Replacing Consumer Unit

[ackbarthestar]

my days of finding old boilers are well past. i;ll stick with the one i have now. she's 100% loyal and i love her to bits. .

No point in upgrading if the old one is still servicable and you have a deap affection .....

 

[Fitzy]

Have you done any testing on the place before you submitted it as your assessment?
Could be a fault ridden minefield!

I’m gonna be doing some testing in the morning before I take old one out.

 

[Fitzy]

There is one problem I found earlier this week with my consumer unit and the earth bonding. Firstly, there’s no bonding to the incoming gas supply, the gas meter is outside directly behind my meter cupboard, so I can drill a hole and add bonding that way. But the current water supply earth bonding cable is only 4 or 6mm, soneeds upgrading to 10mm, but it goes under the floor to the kitchen from the meter cupboard.

 

[telectrix]

There is one problem I found earlier this week with my consumer unit and the earth bonding. Firstly, there’s no bonding to the incoming gas supply, the gas meter is outside directly behind my meter cupboard, so I can drill a hole and add bonding that way. But the current water supply earth bonding cable is only 4 or 6mm, soneeds upgrading to 10mm, but it goes under the floor to the kitchen from the meter cupboard.

what's the earthing arrangement TN-S or TNC-S?

 

[Fitzy]

TN-S I believe.

 

[Dave OCD]

The incoming water pipework could well be plastic Fitzy, check it out. And 6mm would be perfectly adequate for a water bond on a TN-S arrangement anyway.

 

[JK-Electrical]

if you only have 4 circuits, i'd fit a BG 6 way RCBO board with 4 RCBOs .get gear from TLC the BG compact RCBOs are ony £15.60 inc. vat each.

BG RCBOs are even cheaper at Screwfix ..... £11.99.

 

[Fitzy]

Well I’ve just found that the earth bonding cable under the sink isn’t even connected, it’s just a single piece of 4/6mm earth cable hanging loose. So I’m gonna have to run a new 10mm earth bonding cable externally around the house to the kitchen. Would it be ok to use black copex clipped to the walls?

 

[ackbarthestar]

TN-S I believe.

Have you taken a measurement?

 

[Toneyz]

Take a look at the best practice guide.

 

[ackbarthestar]

Good Grief!
Black copex clipped around the wall?

I am on the right forum, arn't I?

 

[MFS Electrical]

Does that still apply when doing Periodic Inspections?
It's been a while! My most recent Reg books are green.

It does indeed

 

[Toneyz]

Well I’ve just found that the earth bonding cable under the sink isn’t even connected, it’s just a single piece of 4/6mm earth cable hanging loose. So I’m gonna have to run a new 10mm earth bonding cable externally around the house to the kitchen. Would it be ok to use black copex clipped to the walls?

I probably say it would not contraveane any regs but only you know what it would look like and has the landlord agreed to this?
This isn't cross bonding between hot and cold. What is at the consumer unit or MET?

 

[Toneyz]

Well I’ve just found that the earth bonding cable under the sink isn’t even connected, it’s just a single piece of 4/6mm earth cable hanging loose. So I’m gonna have to run a new 10mm earth bonding cable externally around the house to the kitchen. Would it be ok to use black copex clipped to the walls?

Answer.
I probably say it would not contravene any regs but only you know what it would look like and has the landlord agreed to this?
This isn't cross bonding between hot and cold. What is at the consumer unit or MET?

 

[telectrix]

BG RCBOs are even cheaper at Screwfix ..... £11.99.

not the compact ones, they are £24 at screwfix.

 

[Fitzy]

So, I’ve got the new board fitted and some of the tests completed, but as I envisaged, there are a few faults.

It’s a TNC-S.

Downstairs sockets, no continuity on L & N, 0.53 on cpc. Tested the L at sockets coming away from cu using my wander lead, all sockets in living room and in to the dinning room and in to kitchen all have continuity until I reach the opposite side of dinning room and first single socket, no continuity on same leg as other sockets, but has continuity on other leg of rfc, got 2 more sockets to test on other side of living room which should be on same leg of rfc as single socket in dinning room. Is it possible that these are 2 radial circuits which were in the same fuse on old board?

Upstairs sockets, L 0.26, no continuity on N or cpc, will investigate these tomorrow, along with both light circuits.

 

[Jimmer84]

I’m gonna be doing some testing in the morning before I take old one out.

Hi mate,
make sure you put right all C2’s and resolve any FI’s noted during your pre-installation testing, prior to replacing the board and having your paper work checked over during your assessment. Remember, you have to complete an EIC, and you can’t issue an unsatisfactory EIC to a customer.

 

[BruvDunk]

Always best to do a full test before you swap anything over, you then know what is needed/ required to get things back to where they should be.

Otherwise you will be chasing your tail/ justifying your time and costs to a customer.

 

[Fitzy]

Amongst a few niggling faults I got after changing my consumer unit was that the oven, extractor hood and hob igniter circuit has no power. All cables that were in the old fuse board are fitted in to the new cu and all 4 circuits are working, yet the power to the above appliances is not there. Need to cut hole in back of overhead cabinet to access the double socket that the oven socket is spurred from as it runs behind the wall cabinets and tiles. Yet the only cables that I touched was in the cu and not on the kitchen sockets. Got to do more testing tomorrow and trace the cables. Just angry that this fault occurred.

 

[Silly Sausage]

Amongst a few niggling faults I got ........

Welcome to the hell on Earth that is domestic electrics!
Apply for a job in Industry at the earliest opportunity.