Would I be Falling Foul of Part P?

[Deleted member 102649]

I don't want to fall foul of Part P, so.........
I have an existing Off Peak system, whole house switches over at 00:30/01:30, BST dependent.
I want to add a storage heater to the EXISTING setup, independently wired from the CU. Since it will be an addition to an existing circuit, am I as a DIYer, allowed to touch it. I will (would) be adding a cable run, outlet faceplate, RCBO to the existing 3 phase board, a relay and a link from the existing 'trigger' line isolator which is already on the supplier's switch-over unit. None of the work involves breaking into a suppliers unit. All the switch gear is there for the existing setup, apart from a new relay. I just don't want to use the existing relay, which is mounted in the guts of a 15Kw blown air system.
Whoever does it, me, or my electrician, it will all end up being tested and certified when our house renovation (under full Planning and Building Control) is complete.
Photo can be supplied (in about a week's time)
Will

 

[Gavin John Hyde]

If i understand you correctly you want to run a new circuit for the new storage heater? In which case Part P applies, regardless of your technical ability you would be best off getting an electrician in to either do and test the work or one from the 3rd party scheme who belong with Stroma. who will check your plans and do the inspection / testing and certification.
I think you will find your building control application for the rest of the house does not cover the electrics as well - . In my experience that requires a 2nd fee to be paid to cover the cost of getting a electrician in to test it. cost probably around £150-200 . might be different up your way though.
Personally i would just get the electrician in to do the work.

Also out of interest how big is this house? is it just a 3 way Distribution board being used or actual 3 phase supply?

 

[westward10]

Is this actually domestic.

 

[Deleted member 102649]

............................. Also out of interest how big is this house? is it just a 3 way Distribution board being used or actual 3 phase supply?

............................. Also out of interest how big is this house? is it just a 3 way Distribution board being used or actual 3 phase supply?

It is full 3 phase. It's raised a lot of eyebrows over the last few years, but not that uncommon round here. Lots of farms/farmers, etc. My electrician, being a local, wasn't at all surprised.
(It suits me fine in another respect. My hobby is old bike restoration and repair, so when I've finished house restoration I can get back to it and use 3 phase machine tools without having to mess about building phase converters. A challenge I always enjoyed but not the ideal solution.)
I suspect the main reason it was put in was to cope with that the lump at the heart of the heating system - a semi-industrial 15Kw, blown air set-up.
It is a simple domestic three bedroom dormer bungalow but the character who built it was well know for 'recycling' stuff. It's not the original heater unit he built it with but essentially still the same system.
Hope that answers westward10's question as well.
Will

 

[Deleted member 102649]

If i understand you correctly you want to run a new circuit for the new storage heater?

Forgot to answer that question.
It is a new heater added on to the existing off-peak circuit. It will mean a new RCBO and additional relay plus a cable run and faceplate.
I guess, from what you say, you don't think it would constitute a modification/addition? It's why I asked the question, 'cos there seemed to be a slight grey area regarding modification/replacement/addition/whatever in the way I read Part P.
I'm grateful for the advice and don't worry, I've no intention of avoiding getting it checked/certified. The thought of undoing all the hard work on this place because of an electrical fault of my own making is beyond contemplation.
I'm WELL aware of the implications of poking a screwdriver into a 3 phase supply, as well.
Will

 

[kingeri]

Adding an RCBO and then running a final circuit from it definitely constitutes a new circuit! So it would need to be notified. No grey area!

Part P always applies to domestic work, in that all work must be designed, carried out and crucially, inspected & tested by a competent person, and it is generally accepted that it must comply with BS7671. The only bit that can vary from job to job is whether the work needs to be notified to the LABC.

 

[Deleted member 102649]

Adding an RCBO and then running a final circuit from it definitely constitutes a new circuit! So it would need to be notified. No grey area!

Part P always applies to domestic work, in that all work must be designed, carried out and crucially, inspected & tested by a competent person, and it is generally accepted that it must comply with BS7671. The only bit that can vary from job to job is whether the work needs to be notified to the LABC.

Right. Thanks. It's a call to my electrician.
Will

 

[kingeri]

Your electrician can take care of the notification for you so you don't even need to worry about it. Make sure he is a member of one of the schemes.

 

[Deleted member 102649]

Your electrician can take care of the notification for you so you don't even need to worry about it. Make sure he is a member of one of the schemes.

He is. Been in the trade for about 50 years and as his own company for about 30. It also helps I went to school with him and he uses me as a 'fill-in' when it works. The new TP board and lots of the upgrade were done by him when they got pushed off another big farm job 'cos there was a mess up with a truckload of concrete.
Thanks for the info
Will

 

[static zap]

...... a mess up with a truckload of concrete

Problems on farms are usually measured by the truck load ... often I'm going the other way in a nice clean motor - on a farm track !

 

[Deleted member 102649]

Problems on farms are usually measured by the truck load ... often I'm going the other way in a nice clean motor - on a farm track !

............... and I'm guessing that particular type concrete in the truck was spelled 'c', 'o', 'w', 's', 'h', '1', 't'?
I'm still grateful to be his gap-filler, though............