Re-wire required - DIY after going on a course?

[diyAlex]

I'm just about to become the new owner of an old property that needs rewiring.

I'm thinking it will cost around £2500 to pay someone to do this (it's a 3 bed bungalow).

So that got me thinking about doing the "part p" course (can't remember it's proper C&G number right now!) and then doing the job myself by notifying Building Control before work has begun and then adhering to their inspection regime.

The course is 3 days and costs £500 roughly. Plus books and also the ££ equivalent of 3 days annual leave. So I reckon it's around £1k to get a qualification. From what I've read up on, it's necessary to at least have this qualification to be able to do notifiable work.

I'm practically minded all right, so I'm not worried about actually being able to rewire the place.

Any thoughts on the practicallness of this idea? Or the cost of getting all the materials that a pro would include in a £2.5k fee?

I guess from a timing point of view I could fit the new stuff in parallel to the existing stuff working, thereby minimising the amount of time with no power in the house. By that I mean lay new wires and chase new conduits into new socket/switches - leaving the existing stuff untouched. The whole place needs a good redecorate.

 

[Chri5]

LABC fee circa £300
Tester circa £350 for a nearly new via ebay
Course £600
Time off work 3 days at £120 per day
Homework time to get some idea before during and after course 50 hours
Efficiency compared to decent seasoned sparks 60%- so job will take +40% longer

So cost to you = all your time for 10 weekends + 50 hours homework + £1510 + materials (guess) £700.

Are you happy to spend £2210 + 10 weekend x 20 hours + 50 hours (total 250 hours) when you think a pro would come in at £2500.

Seems a bit daft to me !

 

[ban-all-sheds]

1) There's no such thing as a C&G "Part P" course or qualification. There is a Domestic Installer NVQ which is often referred to as a "Part P" qualification, but that on its own will almost certainly be worthless with respect to notifying your LABC, i.e. it won't save you any money or make a difference to how they treat you.

2) Your LABC may well impose all sorts of extra costs, like paying for each visit from the electrician they subcontract to.

3) Where did you get your figure of £2,500? Seems on the light side for Hampshire?

4) How much do you know already? Do you think you could do the rewire on the basis of your current knowledge?

• For a circuit to supply a given load (doesn't matter what), how would you go about deciding what cable and protective device to use?
  
  
• How do you calculate maximum demand and how can diversity be used?
  
  
• What are the 3 different types of domestic single-phase supplies provided in this country, how would you recognise them, and what differences do each make to the requirements for the rest of the installation, particularly any outdoor supplies?
  
  
• Can you correctly identify all components and connections of a circuit by method of testing or otherwise? In doing so can you identify or recognise anything wrong or dangerous with the circuit?
  
  
• Do you understand how the way in which you install cables affects how much current they can carry?
  
  
• What are the rules concerning cables concealed in walls, partitions and under floors?
  
  
• What are the rules for cables run outdoors, buried in the ground or overhead?
  
  
• Where cables need to be joined, how should this be done / not be done and in what circumstances are different methods acceptable?
  
  
• Can you identify extraneous conductive parts, and do you know the requirements for main and supplementary bonding of them?
  
  
• Which circuits should be RCD protected?
  
  
• How do you propose to isolate your supply so that you can connect up your new CU?
  
  
• Can you explain what tests you would carry out on the installation - what sequence you'd do them in and at what point you would energise the installation, and for each test do you know what is being measured, why it is important, how you would carry out the test, and with what equipment, and what sort of results you would expect to get if everything was OK?

If you aren't confident, or realise that you don't know enough then I'm afraid that 3-day course won't make any significant difference.

If you are genuinely competent, and see the course as a mere formality, save your time and money and don't bother.

 

[SteNova]

i'd go about it this way (don't shoot me down if i make a mistake)

plan what you want, even if it's just going round with a marker pen and postits writing socket here, switch here etc, if you can work visio or cad draw it

get the spark in for a chat, show him your plan, he will amend it and make it 'legal', aggree whats needed draw cable routes on walls if needed, send the spark home

chase out walls, drill holes, fit backboxes, cut holes for light fittings etc etc

invite the spark back to install the wires

also if you are striping out all the old get the spark to disconnect everything on the first visit and give you a couple of new sockets near the cu to use during building work, buy a couple of extension leads to run from this point, then you know all the other wiring in the house is dead

 

[Risteard]

There is a Domestic Installer NVQ which is often referred to as a "Part P" qualification

I don't think it's an NVQ. It's a level 2 qualification (although not recognised by the industry).

 

[ColJack]

if you let me camp there while I'm doing it ( so I don't have to pay for a B&B.. ) then I'll do it for £1000+ parts.. cash in hand

 

[LoveRocket]

Don't waste your money on these poxy courses. If you understand what you're doing and know how to do it properly, then just do the work and ignore all the part-p nonsense.

If you don't know what you're doing, then these daft courses won't help you, so get a spark in to do the work.

Don't give the cabal any more money,

 

[ColJack]

are you advising the OP to break the law?
Part P is LAW...
notification is required for certain things.

part P qualifications do not exist.
any idiot can do electrics ( unfortunately ) as long as they notify the LABC and the LABC test and inspect the work and sign off on it.

 

[LiamPope]

You dont need any qualifications to DIY notifiable work, and you probably wont learn anything on the three-day-wonder course you can't get from reading a good book and the OSG (as a bare minimum), browsing posts and the wiki on here, some common sense, and hopefully your existing 'practical mindedness'. You have a heck of a lot to learn though before you can even start the design, so don't plan on having it done in a weekend.

I DIYed a full rewire during my renovation so it can be done. I stripped back the old installation to just a single double socket near the old fuse board and also got my supplier to fit an isolator (and new tails and meter while they were at it) so I could swap over to the new CU safely. Until recently the LABC was supposed to inspect and test notified work covered in the initial fees for your building notice. Some did, but many refused. Now they can all charge separately for carrying out testing, but you still stand to save a lot by DIYing if you know what you're doing and can consider your own time (lots of it) free.

To be honest I'd seriously consider Coljack's offer, though

Good luck.

 

[ricicle]

IMO if you feel you need to go on a 3 day course (which will be pretty basic) then you don't have the required knowledge to be able to complete the job satisfactorily and won't have afterwards either............

 

[ban-all-sheds]

are you advising the OP to break the law?

Looks like he is.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I don't think it's an NVQ. It's a level 2 qualification (although not recognised by the industry).

Not even as in Not Very Qualified?

 

[diyAlex]

Great feedback and opinion guys. Thanks very much - still digesting some of it, but will post back my thoughts on what you're saying soon.

 

[Risteard]

I don't think it's an NVQ. It's a level 2 qualification (although not recognised by the industry).

Not even as in Not Very Qualified?

Well, in that sense....


But not in the traditional sense of NVQ as in National Vocational Qualification!

Basically, I wouldn't advise anyone to undertake the DISQ as it is not the proper industry qualification (and indeed only deals with simple domestic installations).

 

[viewer]

So, surprise, surprise lots of reasons why you can't.
You don't want to be a qualified electrician and you don't want to wire more than the one house. I haven't seen any three day courses, but many short courses will give you all you need and at least you'll be able to read the On Site Guide which is more than many, "I've worked as a spark for 99 years" posters seem to be doing. Have fun