DIY consumer unit install - yeer haaa!

[sparkyspike]

Use a wider piece of trunking horizontally across the top, cutting slots in the sides where required. You can fit this without moving the cables. This will be neat (and also essential if you have cut into the top panel of the CU!).

 

[LiamPope]

This Hager CU uses pieces of squishy foam to retain the IP4x rating when the top cutouts are used. Thanks for the advice all the same - sure I can probably squeeze some trunking in there to tidy it up.

Liam

 

[SUNRAY]

Do you mean the neutral link wires (I hope you dont think my circuit neutrals look mangled )? If so, those are tri-rated cable (apparently) with a loose fitting silicone sleeve. They dont hold a bend so are a b*****r to get looking neat. Whatever you do do to them, the loose sleeving wrinkles up like slack socks. Might just have to live with it, unless you've any suggestions?

Liam

Thats NOT tri-rated. For all intents and purposes tri-rated looks like single pvc flex but thicker.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Unless Hagar are saving money by stocking one spec of tri-rated, and using sleeving as appropriate.

 

[LiamPope]

Unless Hagar are saving money by stocking one spec of tri-rated, and using sleeving as appropriate.

Judging by the length of the functional earths on my RCBOs, and the fact they are using up old black cable in their manufacturer, I'd say you could well be correct that Hager are penny pinching . This stuff is definately flex-like in its multi-strandedness, and someone above suggested it was tri-rated. Personally I dunno. I'd thought that if it is tri-rated, perhaps that's why it gets away with seeming to be smaller than 25mm, which I was expecting to see given the 100A rating of the CU. Ah well.

Liam

 

[Spark123]

Personally if I need to extend a functional earth I'd use a piece of adequately sized cream wire (or same colour as existing) and solder it to the existing wire using heat sleeve to cover the join. Just keeps it smaller and neater than a crimp. Chock block is urghh!

 

[LiamPope]

Personally if I need to extend a functional earth I'd use a piece of adequately sized cream wire (or same colour as existing) and solder it to the existing wire using heat sleeve to cover the join. Just keeps it smaller and neater than a crimp. Chock block is urghh!

My thoughts exactly. I shall even try and find some cream (or at least white) heat shrink . Chock block in a CU - uuuuurrgghhh.

Cheers for the comments, folks.

Liam

 

[pukka]

If you ask for a hager RCBO for a 3phase board, they are the same but with a longer earth

Paul

 

[SUNRAY]

Unless Hagar are saving money by stocking one spec of tri-rated, and using sleeving as appropriate.

Judging by the length of the functional earths on my RCBOs, and the fact they are using up old black cable in their manufacturer, I'd say you could well be correct that Hager are penny pinching . This stuff is definately flex-like in its multi-strandedness, and someone above suggested it was tri-rated. Personally I dunno. I'd thought that if it is tri-rated, perhaps that's why it gets away with seeming to be smaller than 25mm, which I was expecting to see given the 100A rating of the CU. Ah well.

Liam

If the neutral wiring is what I have come across, the wire is a bare soft mutlistranded flexible wire, the ends of which are formed and (I think) copper plated to make it a hard piece for termination. The whole thing is put in cloth based & soft plastic covered (could be silicon or latex ish) sleeving rather like the old sistoflex that I have not seen for years.
The live looks like it could be tri-rated and 10mm is commonly supplied by manufacturer for this situation. the ratings are:-
10mm single conductor in free space @ 45' = 75A, 1 sec = 1036A, 5 sec = 483A, bunch of 12 or more = 42A, diameter = 6.4mm
16mm single conductor in free space @ 45' = 100A, 1 sec = 1458A, 5 sec = 741A, bunch of 12 or more = 56A, diameter = 8.2mm
25mm single conductor in free space @ 45' = 136A, 1 sec = 2590A, 5 sec = 1158A, bunch of 12 or more = 77A, diameter = 9.4mm
These figures do vary between cable manufacturers particularly the overall diameter and its not unusual to find a 10mm thats bigger than a 16mm, but these seem typical.
Its not unusual to find tri-rated cables running at currents far higher than those shown without displaying undue stress, where equipment has been uprated but the panel wiring has not.

 

[rebuke]

I doubt the RCDs that will be supplying the circuits these neutral bars are for will be rated to 100A (probably 63A, or even 40A), so in theory you shouldn't have 100A going through them. Obviously the one out of the main switch to the main neutral bar could though, especially in an all MCB/RCBO board...

 

[LiamPope]

I doubt the RCDs that will be supplying the circuits these neutral bars are for will be rated to 100A (probably 63A, or even 40A), so in theory you shouldn't have 100A going through them.

Well in theory, yeah. It was the advertising blurb exclaiming the 'full 100A rated terminal bars' that got me wondering about the link cables, then of course the RCDs as you point out. It seems to be very common to see MCBs on an RCD adding up to way over the RCD rating. I guess it really is a case of 'there but for the grace of diversity go probably most CU RCDs in the country' . Seems strange to me that it's acceptable practice nowadays, though the lack of news of molten RCDs would suggest diversity is effective protection. Still I might put a tenner on a requirement for CU RCD ratings to be no less than main fuse rating appearing in the 18th.

Liam

 

[SUNRAY]

We did some lighting work in a nightclub 15 years ago, an existing 4way board with 25A RCD fed by 25A MCB & 10mm had 4 16A sockets wired in 2.5mm on 5A fuses. This was upgraded by the maintenance Guy so we could run the sockets at around 10A to 12A each by replacing the fuses with 15A and the supply MCB with something bigger.

Halfway through the first evenings use the 25A RCD decided 'no more', Well actually there was a bloody great flash and smell which set off the fire alarm.

In comparison the average kitchen can do justice to 12KW and the 10KW shower puts it at over 80A of the typical RCD, so how close are we to a little fizz. I can see the sense of making all devices rated in excess of the cut out. Also how long will it be before we see 125A cutouts being the norm?

 

[Lectrician]

I would have had the CU butt against the ceiling if it was me.

 

[niceguy235]

If you ask for a hager RCBO for a 3phase board, they are the same but with a longer earth

Paul

And cost nearly twice as much

 

[kevindgas]

I would have had the CU butt against the ceiling if it was me.

funny i thought that too!
why didn't you bring the tails in the bottom right and fit the connection block made by hager for the purpose then you could move the board up to the ceiling!