Fitting an isolator between meter and consumer unit.

[SUNRAY]

Anyway, back to my original post. This is what I have. Is there room to fit an isolator there?

View attachment 419519

I assume this would be an easier location for quick access

 

[ebee]

Victorian attitude cut out - Electrics should not be seen and heard ?

A very common concept (at least around my locality) electrics were always out of the way and unseen - under the stairs/in a cellar/high up in a wall cupboard , that was deemed the most important feature - ease of use for all concerned was the last thing on their minds - nowadays it "should" be considered amongst the first.

During the lifetime of a lot of us senior of age persons on this forum if we compare practices that were once common to what is now common then I wonder what opinions have changed - Road layout and motor cars are but one striking example not just electrics (I always likes thesr knife switches and jacobs ladders dotted about in films with Boris and co (Karloff not Johnson) .
Ooh I do miss those electric arcs we used to create!

The 30A rewireable BANG was easier to distinguish than the modern 32A thwack of an MCB, you knew where and when with those things.

 

[Mottie]

On the left of the head appears to have enough space.
If not screw another board to it that it will fit on.

It's all a bit tight - how much space is there to the left of the meter/cutout?

However, there nothing stopping you adding an additional board and putting the isolator on that. Indeed it seems that some 'supplier purists' ('pedants' ?) say that you shouldn't have an item of 'your equipment' mounted on 'their board'!

Thanks. There is enough room to the left of the head - do they have to be mounted on a board (if so, I’ll make and fit one) or can they go straight on to the wall?

 

[JohnW2]

Thanks. There is enough room to the left of the head - do they have to be mounted on a board (if so, I’ll make and fit one) or can they go straight on to the wall?

I see nothing that demands 'a board'. Indeed, I imagine that if the perceived issue relates to 'fire', most walls are probably going to be much less 'combustible' than most 'boards'!

 

[mattylad]

Not got a scoobie.
It's your equipment so can probably go anywhere you want it.

On the left or the right it's going to mean the thick cables being dragged over others but I see no resolution apart from total resiting of the CU's that will allow a neat install.
To me, on the left is closer to the head and more likely to be used by the DNO etc.

 

[morqthana]

Yes that is one solution I passed by a DNO tails connection chappy and his reply/opinion he robustly and perhaps pedantically he rotorted that such switches have terminals actually marked as "L" and/or "N" etc therefore could not be used for other purposes

I'm sure he did.

But then eezatwat.

- obviously my thoughts were, in essence, a 4 pole isolator could be considered the equivalent of two 2 pole isolators interlinked thereby one switching the normal domestic mains and the other switching the off peak mains and thereby all combined achieving full isolation of both of those single phase supplies using one switch action

Sounds good to me.

- I was disappointed with his conclusion - I thought I had bright idea until he countered it.

He didn't counter it. Eezatwat, therefore his opinions may be discounted.

I was also a little mindful of a possible make/break offset time in milliseconds might be an actual requirement in practice but I did not mention this feature as he might have used it as more amo to counter my query with him!

It's an on-off switch, not a changeover - BBM times are not a property.

 

[morqthana]

... BS7671 (compliance with which is not 'mandatory', anyway!)

It is for landlords.

 

[morqthana]

do they have to be mounted on a board (if so, I’ll make and fit one) or can they go straight on to the wall?

They can go straight on the wall, but it can be easier wrt the fixings needed to fix a board to the wall, and then the electrical equipment to the board, particularly if the wall is uneven.

 

[morqthana]

On the left or the right it's going to mean the thick cables being dragged over others

Flexible meter tails help with routing.

The aren't as bendy as tri-rated, but they are a lot more bendy than traditional tails.

Oh for double-insulated/insulated-and-sheathed tri-rated...

 

[morqthana]

How long before someone installs a 6-, 8-, whatever-way CU from Henlys and only uses it for plug-in solar...

 

[securespark]

FWIW, my opinion is that I would put the iso on the LHS and keep the tails as short as possible.

The ADE Concept panel takes me back. It was the first panel with remote keypad that I ever fitted.

Instead of the now usual 6 core cable linking the panel to the keypad, this early system needed a 12 core.

 

[SUNRAY]

Flexible meter tails help with routing.

The aren't as bendy as tri-rated, but they are a lot more bendy than traditional tails.

Oh for double-insulated/insulated-and-sheathed tri-rated...

Flexible double insulated singles are available, including rubber which is more flexible than tri-rated. I cleared some stock out quite recently.

 

[pete01]

Not double insulated but single insulated and sheathed.

 

[JohnW2]

Flexible double insulated singles are available ...

[ As has ben pointed out, theoretically 'insulated and sheathed' (although I'm sure you would struggle to find a sheath which did not 'insulate'!) ]
.... but isn't that exactly what morq implied?

 

[Mottie]

The ADE Concept panel takes me back. It was the first panel with remote keypad that I ever fitted.

Instead of the now usual 6 core cable linking the panel to the keypad, this early system needed a 12 core.

I fitted that when we moved in here in 1990. Never given me any trouble apart from changing the battery 2 or 3 times! I have 4 x 4 cores going to the keypad.