Wylex New Style Metal Consumer Units.

[bhm1712]

normally unused ways are blanked with plastic insets; do they now have to be metal blanks?

BS7671 says nothing about the blanks. They can be made of anything you want.
As the MCBs etc. are plastic, it makes no difference anyway.

Manufacturers of consumer units have different things to say. Such as having a top hinged metal cover over the devices, metal hinges, intumescent strips inside, LSF paint and other nonsense.

A cynical person would think that the entire thing had been designed purely so that manufacturers of consumer units could launch entire new ranges of products, compelling everyone to spend far more on the new expensive types, while at the same time making the older plastic ones obsolete and worthless.

Cynical I am, and yes I believe it's has been done for mostly those reasons.

 

[bhm1712]

Paperwork exercise to create more money for everybody Bar the consumers themselves.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

normally unused ways are blanked with plastic insets; do they now have to be metal blanks?

BS7671 says nothing about the blanks. They can be made of anything you want.
As the MCBs etc. are plastic, it makes no difference anyway.

Manufacturers of consumer units have different things to say. Such as having a top hinged metal cover over the devices, metal hinges, intumescent strips inside, LSF paint and other nonsense.

A cynical person would think that the entire thing had been designed purely so that manufacturers of consumer units could launch entire new ranges of products, compelling everyone to spend far more on the new expensive types, while at the same time making the older plastic ones obsolete and worthless.

Cynical I am, and yes I believe it's has been done for mostly those reasons.

I think that sheer bl***y incompetence on the part of JPEL/64 is far more likely.

 

[stillp]

Stranger things have happened.

 

[kai]

The problems would not have arisen, if we stuck with the traditional Wylex Standard Boards, with their solid twin screw connections, adapted by the addition of two RCD spaces in them.
I seem to remember that the RCD versions of their standard boards were available in the Eighties, before the din-rail system took over from them???

 

[kai]

Well at least the plastic ones are dead cheap now - if you are looking for a single RCD, DO NOT BUY THE SINGLE RCD - instead buy a clearance consumer unit with a suitable RCD in it - that way you will save money, and get an enclosure effectively free of charge, which can be used to house timers and control modules in!
Have a look on Wickes and Screwfix sites, they are all selling Single RCD's for a Penny more than a plastic RCD consumer unit containing an 80amp RCD within it!

 

[ban-all-sheds]

The bargains will be even keener next year.

 

[kai]

I had a look at a High Integrity board recently, the short busbar fits in the slot towards the front of the Main Switch, without interfering with the two cables. I cannot remember what make it was.

 

[wundaboy]

I much prefer the MK solution of parking all the neutrals in the high integrity terminal block and then distributing out to the individual RCDs. It would be great if there were a viable way of doing that with the line conductors without the risk of some idiot connecting a circuit straight into it. I don't like the doubling up of conductors in the top/bottom of main switch/rcds - it just seems cack-handed as well causing the inconvenicence of the tri rateds obstructing cable paths.

 

[EFLImpudence]

I don't like the doubling up of conductors in the top/bottom of main switch/rcds - it just seems cack-handed as well causing the inconvenicence of the tri rateds obstructing cable paths.

Get designing and inventing. Must be cheap.

 

[kai]

The Wylex Tri Rated leads have their ends welded together into a square block ending, which just manages to fill up the whole terminal space in the main switch connection, hence making good contact when the terminals are tightened up correctly.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Aico make some nice DIN rail mount distribution blocks.

 

[Echo the husky]

Aico make some nice DIN rail mount distribution blocks.

Erico?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Nah - don't they make fire detectors?

 

[kai]

It looks like a nice little earner for the board makers - a ten way 17th edition board now costs on average of around ninety pounds, instead of the forty pounds previously for an empty board, with just the two RCD's and a Main switch in it.