Replacing An Overhead T&E To Garage

[Door7000]

Elderly relatives live in a bunglow, which has a 2.5mm T&E cable running to the garage.

The cable is basic T&E and is not run in a conduit - it's just running overhead, resting on a trellis. The cable must have been installed 50 or so years ago and it is looking slightly perished. I want to change this to make it safer.

Layout
* The run is approximately 5ft - the distance between the corner of the bungalow and the front left of the garage. The height is approx 6 1/2 ft off the ground
* In the house is a 50+ year old CU with 1 cooker, 1 ring main, 1 lights trips. There is no RCD on this box.
* The garage feed is spured off the ring main in the bungalow attic, cable dropped down through soffit
* In the garage there is an RCD CU (installed about 30 years ago) with trips for the socket and the light.

Options
1. Keep the existing cable but thread it through a 5ft piece of trunking with junction boxes at each end.

2. Replace the cable with standard T&E and thread it through trunking

3. Change the cable to SWA and run it overhead, on the trellis

4. Change the cable to SWA, run it down the side of the bungalow, chase out a channel in the ground, run to the garage.

Considerations
Can I do any of the above myself (competent with electrics), what about Part P, would it require a certificate?

 

[sparkwright]

Depends how mad you want to go with it.

If the cable is PERISHED, then it needs replacing, partly because water can get in it.

For cheapness and simplicity, you may as well just use T+E again - yes, we know it's not UV resistant, blah, blah, blah - but I don't imagine you want to mess about.

If DO want to mess about, the one and only best way is to use SWA buried in the ground (back breakingly boring).

Up to you - how 'involved' do you want to get?

 

[sparkwright]

If the cable is truly 'overhead', it should be on a catenary wire.

 

[JohnW2]

If the cable is truly 'overhead', it should be on a catenary wire.

It should (as you say, if it "truly 'overhead' "). However, it's not 'suspended' but, rather, apparently "resting on a trellis" (which doesn't sound very satisfactory, either!).

Kind Regards, John

 

[Door7000]

I would like to get involved 100% on this but I need to ensure that placing the existing or new T&E in trunking would be acceptable - as in complies with regulations.

If I did go the trunking route would plastic tubing suffice or would it have to be metal, and would it be OK to rest on the trellis?

Note they may be selling up in a few years so I would need to ensure the work is acceptable in case any solictor search asks about recent changes to the electrics.

 

[JohnW2]

If I did go the trunking route would plastic tubing suffice or would it have to be metal, and would it be OK to rest on the trellis?

Anything which is just 'resting on' anything else is unlikely to be acceptable - whatever method is adopted, it would need to be 'mechanically secure'.

Kind Regards, John

 

[flameport]

If I did go the trunking route would plastic tubing suffice or would it have to be metal, and would it be OK to rest on the trellis?

Trunking is a square or rectangular section with removeable lid.
Conduit is a round tube
Both available in plastic or metal.

For a 5ft length, 20mm black plastic conduit with T&E inside will be fine.
https://www.toolstation.com/20mm-heavy-duty-pvc-round-conduit/p47063

There are better options, but realistically not things that can be done DIY.

in case any solictor search asks about recent changes to the electrics.

If they ask, you just answer truthfully.

Stories about house sales not going ahead because someone did something to some electrical thing and didn't get some piece of paper are eaxctly that - stories that someone made up and have never occurred in reality.

 

[chivers67]

https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Cable_Accessories_Index/Catenary_Wire/index.html

https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/NY2dot5slash3.html

Belt & Braces SWA would be better as Sparkwright mentioned above and you yourself.

Any external work is Notifiable and I stand corrected Edt

The minimum requirement would be to test the circuit for a ZS measurement to ensure the Circuit trip times will be met in the event of a fault with a Meter.

 

[JohnW2]

If they ask, you just answer truthfully. ....

Indeed - and being untruthful is potentially very 'dangerous'/costly.

Stories about house sales not going ahead because someone did something to some electrical thing and didn't get some piece of paper are eaxctly that - stories that someone made up and have never occurred in reality.

One does need to 'be firm' in dealings with potential buyers. I see a lot of houses being sold and what I see 'in reality' is that when one (truthfully) indicates that paperwork is not available (and/or that work has been DIYed), the buyer will often try to use that as an excuse for attempting to get a price reduction.

Our response to that is always that the property is being sold "as is" (and that the asking price was determined on that basis) and that the prospective buyer is free to commission an EICR (at their own expense) to determine how much it might cost them to have any necessary remedial work undertaken (after they had bought the property) - but that none of that, per se, was going to alter the price that would be accepted for the property. That often results in 'moans' but I can think of few, if any, occasions on which that approach had caused a potential buyer to 'walk away' from a purchase.

Kind Regards, John

 

[JohnW2]

Any external work is Notifiable ...

If the OP is in England, then you are many years out-of-date in suggesting that.

Kind Regards, John

 

[Door7000]

Good advice. Thanks all.

I am in England but the property is in Wales.

 

[JohnW2]

I am in England but the property is in Wales.

Ah. In that case (although I doubt that he had reason to know), chivers was right - all outdoor electrical work remains 'notifiable' in Wales - so, particularly for a 'small' job like this, a |DIY approach would almost certainly be prohibitively expensive (because of the notification fees).

Consult a 'registered' ('self-certifying' - which really means self-notifying) electrician and get him/her to advise on how it should be done.

Kind Regards, John

 

[flameport]

I am in England but the property is in Wales.

Doesn't change anything.

Replacing a damaged cable isn't notifiable in Wales or England and never was.

 

[flameport]

https://www.labc.co.uk/sites/defaul...6_edition_with_2010_amendments_wales_only.pdf

 

[chivers67]

Looks like I need to revisit a few things