Spur for fcu next to double socket.

[isawt1979]

Grateful if someone could offer some advise, I'm struggling to find a definitive answer to this.

I have a double socket, it was on the ring main but due to short leads after decoration the ring was joined behind the socket using 3 way wagos and short leads run to the socket, so it's effectively a very short spur. I want to add an fcu next to the socket. Can I swap the 3 way wagos for 4 way wagos and take a spur from that to the fcu? Or is this against regs as I would be effectively taking 2 spurs from one point. ( I would not be spuring from a spur as the wago is on the ring, I would be taking 2 very short spurs from one point on the ring using 4 way wagos)

The other option I have is to use wagos to extend the ring to the socket then spur from the socket to the fcu. Or I could even put the fcu on the ring. However I would then end up with a lot more connectors behind the socket.

I accept that the best solution would be to replace the wires to the socket but that is not an option in the short term as this would involve chasing out the wall.

Any advise gratefully received

 

[littlespark]

I cant see anything wrong with it, but ideally, extend the ring using 2way wagos, all 6 cables... folded neatly into the back of the back will fit fine.... Then off into the fcu, back into the socket so everything is on the ring.

What is the fcu feeding? if its being fused down to 3A or something, and there's little load on the socket as it, then a 4 way wago will work fine

 

[isawt1979]

Thanks for reply. Yes 3 amp on the fcu. I'm using a double 35mm back box with single and double gang so there should be lots of space.

Two spurs from one point on the ring seems like a very grey area. I had a quick read of the regs but all they seem to say is the spur can only feed one socket or fcu and you must consider load on the ring. Load on the ring would be the same either way.

The wagos are rated at 32amp anyway so I can't see how it could be overloaded even if you had multiple spurs on it. But lots of spurs could unbalance the ring.

I'll probably put them both on the ring then. Just seems like a lot of extra connections.

 

[littlespark]

When you think about it, using 4 way wago's are spurring off the rfc at different points.... The same as taking a spur from 2 sockets on the same ring... its just the two spur off points are a matter of millimetres away from each other.

 

[isawt1979]

Good point. In a wago the wires don't actually touch each other so as you say it is two spurs separated by a few mm. If you took 2 spurs from a socket the wires would all touch so no separation.

 

[littlespark]

Even then, its still "2 spurs from the same point" which isnt as bad as "a spur from a spur"

Its the physical act of getting 4 cables into one terminal on the back of the socket that causes the grief... Wago's do away with that.

 

[isawt1979]

Just seen that Toolstation do 32amp 3 pole inline connectors, wago style!. I'll use 2 of these to extend the ring around the fcu and socket, less space than 6 two ways and saves having two spurs. Thanks for your advise. Appreciated

 

[MDJ]

Grateful if someone could offer some advise, I'm struggling to find a definitive answer to this.

I have a double socket, it was on the ring main but due to short leads after decoration the ring was joined behind the socket using 3 way wagos and short leads run to the socket, so it's effectively a very short spur. I want to add an fcu next to the socket. Can I swap the 3 way wagos for 4 way wagos and take a spur from that to the fcu? Or is this against regs as I would be effectively taking 2 spurs from one point. ( I would not be spuring from a spur as the wago is on the ring, I would be taking 2 very short spurs from one point on the ring using 4 way wagos)

The other option I have is to use wagos to extend the ring to the socket then spur from the socket to the fcu. Or I could even put the fcu on the ring. However I would then end up with a lot more connectors behind the socket.

I accept that the best solution would be to replace the wires to the socket but that is not an option in the short term as this would involve chasing out the wall.

Any advise gratefully received

personally I think that would be a rough job, a mass of cables in wago's with 2 radials one to a twin socket and one to a spur unit and the cables behind a socket due to short cables because of decoration.

personally I would try to improve that by lifting a floor board or two and trying to gain some cable and maybe getting the socket back onto a ring then radial the spur unit from the ring but hey that's me

 

[isawt1979]

Luckily when I rejigged the socket to fit the fcu next to it, it meant the original ring wiring reached, i put the socket on the ring and took a spur to the fcu so all sorted nicely. Thanks for helping everyone.
As an aside I used a new mk socket with the lever connections, made taking spur from socket easier.