of a village shop to put a sign up, and went through the supply cable fixed to the side wall, which had been rendered over.

It burned down like a Roman candle for about an hour until the supply in the substation was turned off.

Supply cables are effectively unfused.

 

[JohnD]

Square steel duct "cable trunking" is not widely sold, but I suppose you could fabricate a removable cover, and render up to it. It should be both visible and removable.


In a garage it does not matter if services are visible. I think you could just space the cabinets off the wall on battens, bridging over any pipes and cables.

 

[EdTurtle]

Thanks, will be definitely not drilling/screwing into it at all.

That is something i had considered - just fixing the battens up and fixing the cabinets straight to them - then potentially just boarding the area between the top of the base units and the bottom of the wall units.

It would take 50mm to go over the cable, so thinking 3x2 CLS is the easiest, as i don't think 2 2x1 will be quite enough.

 

[JohnD]

Thanks, will be definitely not drilling/screwing into it at all.

In the case I mention, the cause of the accident was concealing the cable with render so that the subsequent workman did not know it was there.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Thanks, will be definitely not drilling/screwing into it at all.

For the benefit of anyone who might follow you later, it might be worth adding some sort of metal cover over the cable, behind the panel.