My sockets are buried in plasterboard adhesive!

[curium]

We're having a kitchen refit. In advance of the fitters I'm removing the existing tiles with the aim of having some of the sockets moved.

Our house is a 10yo new build.

Upon removing the tiles all the sockets appear to be embedded (including the supply wires) in plasterboard adhesive.

This will make moving them challenging I suspect without damaging the wires. We'll see what the spark says.

We have also exposed a slightly diagonal run which supplies a junction box that the boiler is connected to. We're not completely comfortable with this and would like the fused switch to the left of the junction box moved up into the boiler cupboard above with the boiler flex attached to it from the front i.e. with no buried cable and a completely visible boiler flex from the fused switch going to the boiler. Is this going to be a problem?

I have attached a photo

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Additionally I would like to consolidate the oven switch and the fused switch for the hob. I am aware that they are on different ring circuits (the oven is by itself) but wanted to know if it is possible to get a single 'bit of plastic' that will take both supplies and have a switch for the oven and separate switch for the hob.

If that is not possible could I get a smaller oven switch and place a single fused switch for the hob right next to it?

I have attached a photo. I am not concerned at losing the socket included with the oven switch - I would rather it was a fused switch for the hob.

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Knowledgable opinions welcome please so I can explain to the electrician exactly what I want doing.

Cheers!

 

[PrenticeBoyofDerry]

It is quite common to have your sockets and cable surrounded by wall board adhesive. In fact the dry-liner who has fitted the boards has done exactly what would be expected of them.
I don't know the whole extent of the damage incurred by the removal of tiles (normally quite substantial). So it would be a very serious consideration that I would take, if fitting new kitchen and new or alterations to circuits, to rip it all down and see the whole picture.
Speak to your electrician, explain your requirements to them, they are better placed to give you a more informative view on your installation. What you have asked for in your post is not impossible to do and the likelihood would be that your electrician will advise you on the best way to achieve this.

 

[ColJack]

yup, without surrounding the boxes, the edges of the plasterboard round the box is prone to break if you overtighten the faceplate screws, or indeed if somone heavy handed pushes a plug in, or knocks the socket etc..

it's a pain that the wires are in there though, a good sparky would have capped them or run them in conduit ( plactic ) so that they could be replaced if needed without ripping half the wall down.. ( might be worth making a note to request this as spec from your sparky.. )

 

[RF Lighting]

You might want him to take a look at the wires that dissapear off from a box at 45 degrees in the first pic while he's there too...