Earth Has no Sheath - From Wall to Cooker - Is this ok?

[chunk_1970]

Hi, I am going to replace my cooker shortly and have the following question and hope someone can advise me.

The cable for my cooker coming out from the wall has no sheath AT ALL. It appears to be a completely seperate cable and has been like this for some time. Our current cooker, still working is connected to it via EARTH on cooker so I presume this will not need replacing.

Please advise..

 

[ban-all-sheds]

It should be sleeved, but you can slip some on when you replace the cooker.

But are you sure it's completely separate? What about the live & neutral - are they single cables too?

Also, you say the cable(s) come out of the wall - do they literally just come out of a hole, not from a cooker outlet plate like this

If so, you should sort that out at the same time.

Finally, have you given any thought to the size of the cooker circuit cable, the rating of the fuse/MCB, and the rating of the new cooker?

 

[chunk_1970]

Thanks for the prompt response.

The Live/Neutral are sheathed in the same cable.
The Earth is just following the same route on its own.

The cables originally come from a cooker point with an additional socket, both with on/off switches.

I have checked that the cooker I am installing is a standard 30amp as detailed on the back of the cooker itself so.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

What sort of cable runs from the CU to the cooker control unit - is that regular twin & earth?

But more importantly, what sort of cable runs from the CCU to the cooker? I can't think why that should only be 2-core.

Given that you will be fitting a proper cooker outlet plate, would you be able to replace the cable as well if necessary?

 

[mapj1]

It could be two core - i.e. pre 1967, or just T and E from the days of the over reduced earth, (1974 copper shortage) when it was found too late that the earth core 'blew' before 30A fuse wire under certain embarrassing conditions.
('fails to discriminate correctly with the overcurrent protection' - nice words for "a royal #%^ up".)
In either case a supplementary earth conductor would be in order.

The modern solution is to take it out & replace it with proper Twin and earth of say 10mm cross-section. But look at what goes back to the board, this may well be more of the same.

regards M.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

IIRC 1967 was the end of 2-core lighting circuits. I think that no cpc on socket and appliance circuits was disallowed a long time before then..

 

[mapj1]

Indeed, 2 core power wiring ceased in 1927 for all but 2 pin sockets, some 40 years before lighting circuits, and a decade before the demise of neutral fused supply heads (1936-7), many examples of which are still in service. But having a separate, bare CPC, and not having to follow the same physical route continued until 1968n or so I believe.
Sorry if my info misled, or is in some further way incorrect.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

But having a separate, bare CPC, and not having to follow the same physical route continued until 1968n or so I believe.

OK