1) Go to DIY shed and buy two good-quality 13A single sockets (white plastic, brand such as MK or Crabtree) and a short length of Green and Yellow sheathing (a metre will be plenty). If you have not already got them, also buy a medium and a small sized electrician's screwdriver. It would not hurt to buy a multimeter as well (about £8 )
1a) Examine the sockets so you see how they have terminals for the wires, and you loosen and tighten the grips with your small screwdriver. each terminal will be marked "L" "N" and "E" (or a small christmas tree which also means earth)
2) Come home and turn off the power to the circuit that supplies the kitchen. Verify that it is dead by turning things on.
3) Use your medium screwdriver to undo the two screws at the sides of the old flex plate. It will then pull away from the wall and you will (should) see a PVC insulated cable in white or grey, containing three cores - either red, black and green&yellow; or brown, blue and green&yellow. there is a chance that there will be bare copper earth wires. If so, slide your G&Y sheathing over the exposed parts later.
Red, or brown, means "Live"
Black, or Blue, means "Neutral"
Green and yellow means "Earth"
4) Set your multimeter to the AC Volts range that includes 250V, and touch the probes to the terminals to ensure there is no voltage present.
5) Undo the terminal screws at the back of the flex plate with your small screwdriver. you will observe that hey have a L, N and E terminals, with a wire clamped into each.
6) Loosen the terminals in your socket, and put the appropriately coloured wires into the correct terminal and tighten then so the copper core is firmly gripped, Pull it to make sure it cannot move. there may be a G&Y between the fitting and a terminal in the metal back-box. if so, connect this to the earth terminal as well.
7) Push the socket into the back-box in the wall to see how it fits. Take care that you do not trap or crush and of the wires. you can reposition or bend then to avoid this. It is especially important that no wire is trapped or penetrated by a fixing screw when you tighten them.
8 ) when it fits well, put in the two fixing screws that hold the socket into the back box (they may have been clipped onto the back of the socket when you bought it). Check again that the wires are not trapped as you tighten them up. Just before the socket is made completely tight, move it so it is level.
9) Collect up your tools, turn on the power, test that the sockets are now working with a small appliance before lifting the large appliances into place.
10) put kettle on and make tea
otherwise:
(1) Ask friends and neighbours to recommend a good local electrician
(have I missed anything?)
edited: bah, too slow again!
1a) Examine the sockets so you see how they have terminals for the wires, and you loosen and tighten the grips with your small screwdriver. each terminal will be marked "L" "N" and "E" (or a small christmas tree which also means earth)
2) Come home and turn off the power to the circuit that supplies the kitchen. Verify that it is dead by turning things on.
3) Use your medium screwdriver to undo the two screws at the sides of the old flex plate. It will then pull away from the wall and you will (should) see a PVC insulated cable in white or grey, containing three cores - either red, black and green&yellow; or brown, blue and green&yellow. there is a chance that there will be bare copper earth wires. If so, slide your G&Y sheathing over the exposed parts later.
Red, or brown, means "Live"
Black, or Blue, means "Neutral"
Green and yellow means "Earth"
4) Set your multimeter to the AC Volts range that includes 250V, and touch the probes to the terminals to ensure there is no voltage present.
5) Undo the terminal screws at the back of the flex plate with your small screwdriver. you will observe that hey have a L, N and E terminals, with a wire clamped into each.
6) Loosen the terminals in your socket, and put the appropriately coloured wires into the correct terminal and tighten then so the copper core is firmly gripped, Pull it to make sure it cannot move. there may be a G&Y between the fitting and a terminal in the metal back-box. if so, connect this to the earth terminal as well.
7) Push the socket into the back-box in the wall to see how it fits. Take care that you do not trap or crush and of the wires. you can reposition or bend then to avoid this. It is especially important that no wire is trapped or penetrated by a fixing screw when you tighten them.
8 ) when it fits well, put in the two fixing screws that hold the socket into the back box (they may have been clipped onto the back of the socket when you bought it). Check again that the wires are not trapped as you tighten them up. Just before the socket is made completely tight, move it so it is level.
9) Collect up your tools, turn on the power, test that the sockets are now working with a small appliance before lifting the large appliances into place.
10) put kettle on and make tea
otherwise:
(1) Ask friends and neighbours to recommend a good local electrician
(have I missed anything?)
edited: bah, too slow again!
