Hi,
I recently had an EICR done at my property which unfortunately was unsatisfactory. So the electrican advised a new fuseboard from BG General or Fusebox but he advised there will be alteration to the wall as the unit is flush mount inside wall and the mounting frame is glued in with screws and the unit is sitting around 10-15cm deep inside the wall cavity. Basically it would need to be boarded and the whole unit would be sticking out a fair bit in our lounge he said which I think won't look nice. He also mentioned that RCBOs can sometimes fit inside existing consumer units but he seemed to think may not work as my front cover lid is plastic although the rest of the unit including the flush mounting frame is metal. My unit is a Crabtree Starbreaker which is about 20 years old. He said he will speak to Crabtree Technical Team to see if they still source RCBOs, SPD breaker, new Busbar and a metal cover lid for my unit as he said this is required as otherwise it won't comply with current regulations. He got a response from Crabtree who he said advised him that they do not sell RCBOs, SPD, Busbar and a metal cover lid for my unit as it is very old so this option was ruled out. He advised that Crabtree do not do 14 way busbar anymore its only 9, 12 or 15 way busbar and a 15 way bus bar won't fit inside my unit as mine is 14 way. I left it as that and wanted a 2nd opinion from another electrican. He came in and looked at it and advised RCBOs can fit in the unit and he would use a 15 way bus bar from Crabtree. This was complete contrary to what Crabtree and the 1st electrican advised. He did say that Crabtree Starbreaker RCBOs are very expensive so he would look to use MK RCBOs as they are half the price of Crabtree Starbreaker RCBOs but he said he doesn't mind using Crabtree ones but the price would be higher. He did also say that Crabtree Technical Team will say that parts are not available for older units like mine due to liability reasons and to cover their backside.
Who here is right? Crabtree and the 1st electrican or the 2nd electrican?
I have attached image of my MCU. It measures 365mm length and 220mm height (unit only not the mounting frame). The actual cut out area within the unit where the breakers sit is 235mm length and 45mm height.
If new fuseboard is the only option then I will just get this done but if possible I would rather not disturb the walls if the RCBO method is doable in my unit.
Thanks.
Regards
Dean
I recently had an EICR done at my property which unfortunately was unsatisfactory. So the electrican advised a new fuseboard from BG General or Fusebox but he advised there will be alteration to the wall as the unit is flush mount inside wall and the mounting frame is glued in with screws and the unit is sitting around 10-15cm deep inside the wall cavity. Basically it would need to be boarded and the whole unit would be sticking out a fair bit in our lounge he said which I think won't look nice. He also mentioned that RCBOs can sometimes fit inside existing consumer units but he seemed to think may not work as my front cover lid is plastic although the rest of the unit including the flush mounting frame is metal. My unit is a Crabtree Starbreaker which is about 20 years old. He said he will speak to Crabtree Technical Team to see if they still source RCBOs, SPD breaker, new Busbar and a metal cover lid for my unit as he said this is required as otherwise it won't comply with current regulations. He got a response from Crabtree who he said advised him that they do not sell RCBOs, SPD, Busbar and a metal cover lid for my unit as it is very old so this option was ruled out. He advised that Crabtree do not do 14 way busbar anymore its only 9, 12 or 15 way busbar and a 15 way bus bar won't fit inside my unit as mine is 14 way. I left it as that and wanted a 2nd opinion from another electrican. He came in and looked at it and advised RCBOs can fit in the unit and he would use a 15 way bus bar from Crabtree. This was complete contrary to what Crabtree and the 1st electrican advised. He did say that Crabtree Starbreaker RCBOs are very expensive so he would look to use MK RCBOs as they are half the price of Crabtree Starbreaker RCBOs but he said he doesn't mind using Crabtree ones but the price would be higher. He did also say that Crabtree Technical Team will say that parts are not available for older units like mine due to liability reasons and to cover their backside.
Who here is right? Crabtree and the 1st electrican or the 2nd electrican?
I have attached image of my MCU. It measures 365mm length and 220mm height (unit only not the mounting frame). The actual cut out area within the unit where the breakers sit is 235mm length and 45mm height.
If new fuseboard is the only option then I will just get this done but if possible I would rather not disturb the walls if the RCBO method is doable in my unit.
Thanks.
Regards
Dean
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