This
company seems to specialise in consumer units. I have debated with my son many times as to what a consumer unit should be, and maybe before buying that is a good start.
1) Price - there is a huge difference make to make with price, but working out if worth the extra is not so easy, in the main going for a cheaper make means one can go for more features, as one can afford to fit RCBO's instead of MCB's and there is a huge difference in price of a SPD.
2) Features - some cheaper units don't have the option of using double pole switching RCBO's, door bell transformers, relays, some it seems use a MCB to feed the SPD, others don't, and to be frank still not convinced a SPD is really required. Not seen any with better than type A RCBO's with single modular width, but can get RCD's of type F, B, and S so although at first glance one says all RCBO is the way to go, there are exceptions with for example EV charging.
I have never really worked out why we have an isolator in a consumer unit, we are told by the HSE we should isolate elsewhere, so in theory we should not work in a consumer unit which is only isolated with the built in isolator, so why have one? With an independent isolator between the DNO fuse and the consumer unit which should be there so we can comply with HSE rules, why also have one in the consumer unit?
However we always seemed to fit a main isolator in any distribution unit, even over the 120 amp limit to be classed as a consumer unit.
On the bench it is easy to fit RCBO's and MCB's to a consumer unit, the terminals
View attachment 267854 either have a section which lifts up to clamp the wire, or a plate when goes down to clamp the wire these will naturally fall open when the consumer unit is flat on the bench, however on the wall with some makes and model these can flop to closed position, clamping the wire a simply tug will confirm the wire is actually clamped, but onto the bus bar the DIN rail holds the device firm, so there is no way to test if right side of clamping bit, other than either sight, or having the terminal forced open when unscrewing it.
I think the fires in plastic consumer units were likely caused by loose connections, either bus bar wrong side of clamp, or not tightened up. We should test the terminal is not binding on threads, with experience we do tend to feel when a thread has not been formed correct, and thread is tight rather than bus bar, but if it over heats then the expansion and contracting of the treads will likely stop thread from binding, so always blamed on some one not torquing the terminal up fully, although I have seen it where all bus bar terminals were loose, seems whole sale outlet had popped the MCB's in place so the electrician had one item to carry into van, but nothing tightened up, and electrician thinking it was pre-populated did not bother checking, his fault, but easy done, it does say test all screws for tightness. Lucky it caused the cordless phones to play up, and fault found before any damage done.
I have retired now, so not up to date, I still remember the old loadmaster distribution units where you could get up to a 70 amp MCB, and the MCB looked same at the 100 amp isolator except for red sleeve on activating lever. I had a forman who thought the 100 amp marked unit was also a MCB. The old Wylex only went to 30 amp fuse, then we got a modifed version which would take one larger fuse next to the isolator, and the isolator only rated at 60 amp, hense why many DNO fuses are only 60 amp as fuse box only rated at 60 amp.
In the main CU rated at 100 amp. But often the RCD only rated at 63 amp so same problem, if the MCB's exceed 63 amp but the DNO fuse is only 60 amp then a 63 amp RCD is still OK, but what if the DNO fuse is changed? My house on a 60 amp DNO fuse likely due to having a Wylex fuse box with the isolator rated at 60 amp when I moved in, now both isolators rated at 100 amp. One before the CU and one in the CU.
But all this is found out not working with one make of distrubuion unit, but many, I can't see how working on one only will really help?
