Can i use a 13A plug for a 3.6kW connected load combi microwave oven?

[perm d]

Hi all ,

My beloved 10 year Neff B7740 combination micro , oven and grill died today because Neff have stopped stocking the left hook for the door !

It seems that 10 years ago there were a lot more appliances with 13A fused plugs but looking at the web and in store the trend is towards hard-wiring as we buy more power hungry devices ?

The other half has got me frantically searching for a replacement but i have seen that all of these have to hardwired , but the old one had a 13A plug ( connected load 3.2KW ) . This was connected to a double socket with a 2.8kW oven which also has a 13A plug . It seems that Neff , Siemens, Bosch all copy each other with virtually the same power ratings , spec and load sizes !

The double socket is connected to a separate fuse ; a Wylex B40 MCB via a thick cable .

I wondered if i could connect the wiring from the new appliance to a 13A fused plug and plug this into the standard double socket , or would this blow the fused plug . We had never used the microwave , oven and grill at the same time for the single appliance so i doubt if we will now .

Can anyone advise or is there a double socket on the market that would accommodate 13A and 16A plugs ??

I don't want an electrician to charge me couple of hundred pounds ? , for switching over the socket in the wall

I read that J Lewis state an installation charge for some of their offerings and wondered if this would go to changing the standard double socket to one for 16A plug , what ever that looks like !

Thank you for any help or advice that you can offer

 

[deadshort]

Hi, no is the short answer. Replace the double socket with a dual appliance plate and have the mcb changed to a 32a, you will need an electrian to change the breaker.

Regards

DS

 

[kai]

A B16 breaker is more than enough for a 3.6.kw New Style Oven - The product standards were changed a couple of years ago, and all new ovens are permitted to have a 3.6.kw rating now.

 

[sparkwright]

Hi, no is the short answer. Replace the double socket with a dual appliance plate and have the mcb changed to a 32a, you will need an electrian to change the breaker.

Regards

DS

We don't know where the double socket is. If the double socket is not fed by an isolator in the kitchen, then fitting this dual connection plate will make isolation difficult.

If this really is a cooker circuit, perhaps a cooker panel (45amp switch and single socket) may be an idea.

 

[sparkwright]

A B16 breaker is more than enough for a 3.6.kw New Style Oven - The product standards were changed a couple of years ago, and all new ovens are permitted to have a 3.6.kw rating now.

Yes but there's two appliances to consider AFAICT.

 

[JohnW2]

Hi, no is the short answer.

Does it not depend upon what the manufacturer's instructions to say and (depending on what they say) the extent to which one feels obliged to comply with them? Electrically speaking, a 3.6kW cooking appliance represents an after-diversity current of less than 12A (even if the 3.6 kW is quoted for 230V, which is unlikely) - so feeding it via a 13A plug would not necessarily be an electrical 'no' (and little different from the OP's previous 3.2 kW appliance, which has been in service for 10 years).

Kind Regards, John

 

[deadshort]

A B16 breaker is more than enough for a 3.6.kw New Style Oven - The product standards were changed a couple of years ago, and all new ovens are permitted to have a 3.6.kw rating now.

There is a 2.8kw oven connected to the same circuit.

DS

 

[winston1]

Hi, no is the short answer. Replace the double socket with a dual appliance plate and have the mcb changed to a 32a, you will need an electrian to change the breaker.

There is no need to change the MCB surely.

 

[Risteard]

The bigger concern is whether it is appropriate to connect a socket outlet to BS 1363 to a 40A protective device.

 

[JohnW2]

The bigger concern is whether it is appropriate to connect a socket outlet to BS 1363 to a 40A protective device.

I personally see no particular reason for concern, particular if the socket outlet is at the end of the circuit, so that the only current going through its terminals is that which is going through the inserted plug(s). Also ... there seem to be plenty of cooker circuits out there which (unnecessarily) have a 40A OPD, and a good few of those are feeding 'cooker control units' with an integral 13A outlet.

Kind Regards, John

 

[Risteard]

The bigger concern is whether it is appropriate to connect a socket outlet to BS 1363 to a 40A protective device.

I personally see no particular reason for concern, particular if the socket outlet is at the end of the circuit, so that the only current going through its terminals is that which is going through the inserted plug(s). Also ... there seem to be plenty of cooker circuits out there which (unnecessarily) have a 40A OPD, and a good few of those are feeding 'cooker control units' with an integral 13A outlet.

Kind Regards, John

The point is BS 1363 does not specify that they be used with a protective device above 32A, and as such they are being operated outside of the Standard.

 

[EFLImpudence]

The point is BS 1363 does not specify that they be used with a protective device above 32A, and as such they are being operated outside of the Standard.

Does it state they should not be?


It's difficult to imagine when this would apply but, anyway, as said, aren't they used with one or two 13A fuses?

If you think they cannot be connected to two pairs of conductors with >32A flowing (past) then use connectors and have the socket on a spur.

 

[JohnW2]

The point is BS 1363 does not specify that they be used with a protective device above 32A, and as such they are being operated outside of the Standard.

Not having easy access to BS1363, I've not seen what it actually says, but I see no real reason why it should require protection by an upstream OPD ≤32A. In the situation I described (which is very probably the OP's situation), with the socket at the end of the cable run (and assumed no spurs from it), there is, at worst, protection of 2 x 13A a couple of inches downstream of the socket's terminals. That is why, as I said, I would personally see no reason for concern.

Kind Regards, John

 

[stillp]

Not having easy access to BS1363, I've not seen what it actually says, but I see no real reason why it should require protection by an upstream OPD ≤32A.

That's right, it's a product standard and doesn't include any requirements for the installation.

 

[stillp]

However, 433.1.103 states "Accessories to BS1363 may be supplied through a ring final circuit, with or without unfused spurs, protected by a 30 A or 32 A protective device complying with..."