Consumer Unit Fitting Cost?

steveteach

Hi

To all those reading this I have had to abandon my attempt to get a consumer unit fitted (for the time being) simply because I cannot get an electrican to come out, see the job and quote me for it!

They must all be earning too much and cannot be bothered even though the money has been sitting in my account to pay for this job.

weekendwarrior

Hi steveteach,

I'm not an electrician but before part p came into force I had changed 5 consumer units in my own properties.

You can pick up a 12 way consumer unit with 8mcb's, 25mm2 meter tails and 16mm earth wire for about £60

It will be more if you want a split way!

Split way has benefits and drawbacks-

Benefits- can save your life, it should trip if an earth fault develops.

drawbacks- a faulty appliance plugged in to any socket on the rcd protected circuit can make it trip, can cause problems especially if it trips when you are on holiday- come home and freezer has defrosted!

It took me about 2 hours to change each unit, a few of those were split way, so a qualified spark should do it in a similar time, BUT they now have to test the earth etc. and give you a certificate, which adds to the cost!

Unfortunately I feel that part p is simply a stealth tax. It is not going to save any lives, as the government claims!

If the government were that concerned about our safety they would reduce the voltage in the UK to 110v like in the US. Less deaths then!

When are the government going to introduce a law to prevent people falling to their deaths when hill walking? or perhaps it will be difficult to Tax people on hill walking?


Good luck in finding a sparks

steveteach

Hi weekendwarrior

Thanks for the info, if not for Part P I would have done this job myself as I have done various electrics before.

Still looking for a Sparks (Hint, Hint, to all you Sparks in Manchester).

DavidF

I am a sparky sorry im not near you but can i just point out to the above DIY sparky that its not the voltage that kills you mate it is the current and if my college tutors were correct V=IR thus voltage is equal to current times resistance. So therefore to work a electric kettle in the good ol USA would draw more amps(Current) thus making it even more dangerous to work with. Doing the consumer unit by yourself is no big deal if you know what you are doing but im afraid it Is a big deal ifr you dont.,

Pink.

May I remind all users of the warning at the top of the board:

Warning! Always use a professional for gas maintenance and complex electrical repairs. Being safe is more important than MoneySaving.

Pink

YorkshireBoy

DavidF wrote:

I am a sparky sorry im not near you but can i just point out to the above DIY sparky that its not the voltage that kills you mate it is the current and if my college tutors were correct V=IR thus voltage is equal to current times resistance. So therefore to work a electric kettle in the good ol USA would draw more amps(Current) thus making it even more dangerous to work with. Doing the consumer unit by yourself is no big deal if you know what you are doing but im afraid it Is a big deal ifr you dont.,

You really should have paid more attention when you were at college David, because our "DIY sparky" friend is actually correct when he says that the American system is safer.

You are correct in that it's the current that stops the heart - not the voltage. However, your statement that the American system is "more dangerous to work with" is fundamentally flawed (by the very formula you quoted in your post). Allow me to explain...

If the human body has a resistance of 1,500 ohms, then 230V (the UK's phase/earth voltage) will "drive" a current of 153mA (230/1500) through it.

In your American example, 110V will drive only 73mA (110/1500) through the human body, ie around half that of the UK.

I'm not familiar with the American system but, if it's the same as the UK's industry standard 55-0-55 CTE (centre tapped earth) system, then the maximum voltage to earth will be 55V. Using this voltage, we can see that the current flowing now is only 37mA (55/1500), ie only 24% of the UK value.

Question: How is the American system "more dangerous to work with"?

Answer: It is not. It is far safer.

weekendwarrior

DavidF wrote:

I am a sparky sorry im not near you but can i just point out to the above DIY sparky that its not the voltage that kills you mate it is the current and if my college tutors were correct V=IR thus voltage is equal to current times resistance. So therefore to work a electric kettle in the good ol USA would draw more amps(Current) thus making it even more dangerous to work with. Doing the consumer unit by yourself is no big deal if you know what you are doing but im afraid it Is a big deal ifr you dont.,

110v is actually far safer than 240v as yorkshireboy has explained, that is why 110v power tools are now mandatory in factories and building sites!

steveteach

Hi Thanks everybody for the info.

I still have not found a Sparks who will actually turn up to view the job, so the job is on hold until/if one does.

Roger_Rampant

I'm trying to protect my computer equipment in the loft with an "MK Sentry 2 way enclosure", I bought a 16amp MCB and a 20amp MCB, and now I'm trying to fit them all together :eek:

1) The MCBs have a connector at the top and a connector at the bottom, which I presume equates to live wire in and live wire out

2) In the casing of the enclosure are two large large grub screws, one marked as earth and one as neutral. I'm not sure why they are there. Is it to enable me to split one electrical feed through two MCBs and effectively create two separate electrical circuits?

Incidentally as it's only for the loft there will be no electricity going to the enclosure at the time I wire it up

Is a 16amp and a 20amp MCB appropriate for a loft with three computers, a halogen heater, a fan, a DECT phone charger and a stereo system?

leahcim_2

Sorry to butt in but does anyone know if it there is any regulation against fitting a consumer unit in the vertical position. I want to fit a new consumer unit and I have a nice recess that will only allow me to fit it vertically but I have never seen one fitted like this.

Thanks for your help if you can