Anyone a member of the ECA? Can I ask a favour?

[securespark]

If anyone's a member of the ECA, I'd like to pick their brains about a technical query. I'm doing another technical presentation for the lads at work, and need to sort out a little confusion on the following topic.


RADIAL CIRCUITS SUPPLYING FIXED OR STATIONARY EQUIPMENT

If you look in appendix 8 of the On-Site Guide, it advises that water heaters fitted to storage vessels in excess of 15 litres capacity are to be supplied by their own separate circuit.

However, other than the above, BS7671 allows additional equipment to be connected to a radial circuit supplying fixed or stationary equipment, providing certain conditions are met.

Although BS7671 allows this practice, the NIC lay down guidance that a radial circuit intended to supply fixed or stationary equipment should not supply any other load.

Does the ECA give similar guidance? If so, what action is to be taken if additional equipment is found on such a circuit?

 

[Pensdown]

I've just had a quick flick through our ECA manuals and like I first thought when I read your post at home there is nothing specific on fixed equipment and radials.

The ECA are not like the NIC. Only 1 of the 3 manuals deals with electrical works the other 2 deal with contract law, wage agreements, health & safety, training etc.

On the subject of radials, although I prefer to see fixed equipment fed from dedicated circuits, if there is other piece of associated equipment that needs a supply I would ignore the NIC guidelines and feed it from the same radial.

For example, if you had a radial feeding an intruder alarm and you wanted to add a modem, it would be acceptable to wire in a new FCU fed from the alarm supply. But if you wanted to add another alarm panel monitoring a different building/area then a new supply maybe more appropriated as it would avoid the need to isolate both panels when only working on one circuit.

I think a bit of common sense is needed when working to the NIC’s own guidelines because although they are based on best practice at the end of the day they are only guidelines.