Bathroom Electric Query

[Welshjeff1000]

I've removed the pendant light in the bathroom and fitted three Zone 1 spotlights which are low voltage with a transformer. I understand this is 'notifiable'. Who do i notify? Do i get an electrician to check my work and issue a certificate which i supply to Council or do the Council check my work? How much does this cost?

Before i do this, I want to remove the electric shaver socket and conceal it in the wall. Does the electician / Council person need to check this before i plaster the hole?Is it appropraite to simply run the cables into a connector block, thoroughly tape up and seal in plastic bag before packing out and plastering?

If i wanted to install a mirror with built in lighting instead, could I extend the electric shaver socket wiring into the mirror electrics?

Many thanks

 

[EFLImpudence]

You need to inform the Local Authority Building Control before you begin.

Their fees (which vary hugely) could be more than employing a registered (to self-certify) electrician.

You must not conceal unused live electrical cables in the wall.
Yes, you can use the shaver cable for the new mirror light - assuming everything else is in order.

 

[flameport]

Too late.
The law requires you notify before the work is done, or use an electrician to do the work and the notification.

Is it appropraite to simply run the cables into a connector block, thoroughly tape up and seal in plastic bag before packing out and plastering?

That is totally wrong.

 

[acmedone]

I've removed the pendant light in the bathroom and fitted three Zone 1 spotlights which are low voltage with a transformer. I understand this is 'notifiable'.

Depends. Mains only goes to the transformer so this could be considered to be a replacement, not addition.

If it is notifiable, then to get the right paperwork, you should in theory put the old light back and get an electrician to put the new one(s) in.

 

[EFLImpudence]

Depends

If the work is in zone 1 (or 2) it is notifiable.

If it is extra low voltage lighting (12V) which is NOT "preassembled lighting set bearing the CE marking referred to in regulation 9 of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994(1)" it is notifiable.

This is the law about which the OP asked - not pedantry from us.



I would advise Welshjeff1000 to peruse acmedone's previous posts before reliance is placed in them.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Depends. Mains only goes to the transformer so this could be considered to be a replacement, not addition.

So going from 1 light to 3 lights does not involve adding anything?

 

[Welshjeff1000]

Hmmm, looks like it's the stable door and horse escaping lol.

I don't fancy changing back to pendant and starting again, especially as the ceiling has been plastered and all the hours spent huddled in a cramped and filthy attic wiring etc.

What's the best course of post work action to get this achieved? This must be a common situation where people made amendments to their homes before the Reg changes and new home owners want to sell on post Reg changes?

I'm thinking of calling a local electrician to see if they can check my work, make any amendments and certify?

Re shaver point, if i don't go for wiring it into a mirror light (which i also guess is notifiable) how do i close it off to comply?

Apologies if i come across as clueless, but i'm proficient at most DIY but want to ensure my work is compliant and asking the experts has always been my best policy. I'm also working on a tight budget so don't have the luxury of paying professionals where I can do the work myself.

 

[chapeau]

Well,

Assuming the lights are in the ceiling and you have made wiring changes above the ceiling, they are outside the zones in the bathroom. Might still be notifiable, don't know enough to say but probably not so I'd proceed now as if it isn't, but nothing to do with bathrooms.

Regarding the shaver socket, try to extract the cable from the wall and follow back to where it joins a circuit and remove whole cable. If you are plastering then hacking it out isn't such a bad thing. Leaving a live cable in the wall with nothing to show it's there is a very bad idea.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

What's the best course of post work action to get this achieved?

It's too late, in practical terms, for you to get Building Regulations approval sorted, and a completion certificate issued. Typically retroactive regularisation costs twice what a normal application does, and then you'll have electrician fees on top of that.

This must be a common situation where people made amendments to their homes before the Reg changes and new home owners want to sell on post Reg changes?

Very different - there's no requirement for people to bring things up to date when regulations change, or to get approval for work which did not need approval at the time it was done.

I'm thinking of calling a local electrician to see if they can check my work, make any amendments and certify?

Too late - an electrician cannot certify work done by someone else.

Apologies if i come across as clueless, but i'm proficient at most DIY but want to ensure my work is compliant and asking the experts has always been my best policy.

You really need to amend your policy so that it leads you to find out about compliance issues before you do the work.

If you doubt your ability to have done the work safely, then you should never have done it in the first place, but now that you have it would be wise to have an electrician check it for you, but that will not resolve your lack of Building Regulations approval. With that all you can do is wait to see what buyers say, or want done, when you sell the house and you disclose (as you must if asked) the fact that you do not have approval for work which needed it.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Assuming the lights are in the ceiling and you have made wiring changes above the ceiling, they are outside the zones in the bathroom. Might still be notifiable, don't know enough to say but probably not so I'd proceed now as if it isn't, but nothing to do with bathrooms.

Does that really not sound to you like incredibly specious rubbish?

Leaving a live cable in the wall with nothing to show it's there is a very bad idea.

It's also illegal.

 

[acmedone]

Depends

If the work is in zone 1 (or 2) it is notifiable.

If it is extra low voltage lighting (12V) which is NOT "preassembled lighting set bearing the CE marking referred to in regulation 9 of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994(1)" it is notifiable.

This is the law about which the OP asked - not pedantry from us.

A definitive answer. A refreshing change for this forum

I would advise Welshjeff1000 to peruse acmedone's previous posts before reliance is placed in them.

I expect if Welshjeff1000 looked through this forum he would discover how difficult it is to get straightforward facts without useless baggage.

 

[acmedone]

Depends. Mains only goes to the transformer so this could be considered to be a replacement, not addition.

So going from 1 light to 3 lights does not involve adding anything?

Well, my sentence was not intended to be definitive and on reading it back I don't think it fails to be vague. The sentence you snipped also began with "if". At least it prompted someone to clarify.

Though when I had a configuration which included a transformer with two lights checked by an electrician, he listed them as one item.

To satisfy my curiosity, do you or anybody else have any opinion on why the authorities thought the positioning of low voltage fittings was their concern?

 

[EFLImpudence]

To satisfy my curiosity, do you or anybody else have any opinion on why the authorities thought the positioning of low voltage fittings was their concern?

You presumably mean 12V which is extra-low voltage - normal mains is low voltage (not high voltage).

The positioning of them is not the issue.

Except for "preassembled lighting set bearing the CE marking referred to in regulation 9 of the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994(1)"
they are classed as a special installation and are notifiable.

I would think the reason is because the low voltage results in high current, leading to circuit design issues.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Do you want the official Government answer, or the truth?

 

[EFLImpudence]

Do you want the official Government answer, or the truth?

I cannot possibly perceive there would be a difference.

Both ?