CHANGING A DOMESTIC FUSE BOARD

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I want to change a fuse board in my dads bungaow, its a simple change from a 6way old rewireable fuse board (2 ring circuits / 2 lighting circuits / 1 circuit to outside shed / 1 circuit to electric cooker, what i want to know is how legal is it to remove the cutout fuse before i take the tails out of the old fuse board and what size do the new tails need to be and lengh?
 
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Nobody here is going to advise you on this work, and rightly so. These are not questions that would be asked by someone competent to carry out the work. I appreciate that this is a DIY forum and we're here to answer questions and help others out, but there are times when that just isn't appropriate, and this is one of them.
 
unfortunately I have to agree, this is not the sort of job a DIYer should be attempting without at least a very large amount of skill, at one time this job could have been done by anyone with a bit of common sense, but I, along with many others who offer advice on here spend a lot of time putting right work of this nature after some well meaning DIY fanatic has nearly killed themselves or burnt their house down, leave this one to a professional, even with the right skills, equipment etc, you have to sort out the part P implications to do it legally
 
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You cannot remove the main service fuse yourself, you will need to contact the DNO - they may as well fit an isolator for future isolation.

You can change the CU yourself if you are competent but you must notify your LABC prior to starting the works. You also have to pay their fee.
They will then inspect and test after the CU is changed and supply a certificate.

I will say that going down the LABC route is costly and its normally cheaper to get an electrician to complete the work who can then subsequently register the install.
 
Ok admit who here as a genuine sparky hasn't pulled a service fuse ?
be honest we have all done it numerous times doesn't make it right but have you waited around for the DNO to do it for you when you are on a board change.

I have had the DNO connect the tails to the new meter on new builds but thats it

:confused:
 
I am not advocating that a diyer should attempt this work in anyway

But giving advice that it is illegal to do so and then do it yourself day to day is a bit hypocritical

Yes of course removing the seal is illegal but we all have/will and continue to do so

In the good old days when your meter wasn't read by a school boy you could carefully cut the seal and make it look like it had not been touched.

nowadays the goon they send round wouldn't even notice if it were there or not, and with a lot of customers with online accounts now you submit your own meter readings and no one will ever come near you meter for years on end.
 
The OP asked the legality of removing the service fuse - the question he asked has been answered correctly.

Whether or not others do pull the service fuse is irrelevant and maybe something that people do not like to admit or talk about.

Its prob not worth starting a debate in this thread that could make the OP thing that pulling the service fuse is acceptable.
 
The OP asked the legality of removing the service fuse - the question he asked has been answered correctly.

Whether or not others do pull the service fuse is irrelevant.

That might be so but telling somebody they can't do it and then proceed to do it yourself is still hypocritical in my book

OP to answer you question as others have done so before no you cannot legally remove the service fuse

However you can't legally do most things nowadays and since when did that stop anybody ?

Edited to answer your addition on your post


I can appreciate others may not want to talk about it after all they can disclose as much or as little as they want about their working practice
 
I totally understand I just felt that it was not worth starting a debate in this thread that could make the OP think that pulling the service fuse is acceptable.

There are certain safety aspects to follow when pulling the service fuse, I have seen some people wear PPE.

Bottom terminals and all that
 
Of course, this was discussed recently with all pitfalls explained, including the dangers of removing a service fuse on load and the dangers of the head, internals or fuse holder breaking to bits when the fuse is pulled.
 
I totally understand I just felt that it was not worth starting a debate in this thread that could make the OP think that pulling the service fuse is acceptable.

There are certain safety aspects to follow when pulling the service fuse, I have seen some people wear PPE.

You are right on this one buddy I would not want any tom dick and Harry pulling head fuses willy nilly

shame the electrical forum doesn't have a sparks only area like the CC in the plumbing thread

i reckon this would make a good debate


You are right not to discuss it too much on here though

Can't see what good a pair of rubber gloves will do when you pop in a 100a fuse on a dead short

Sorry :eek:
 
I work in a big old factory where all he boards are the MEM screw in cartridge type (black asbestos holders) all the circuits are unlabelled.
If I have a fault on a circuit I have to start pulling lots of fuses without knowing what they are.
Even the small arc when I put the fuse in startles me, I hate the fuses that don't go back in and I get lost of flashes and crackles.

I'm working my way around the marking of the circuits but its a loosing battle, there are sub board everywhere.
 

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