Fridge and computers on RCD circuits

[fex10]

I've decided to go for an RCBO consumer unit. Each room is on it's own ring main (with a meter).

There isn't a seperate socket for the fridge, how concerned should I be about this? I'm wondering if I would be going too far if I get a separate socket installed on a separate RCBO or MCB. I always seem to go too far and these complications usually make things more complicate than actually help..

Computer I'm less concerned about as it's the only device that's plugged in the home office ring main most of the time.

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

There is no requirement for a fridge to be on it's own circuit.

 

[fex10]

There is no requirement for a fridge to be on it's own circuit.

More thinking from practicality, ie if the RCBO trips while I'm away, so the fridge doesn't go cold.

 

[ericmark]

My house two RCD's they do from time to time trip. Mothers house kitchen on RCBO and they have never tripped. Again my fridge and freezer have blue lights on the door so no power and you see no power. Mothers has no light until you open the door so no power and you may not notice no power until too late.

On holiday and only thing running is freezer so less likely to trip especially if you have unplugged everything else. In 25 years of having total RCD protection only time when I lost food in freezer was when the freezer its self failed.

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

Well even if on dedicated circuit, it could still trip. The best method to prevent RCD nuisance trips is to design and construct a circuit that allows RCD protection to be excluded.
Is this a HMO, we are talking about?

 

[fex10]

Hi, it's not a HMO, it's a private house. The meters are just there to meter and sometimes we have a lodger.

An RCBO free circuit should be possible in this case. And can even be fitted later, access is easy.

 

[ericmark]

Original BS7671:2008 allowed cables buried in the wall at less than 50mm deep not to be RCD protected if one of a range of cables were used. In real terms this means Ali-tube cable. Could use mineral cable but Ali-tube easier to work with.

It also permitted dedicated sockets where they were marked freezer only for example without RCD protection.

Not sure if this is still the case with amendment 3?

If running a dedicated circuit for freezer it is very unlikely the RCD would ever trip. And of course loss of supply to house or freezer going faulty would still cause loss of food stored. So insurance would likely be a better option.

 

[Adam_151]

If you have individual RCBOs, you generally find that nuisense trips become a rare event. With the devices in a modern home the standing leakage can put a dual RCD board quite close to tripping.

Going to the effort of separate fridge circuit is probably not warrented because

If not on RCBO... there could be a risk of fire, one major brand had issues with fire caused by faulty defrost heaters.... it could be the case that the fault would have tripped an RCD before causing a fire.

If on dedicated RCBO... You might not know if it had tripped and your freezer might defrost

My favored solution is all RCBOs with a separate kitchen ring. You know if its tripped as soon as you get in the house (you cant make the brew!). If going on holiday, switch off the other appliances in the kitchen and it is effectivility the only thing on the kitchen RCBO and unlikely to trip for no reason

 

[JohnD]

I have RCBOs. Apart from faults, such as damaged iron flex or leaky kettle, I have not had a trip in years. Last time I had them it was from a digital timer running a table lamp with CFL on the same downstairs socket circuit that runs the washer, garage sockets, outside lamps and has a slightly higher background leakage than the other circuits.

The FF in the kitchen is on its own radial. It does not have an audible alarm for power failure, but is opened multiple times a day, and we would notice if the light didn't come on.

 

[JohnW2]

I have RCBOs. Apart from faults, such as damaged iron flex or leaky kettle, I have not had a trip in years.

Quite. I don't know if I am lucky, or others are unlucky, or what, but I have lived with an installation which has all circuits RCD-protected, involving a total of about a dozen RCDs (well, a couple are RCBOs) for 20+ years, and I cannot recall a single 'nuisance' trip (i.e. one that didn't happen for a good and legitimate reason {usually my touching N & E on an SP 'isolated' circuit!!}).

Kind Regards, John

 

[fex10]

Thanks guys. I'm not going to worry about the fridge. If I do get problems then a dedicated circuit can be installed later.

Thanks for the feedback and help.

 

[winston1]

There is no requirement for a fridge to be on it's own circuit.

More thinking from practicality, ie if the RCBO trips while I'm away, so the fridge doesn't go cold.

Fridges are meant to be cold!

 

[JohnW2]

More thinking from practicality, ie if the RCBO trips while I'm away, so the fridge doesn't go cold.

Fridges are meant to be cold!

Quite so - so a fridge which "doesn't go cold" (or which "goes warm") would be a bad thing, wouldn't it?

Kind Regards, John

 

[kai]

In my home the Fridge freezer is on a dedicated single socket off a B16, it shares the same RCD as the hard wired smoke alarms, so if the green ready light on the smoke alarms fails to glow, I know the RCD has probably tripped.

 

[JohnW2]

In my home the Fridge freezer is on a dedicated single socket off a B16, it shares the same RCD as the hard wired smoke alarms, so if the green ready light on the smoke alarms fails to glow, I know the RCD has probably tripped.

You're obviously not like me - in the absence of audible alarms, goodness knows how long it would take me to notice that the lights on the smoke alarms had gone out!!

Similar to eric's experience, the only couple of times (other than during obvious 'power cuts') I can recall a freezer having 'failed' (in 40+ years of having them), the cause was a freezer fault, not loss of supply, so I have (audible) temperature (as well as 'power failure') alarms.

Of course, no alarms (or noticing of things having failed on the same circuit) will help if one is 'on holiday', which is the scenario that most people who worry seem to most fear. I think that risk is incredibly small (and, again, is probably most likely to be due to a freezer fault, anyway) but I suppose that, for people with those fears, a dedicated circuit, ideally with no RCD/RCBO protection, is the surest way of loosing a freezer because of 'something else' (fault in something else/circuit, or 'nuisance trip').

Kind Regards, John