Fuse Box Query

Tincan

Hi,
I have recently been advised by an electrician that my fuse board needs replacing, my electricity company recently replaced the meter to the new digital type.

My question is the guys replacing the meter never said anything should they have?

And is it down to me or the electricity company to replace?


Thanks

Pollen

Any idea why electrician suggested replacement - could be because you have re-wireable fuses although these are still ok but not as responsive as RCD's or MCB's. Is it that there is no more room, i.e. you are having a shower fitted and he thinks a new consumer unit better?

I partially re-wired my house and left original fuses in - probably if I'd done a full re-wire would have changed the complete unit.

Secondly, anything from the meter onwards is your responsibilty therefore if it needs replacing tis yours.

Hope this helps

Tincan

I do know he mentioned that the previous wiring to a power shower had no RCD at all even to the fuse box.

it started due to me having a new bathroom fitted with shower( not electric). The bath is a whirl pool one and apparently he said that the ring main or whatever its called branches off so many times and that he had problems getting a supply to the bathroom that was not off that ringmain. He then went on to say that the fuse box needs replacing. Not sure why although looking at the fuse area in front hall way it is a mess of wires going all different ways and some very old looking fuses with the small round push button the front of them that pops out when it trips.

When fitting the new wiring to bathroom he put on two 'spurs' (think!, like trip boxes) in the kitchen.

Other than that i am not sure.

Since having the bathroom finished though i used the whirlpool twice. The new trip switch thing keeps tripping out now and will not stay on at all, when i push it back on it immediately trips out.

I have called them back as i paid mega bucks for the new bath room near 9k......

Tincan

oh one last thing is the meter itself is placed within the mass of wires in the fusebox area, its all ike bolted to a large wooden board with wires going in all directions..

You would probably see i have no clue re electrics so a professional will be called lol

kirst

I am an electrician, I would imagine that maybe the wiring looks messy and the board looks old, but its fine as long as it all tests out ok.

get the folk back for the bathroom if the circuit keeps tripping out, it is their responsibility to leave you with a fully functional system.......its bad practice to just leave things tripping out....they should have tested all this

Changing the board may also require rewiring of some of your sockets and lights, and then it starts getting costly......get a few quotes and advice from different companies....

If you live near the glasgow area i know someone who does electrical work (no me - i canny be bothered with homers!!)

Tincan

lol cheers m8, i live down sarth lol..... near northampton ..

Thanks for info, just to let you know the bath was working when it was done its now a few months after but the whirlpool side of things has not been used much. (twice in fact).

Seems odd though as it now is tripping out, nothing has changed that i am aware of...

Ill get them back anyhow thanks

leccylite

Just for information for anyone reading this thread, this is how it works.

The distribution company in your area is resposible for everything up to the "cut out" fuse. This is a fuse you will see in line before the eletricity meter. Normally 60 amp / 80 amp or on most things since the early 80s 100 amp. This can be very old metal clad type of thing with no markings. The distribution company is basically the company that owns the overhead lines and the under ground cables.

The meter itself is owned by whomever you pay your bill to. This applies to any other equipment on your meter board such as time switches etc.

Then you have the "fuse box". This is yours. The leads going in and out of the fuse box are yours too. I can't remember off hand who owns the cable between the cut out fuse and the meter. I think it is the meter operator (the people you pay the bill to).

Sorry if this sounds like I am talking down to people - but there are people out there that are getting seriously confused with this. Things are going to get even runnier heading in to the future. But more on that another time if needed.

YorkshireBoy

I too am an electrical engineer, although not specialising in domestic work. I'd like to add to the discussion...

leccylite wrote:

The meter itself is owned by whomever you pay your bill to. This applies to any other equipment on your meter board such as time switches etc..

So what happens when you "switch" suppliers? Does ownership of the meter transfer from, say, NPower to Scottish Power?

leccylite wrote:

I can't remember off hand who owns the cable between the cut out fuse and the meter. I think it is the meter operator (the people you pay the bill to)..

When you request a supply to a new property, the electrician will have completed the customers installation, and left "tails" from the consumer unit so that the local distribution company can connect them to the meter. The local distribution company will install the service fuse, metering, and interconnecting cabling. I would have thought they would then "own" this part of the installation.

Does this make sense?

YB

leccylite

So what happens when you "switch" suppliers? Does ownership of the meter transfer from, say, NPower to Scottish Power?

In short - yes

When you request a supply to a new property, the electrician will have completed the customers installation, and left "tails" from the consumer unit so that the local distribution company can connect them to the meter. The local distribution company will install the service fuse, metering, and interconnecting cabling. I would have thought they would then "own" this part of the installation.

I am reasonably sure - although not certain that the local electrcity company only own as far as the fuse, the supplier the tails from the fuse to the out going terminal of the meter, then the consumer own the tails from the meter to the fuse box and everything beyond.