Need to verify how a qualified electrician has wired CU.

[BAGGIES1]

Could anybody give me there thougths on what i've discovered in my CU.

The question revolves around whether the cct is passed throught the RCD and MCD or just the MCB?

Currently it appears that when i had my fuse box replaced, the electrician has wired thus:

via RCD & MCB - Shower, External Out building mains sockets, Downstairs sockets

via MCB only - Cooker, Water Heater, Upstairs sockets, Downstairs Lighting


Question? I notice the mains upstairs is wired in a Radial fashion (i.e no returning wire) and that the downstairs is wired as std Ring mains. Also the upstairs does not pass through the RCD while the downstairs does. Would i be right in assuming that the appliances downstairs tradtionally draw more power (ie kitchen and living room) thatn upstairs and that it is most likely bevause of this?

Please remember i did not wire this i am simply verifying whats already been installed by a qualified electrician.

Any feedback would be great thanks.

 

[fireman22]

sockets that can reasonably be expected to feed outside equipment should be on the rcd. we put all the sockets on rcd up & down and cooker control units that incorperate a socket. also we put shower on rcd and obviously out building must be.

 

[BAGGIES1]

from you comments then, i should investigate getting someone in to move the upstairs radial cct to go via the RCD?

from what i can see this would just involve moving the neutral wire for the raidal upstairs cct from its neutral (non-rcd rail) to the neutral (rcd rail).

one neutral rail is supplied directly from the main 100a MCB and one neutral rail is supplied after passing throught the RCD device.

 

[Lectrician]

Some people don't put the upstairs sockets on an RCD. As said before, you are unlikely to supply equipment outdoors from upstairs.

It is however, more common place to supply all socket outlets from the RCD.

Cookers are best supplied with a DP switch WITHOUT a socket - by their nature they can cause nuisance tripping.

 

[BAGGIES1]

thats poses a very interesting point!!

i have a mains sockts downstairs that is supplied via main cable plugged into the upstairs socket. (i inherited this when i bought the house).

i often use that socket downstairs (altho fed from upstairs cct) to run an extension cable out into garden and my garage etc.

given that it seems that it might be worth while getting the upstairs cct connected via the RCD.

what do you think?

 

[dingbat]

Or change that socket to a SRCD - a socket-outlet incorporating its own RCD.

The spark changing your consumer unit should have spotted this socket and proposed a solution. Was the CU change certified?

 

[BAGGIES1]

Yes as far as i am aware. The solution you suggested sounds good. Or remove the feed altogether. The socket at the other end is just a plug that plugs into an upstairs mains socket.

Like i said it were there when i found it.

 

[securespark]

Yes as far as i am aware.

You should be. He will have given you an installation certificate.

 

[Lectrician]

An SRCD socket would cost way more than simply RCD'ing the upstairs sockets.