Can I use a live or neutral coloured cable with earth sleeving?

[sparkyshark]

Hi,

We have what it appears size wise to be some 12mm cable that I'd like to reuse as earth cable.

Can I therefore use the red/black cable with earth sleeving on top and would this be okay?

The kitchen is being re-done and there doesn't appear to be any earthing... and I can save a few quid by reusing that.

Cheers.
Sparky

 

[EFLImpudence]

Kitchen pipes do not require "earthing".

The water supply pipe, if metal, should be "bonded" where it enters the premises. Is this in the kitchen?

Obviously, if the supply pipe is plastic this is not needed nor, indeed, possible.
Any subsequent copper pipe joined to the plastic does not require bonding unless it enters the ground again.

 

[sparkyshark]

Kitchen pipes do not require "earthing".

The water supply pipe, if metal, should be "bonded" where it enters the premises. Is this in the kitchen?

Obviously, if the supply pipe is plastic this is not needed nor, indeed, possible.
Any subsequent copper pipe joined to the plastic does not require bonding unless it enters the ground again.

Hi, yes I should have been more specific. There is no bonding in our kitchen where we have a lead water pipe.

Therefore could I still use the mentioned cable as above and earth sleeve on top of it.

I'll have to look at the gas meter bonding and report back on that one.

Cheers,
Sparky

 

[JohnW2]

Hi, yes I should have been more specific. There is no bonding in our kitchen where we have a lead water pipe.

Fair enough, but as EFLI asked, is the kitchen the place that the water pipe enters the house?

Kind Regards, John

 

[winston1]

Hi,

We have what it appears size wise to be some 12mm cable that I'd like to reuse as earth cable.

Can I therefore use the red/black cable with earth sleeving on top and would this be okay?

The kitchen is being re-done and there doesn't appear to be any earthing... and I can save a few quid by reusing that.

Cheers.
Sparky

How much is a few metres of green/yellow insulated copper wire in the scheme of things when doing up a kitchen?

 

[stillp]

some 12mm cable

?

 

[JohnW2]

?

I would suspect that 12mm is the width of the sheath.

Kind Regards, John

 

[stillp]

So would I, but you and I are just guessing what the OP meant. If so, it seems likely that it is not large enough to use for bonding anyway.

 

[Diver Fred]

Hi, yes I should have been more specific. There is no bonding in our kitchen where we have a lead water pipe.

Lead? Lead as in the metal?

Why aren't you getting that changed for something much safer? Isn't that covered by your water supplier?

 

[JohnW2]

So would I, but you and I are just guessing what the OP meant. If so, it seems likely that it is not large enough to use for bonding anyway.

Yes, we're guessing.

I was thinking that the OP was talking about T+E, which if it really had a sheath width of 12mm, would most likely be 4mm T+E (with a 1.5mm CPC) - hence a total CSA of 9.5mm.

However, I've just re-read the OP and hav been reminded that it referred to "red/black cable with earth sleeving on top", so I'm now having to guess even more, this time about what sort of cable it might be - SWA, perhaps? [ I must have been asleep when I wrote that. When I first read the OP, I understood that it was talking about G/Y sleeving, so I don't know why my 're-read' suddently thought it was a reference to an earthed sheath! Apologies for confusion ] We'd probably need a photo to decide but, as has been said, a few feet of G/Y cable (if it's needed) would cost so little that it would seem unnecessary to 'improvise'!

Kind Regards, John
Edit: Nonsense deleted and explained!

 

[sparkwright]

Well the title says live OR neutral coloured cable.

Somehow black seems preferable to red.

The 12mm cable size is a mystery though, so may not even be the correct size.

Far easier and more fool-proof to buy the correct cable, worth looking to buy it by the metre. E-bay?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

The 12mm cable size is a mystery though, so may not even be the correct size.

Well it sure as hell can't be the OD of a single-core - that would be 50mm² according to Cleveland Cables.

Or a 35mm² DI meter tail.

Far easier and more fool-proof to buy the correct cable, worth looking to buy it by the metre.

I'm afraid that all the nonsense rambling by the OP, and his pathetic desire to save a few quid by using an inappropriate cable, have served to do nothing but confirm my belief that there are some people in this world so ignorant and hard-of-thinking that they should be banned from actually doing anything.

E-bay?

TLC?

Almost any electrical wholesaler?

DIY sheds?

 

[JohnW2]

Well the title says live OR neutral coloured cable.

So it does - if I'd noticed that, I would probably have thought of 16mm² or 25mm² 'DI' singles (i.e 'meter tails'), which would obviously be adequate for bonding (if bonding is needed).

Somehow black seems preferable to red.

It does ... even though my incoming neutral is red-insulated, and even though the very short (about 400mm) earthing conductor from my daughter's PME cutout to CU is a 16mm² red-insulated 'meter tail' wrapped in G/Y tape!

Far easier and more fool-proof to buy the correct cable, worth looking to buy it by the metre. E-bay?

Very much so.

Kind Regards, John

 

[JohnW2]

DIY sheds?

I thought they were all banned?

Kind Regards, John

 

[Risteard]

Or a 35mm² DI meter tail.

For someone who claims to care about terminology you should know that cables are not "double insulated" - the tails you refer to are insulated and sheathed.