Recent content by NoSparks

The kitchen ring is a separate ring because of the potential loading from such as washing machines, dish washers, irons, kettles etc. Under normal operation with realistic diversity, a kitchen ring can quite easily approach 20 Amps. Taking the garage service from the ring may well cause the...

I don't think hdmi cables come within 7671, but shorly it would be more attractive to run the cable round the skirting board, like a telephone cable, than channeling the wall and ceiling!

There are no specific requirements that prevent you putting a consumer unit inside or outside given that it complies with the general requirements access, mutual discrimination etc. But would you feel happy having it where somebody else could turn off your power?

But doesn't every DIYer believe they are competent? and how many DIYers have studdied 7671 to know what they should and should not do? As an example, I recently saw lighting cables joined by passing the line (red!) core and the nutral (black) core into different ports on a junction box with...

All depends what your professional occupation is. Doing the job "properly" is not just a case of stringing a bit of cable between sockets, however there is a lot of donkey work. If you want to do some yourself, then get a friendly skilled electrician to go through your design with you and...

What would your take be? A 25mm three core (32mm dia) is run through a stud partition, so cable cannot be < 50mm from surface. Is SWA of the cable sufficient protection, or should additional armour be provided?

You have a point. If there were an earth fault it should show on the insulation test.

But I thought you said that the RCD tripped when the thermostat re-opened? ie it was only OK while the thermostat was closed. Have you tried the experiment yet? Not as far as I am aware. You can use an RCD for calibration purposes over a period of time implying that it does not change.

So are you now saying that you are uncertain if the "dirty" signal on the white wire may cause problems with the second motor or that the second motor could cause R2 / D1 to burn out? If so I am not prepared to spend £100 plus just to try it.

OK that makes a substantial difference. I stand by by original answer, that two boards would seem OK, but purely out of curiosity how are you using 20 ways for so few rooms? Its just that have a similar configuration, 5 let rooms and communal areas and kitchen, and I'm wondering how to...

Other combinations might be: Two spurs each with two sockets and connected via FCUs Four Spurs (if you can find anywhere to connect them!)

I can see nothing wrong with the two board approach using a single RCD in each (or more if you fancy) My thoughts are more on the overall design. With 20 rooms, even tiny 3x4 rooms the overall area would be 240 sq m so there will be a minimum of 3 rings, leaving 17 other circuits each with...

An Instructed Person: (abridged) A person adequately advised by a skilled person to avoid danger. A Skilled person: (Plagiarised) A person who knows better (think about that for a while)

You've had so many "Well done's" that I thought Congratulations might be in order! If I were to pass on any tips on how to pass the practical I owuld say two things. 1. Scan the internet for tips, there are some very usefull notes. 2. Make sure you know exactly which MCBs are...

If the problem were that the elements had become hygroscopic, then as they heated up (while the stat was closed) the water would be driven out, and consequently there should be no fault when the thermostat opened again (which we now know is not true). At the same time, if it was a problem with...