fitting a shower

[roy6149]

hello,

i am hoping to install an electical shower into my bathroom (a 10k). i have had a water pipe connected up to where the shower is going to be fitted in the bathroom. i know that I need a new consumer box also. now, i had an electrician round today for a quote and he said that i would need rcbo's fitted for all the curcuits in my flat, not just the shower. and so for a new consumer unit, the 'wire' from the mains to the shower (sorry, my knowledge is limited!), these rcbo things and labour, quoted me £430 + VAT(he said this would prob take about a day to complete). is this really the sort of price i will be facing?

any input would be appreciated

katy

 

[electrospark]

Yes sounds about right. The new regulations have just come in and it is necessary install RCBO's on most circuits now.

 

[daytona]

17th edition does not come into effect until july 1st.it is not necessary to fulfill its requirements now either.

 

[daytona]

btw,430 quid sounds worryingly cheap to me.that said i dont know the circumstances

 

[Jaymack]

Yes sounds about right. The new regulations have just come in and it is necessary install RCBO's on most circuits now.

Rubbish, I hope you don't call yourself an electriciandesigned

From Jan 1st until 30 June 2008.
Installations can be designed and installed, using either the 16th or the 17th.
If however, an installation that has been designed to the 16th edition between Jan 1st and June 30th; but is not completed for various reasons, after the 30th June, it can still be completed to the 16th edition.

From 1st Jan there are two standards which run concurrently: -

from Jan 1st until 30 June installations can be designed and installed using either standard from 1st July installations can only be designed using the 17th edition.

From 1st July 2008.
Installations can only be designed using the 17th edition.

If an installation is designed between Jan 1st and June 30th 2008 to the 16th edition; but is not completed for various reasons, until after the 30th June then it can be completed according to the 16th, REGARDLESS of when completion takes place, so long as you issue documented proof of design to the 16th edition.

I suggest the OP gets 2 quotes for the work; and ignore the "first one"

 

[electrospark]

yes of course, there is an over lap though isn't there!!!!! Meaning that what has been quoted for is correct and totally aceptable... Or am i wrong as well on this??????????????????????????????? No don't think so

 

[daytona]

Yes sounds about right. The new regulations have just come in and it is necessary install RCBO's on most circuits now.

thats not what you said though is it?

 

[electrospark]

what i was saying is that what the electrician is correct. Which it is!!

 

[daytona]

chill out mate


the electrician was not correct

if hes working to the sixteenth then you dont have to have rcbo protection.
the same is true for the seventeenth.saying he needs to spend 25 quid on a protective device for each circuit is bad advise and does not give the full picture

 

[electrospark]

 

[roy6149]

thanks for everyones replies-very helpful!

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Roy - whether you need a new CU or not is separate from having a shower installed. Maybe you could do with one anyway, maybe not, we have no way of knowing.

But if you only need one because you want to run the shower off it, then the simple answer is don't run the shower off it - have a mini-CU added to the installation which is not supplied from the existing CU, and then there will be no need to replace the existing one and no need to fork out for all those RCBOs. Or even some of them.

It sounds like the electrician you got:

a) Doesn't understand the new regulations very well

b) Would not be capable of a good design even if he did.

. . . . .

Jaymack - what is that a quote from?

And I wonder what counts as "documented proof"?

 

[pdcelec]

Sounds like the spark is profiteering. Either do what BAN says or have the CU replaced with a new split load CU.