Power to the garage

[Steve_R]

Hi,

I've just bought a house with a garage attached.

From what I can see the garage didn't have power when it was built, so the previous owners have taken a spur off the back of a kitchen socket and used it to run a single socket and then on to a single strip light.

I want to add another 2 double strip lights, and 4 double sockets.

Am I right in thinking that running all this off a spur is asking for trouble???

Any advice would be appreciated!!

Thanks

 

[Jim2287]

You should fuse the cable to the garage ... any idea what size the cable is ?

easiest way to do this is put a fused spur connection unit which will be 13amp (can be less) but this can only be done if your cable is 2.5mm2 and if your load wont exceed 13amps

 

[Steve_R]

You should fuse the cable to the garage ... any idea what size the cable is ?

easiest way to do this is put a fused spur connection unit which will be 13amp (can be less) but this can only be done if your cable is 2.5mm2 and if your load wont exceed 13amps

No idea but as the cable is just tacked to the wall I can easily have a look.

I'm not planning to run lots of things all at once, so I can't imagine the load would be that great.

Would it be worth putting a new consumer unit into the garage, so i can have RCD protection on the sockets???

Thanks

 

[Jim2287]

Do you have an RCD on the sockets in your house ?

If you do and the garage is fed from the socket circuit in the house, then the garage lights and sockets will be RCD protected

 

[Steve_R]

Do you have an RCD on the sockets in your house ?

If you do and the garage is fed from the socket circuit in the house, then the garage lights and sockets will be RCD protected

Nope,

House is an 80's house, and on the original wiring, as far as i can see there's no RCD protection on the current fuse board.

Saying that, I could just use RCD'd sockets couldn't I???

Thanks for you help so far, much appreciated!!

 

[Jim2287]

you could use RCD sockets yes, they are quite expensive and also the cable supplying the garage could do with RCD protection probably, and so could your house sockets ... dont know how far/expensive u want to go


if u can find out cable size, and say what u plan to plug in the sockets then that may help determine if the original cable is ok

 

[streetlighter]

What about using an RCD fused spur to supply the garage ? Which would also fuse the suppy at 13 amps.

 

[Steve_R]

Agreed I'm better off having RCD protection on the cable too.

Its been suggested that i could do the following:

I have a cooker point in my kitchen that backs on to the garage, and as I have a gas cooker its not in use.

Take a feed from the cooker point into the garage, connect to a 2 way water proof consumer unit, then run the lights and sockets from the consumer unit.

Is this viable?????

Thanks for all your help guys, really appreciate it!!!!

 

[ColJack]

you'd have to take out the cooker point and run directly to the new garage CU.. no wiring down the kitchen wall... pull it back up into the floor void and go straight out into the garage..

also, this then becomes Part P notifiable since you're installing a Consumer Unit and the circuits off of it will need testing properly..

 

[Steve]

The cable doesn't need RCD protection. It doesn't sound like its armoured, but its not outdoors so no worries.

 

[Steve_R]

Decided to put a CU in running off the cooker electrics......thanks for all you help guys, really really appreciate it.

steve

 

[Welshy]

Decided to put a CU in running off the cooker electrics......thanks for all you help guys, really really appreciate it.

steve

In 6mm?


This is what i did about 2-3 years ago to run power to my shed.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Decided to put a CU in running off the cooker electrics......thanks for all you help guys, really really appreciate it.

steve

I hope that the location of the old cooker circuit cable, if concealed, is OK if you've removed the cooker control unit and/or outlet plate.

And that you tested the circuit, and the ones off the garage CU, and are happy with what you'll say if you're asked if any notifiable work has been done....

 

[Steve_R]

Decided to put a CU in running off the cooker electrics......thanks for all you help guys, really really appreciate it.

steve

I hope that the location of the old cooker circuit cable, if concealed, is OK if you've removed the cooker control unit and/or outlet plate.

And that you tested the circuit, and the ones off the garage CU, and are happy with what you'll say if you're asked if any notifiable work has been done....

Yeah was going to run 6mm from the kitchen to the CU.

The cooker circuit runs in the cavity between the kitchen wall and the garage wall, so its all concealed.

The cooker power swtich I know needs to be removed, but what i'm unsure of is do I just replace it with a plate, or can I put a twin socket on, as there is a socket on the current power switch.

Are there any issues with putting a socket on the circuit before the consumer unit??

Notifiable work??? Was there when i moved in!!!!!!

 

[ban-all-sheds]

The cooker circuit runs in the cavity between the kitchen wall and the garage wall, so its all concealed.

You shouldn't run cables in cavities.

The cooker power swtich I know needs to be removed, but what i'm unsure of is do I just replace it with a plate, or can I put a twin socket on, as there is a socket on the current power switch.

Good luck getting 2 x 6mm² cables into the back of a socket!

Are there any issues with putting a socket on the circuit before the consumer unit??

It's a sub-main - don't do it.

Notifiable work??? Was there when i moved in!!!!!!

I doubt if anyone here is going to shop you, but consider the liability implications of lying to a future buyer....