Electric Meter Moved

[Celtic_Monkey]

Has anyone experienced having an electric meter moved ?

I've just bought a 1960's detached house that has had (at some stage) the front door removed and replaced with a window and a new front door built into the side of the house. What was the hall has now been knocked through as an extension to the kitchen.

problem is - house has these glass brick things so that the meter can be read from the outside. BUT ... on the inside wall there is a big grey metal box on the wall hiding the lecky meter - a real eye sore.

what i'd like to do is get Electricity board to move meter (preferably into loft space - easy access) and extend meter tails to be able to move and install a new consumer unit.

how expensive / possible ?

thanks for advice

 

[ban-all-sheds]

You want to put your meter in the loft? I can't see them agreeing to that.

You could probably get it moved to the outside wall.

How far away would you want the CU to be?


Charges are purely at the discretion of the DNO - you should expect to pay several hundred.

 

[TexMex]

The LOFT?
Why not go the whole hog and get them to fit it into an unused fireplace. You can then brick it up afterwards and forget all about it

 

[securespark]

Better still, bury it in concrete!

On a serious note, an external box is an excellent idea, but have to bear in mind that the tails can only be a few (up to 3.5, depending on the REC) metres long, any longer and you need to run a sub-main to the CU.

 

[Celtic_Monkey]

guys let me explain .. the house is a dormer bungalow - and there is loftspace alongside the upstairs bedrooms (runs the length of the house on both sides) which is easily accessible through the bedrooms.

the reason i stated the loft is that it's directly above where the meter is now - so thought it would be less of a job to move.

if they were going to put the meter outside then

a) a suitable housing would have to be installed.

b) i'm guessing they'd have to dig up half my garden to find the main feed in.

that's why i asked if anybody had any experience of this and how much it would be likely to cost

 

[ban-all-sheds]

guys let me explain .. the house is a dormer bungalow - and there is loftspace alongside the upstairs bedrooms (runs the length of the house on both sides) which is easily accessible through the bedrooms.

But from the POV of the meter reader, a lot less accessible than it is now.

the reason i stated the loft is that it's directly above where the meter is now - so thought it would be less of a job to move.

So you'd have the service head where it currently is, then tails running up the wall into the loft to the meter, and then down again to the CU (assuming that's not already in the loft). Doesn't sound like you've gained much, but I accept that we're only working on a sketchy view of your layout.

if they were going to put the meter outside then

a) a suitable housing would have to be installed.

Yup, but they're reasonably unobtrusive - you see them all over the place. You'd need to take advice from a structural engineer, but it may be possible to sink it into the wall, so that it's virtually flush on the outside.

b) i'm guessing they'd have to dig up half my garden to find the main feed in.

Not if it went on the opposite side of the wall to where it is now.

that's why i asked if anybody had any experience of this and how much it would be likely to cost

The most basic of meter moves usually costs several hundred pounds.

 

[Celtic_Monkey]

Guys,

Thanks for your help & comments. i'll get EB in to see what they're advice is.

the only reason i wanted it moved is cosmetic - maybe they can put it in a new housing or something.

cheers