CU Advice

[ScrappyDoo]

Just been looking at a new house, and the electrics have surprised me. Considering its a 3-bed Semi with electrics in the garage, utility room, electric shower, electric cooker, I didn't expect to see this:

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The white box on the left seems to be purely for the garage.

The main CU appears to have 2x5A, 1x32, 1x40.

I can't read the smudgey writing above the switches, but I would imagine a 5A would be good for nothing but lighting and the 40A would be for the kitchen.

So that means a single 32A for the entire house ring main? I'd expect at least 2 (one for each floor), plus maybe one for the electric shower.

 

[Taylortwocities]

1 x 32A ring final for the whole house sockets including the kitchen was the norm up until about 20 years ago. My house is bigger than that and has only one ring final for all of the sockets, have never, ever had an overload even with dishwasher, WM & tumble all going plus making a cuppa.

So up and down lights for the two 5As. The 40A is probably the cooker point.

The white box may be for more than the garage, feed to the shower too perhaps? There should be an RCD for that, somewhere.

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

Likely
5A for two lighting circuits, maybe house and garage. But possibly up/down.
32A for all sockets in house and garage
40A either cooker or possible shower, that could depend on whether cooker requires a higher current supply and whether the shower is electric.
It maybe that you find that you have by the external look of the board four circuits but once opened it could well be that not all devices are connected to or that there are many cables connected to them?
If the intention is to purchase the house a little more investigation and an electrical installation conditional report would be recommended.

 

[securespark]

That's naughty.

It looks as if they have piggy-backed the tails for the new board off the old one: in single insulated tails too.