Where can I learn how to change a consumer unit?

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I would like to expand my knowledge of electrics by learning how to change a consumer unit

Can any one advise on the best place to find resources?

I am no expert, however over the past couple of years I have grown to love electrics and I have become very comfortable doing the following

- Extending a ring circuit
- adding spurs
- adding additional lights to a circuit
- Adding two way switches
- chasing walls and feeding wires
- wiring extractor fans

Now is the time for growth :D
 
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I'd probably wait for a course to start at a local college. Although probably all distance learning at the moment - my local college is. I was going to do a woodwork course but online only at the moment, which seems a bit pointless!
 
How well do you know the Wiring regulations (BS7671)?
What do you have in the way of test equipment?

edit.

Quite honestly, changing a consumer unit is like a heart/lung transplant for your installation. To continue the analogy, even the most experienced and keen first and aider would not embark on such a difficult operation!
There’s so much to go wrong, to know and to understand.

I admire your ambition but better to lower your horizons. I don’t know if you plan to do this as a living, but formal training and experience is needed. Lots of it too!
 
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If changing a consumer unit by the book, then looking at £500 plus for test equipment, also problem getting it officially isolated. I did look at changing one by resigistoring it with local building control, and even as a time served electrician simply not worth the hassle.

Of course you can break all the rules, but a collage will not show you how to do it wrong, at least I hope not.
 
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I learned how to replace consumer units on a four year apprenticeship.
 
I learned how to replace consumer units on a four year apprenticeship.
Oh a short one, I had to do 5 years, but to be frank I don't follow the rules to the letter, I don't think 90% of electricians do, and so this is where the problem lies, no one can teach how to break the rules, the master may tell the apprentice, but no collage will tell a student, so only way is an apprenticeship.
 
I competed my four year formal apprenticeship, but still kept working along side the more experienced chaps until I had done seven years. I think this was a great training experience for me, and at this point I had a good technical and practical knowledge of the job.

It was at this time I started running my own jobs and also training up the next generation of apprentices.

I always remember the owner of the firm telling an 18 year old me how he had served a seven year apprenticeship, and me scoffing thinking I knew it all two years into the job. In hindsight, he was absolutely right. A minimum of seven years formal and non formal training to me is required to become a proper electrician.

I’ve been doing this job a long time now, and have found my self working in some quite varied specialist sections of the industry, now even more than ever, but I have never stopped leaning, and never pretended that I know it all. I do however like to think that as far as I know, all of my work complies with BS7671 as a minimum standard.
 
......I do however like to think that as far as I know, all of my work complies with BS7671 as a minimum standard.
I like that. In my experience, the philosophy seems to be that work has to meet a standard to be acceptable; whereas the standard is, as you say, the minimum that is acceptable.
 
I like that. In my experience, the philosophy seems to be that work has to meet a standard to be acceptable; whereas the standard is, as you say, the minimum that is acceptable.
Very true.

The catch, in practice, in almost all fields, is that a pretty high proportion of customers/clients don't want to pay for more than that which is the minimum that is 'acceptable'. Indeed, I suspect we are all guilty of that to some extent - hands up everyone who replaces their vehicle's tyres long before the tread is down to the 'minimum acceptable', even though it would be safer to do so!

Kind Regards, John
 
I learned how to replace consumer units on a four year apprenticeship.

I did mine on a Saturday.

Secondhand ones are cheap on Ebay and it's easy to make up a demonstration board with the CU, standard circuits, etc, as would be used in a college training bay.
 
How well do you know the Wiring regulations (BS7671)?
What do you have in the way of test equipment?

edit.

Quite honestly, changing a consumer unit is like a heart/lung transplant for your installation. To continue the analogy, even the most experienced and keen first and aider would not embark on such a difficult operation!
There’s so much to go wrong, to know and to understand.

I admire your ambition but better to lower your horizons. I don’t know if you plan to do this as a living, but formal training and experience is needed. Lots of it too!
As a diy'er I do not have any of the specialist equipment a qualified sparky would have

I am happy to undergo formal training. Someone mentioned a college. With covid and distance learning, is this still the best method?
 
Formal training provides a general grounding in electrical installation matters. If you are not in or going in to the industry then you’ll probably be limited to an NVQ level 2 course. Thus is a typical offering
https://kingston-college.ac.uk/subj...-diploma-in-electrical-installation-full-time

Note that it’s a year course, 3 days a week, at the college (electricianing is a practical past time). Will there be a day later in the course where you wire up a whole consumer unit? Maybe, maybe not.

I’ve never seen a Specific “change a consumer unit course”. As I have tried to say, you need a lorra lorra understanding and skills before doing something like this.
 
I probably shouldn't mention this but I fitted a new 3 phase board which had about 40 ways, in my last joinery factory, I've got no formal training. The fixed installation test did throw up a couple of C2s.

I wouldn't want to do a domestic consumer unit though, theres a lot of testing and knowledge needed and even if done correctly no electrician would come and certify it.
 

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