Sending power to Summerhouse

[ebberz]

I can see similar threads have been posted previously (although I already have an external power supply) but I'm wondering if there are technicalities of doing the following:-

There is already a double external socket wired to the back of the house (new build).
I spoke to the gardener who suggested I just need to purchase some armoured cable which he will then fit under the tiles he is due to install in the garden.

Is there any issue with me wiring one end to a plug and installing it in the external socket and wiring the other end to a way 4 extension to install inside a summerhouse?

It may power some lights / stereo / hot tub temporarily at some point but be switched off during the night etc. And probably not used during the winter.

Thanks...

 

[flameport]

Armoured cable cannot be correctly attached to a plug, or an extension socket.

 

[ebberz]

So do I have any other options or is it just a standard extension cable that I remove each night in case of rain etc?

 

[ban-all-sheds]

There is already a double external socket wired to the back of the house

How is it supplied? Is it on a ring? A radial? Is it an unfused spur from a ring?

I spoke to the gardener who suggested I just need to purchase some armoured cable which he will then fit under the tiles he is due to install in the garden.

An electrician would be a better person to consult on electrical questions than a gardener.

So do I have any other options

Yes - a proper fixed-wiring supply to the summerhouse using the right sort of cable, installed in the right way.

or is it just a standard extension cable that I remove each night in case of rain etc?

That is not a valid option.

 

[mwatsonxx]

I suggest you install a (straight as possible) continuous 50mm min sleeve between the buildings. This would allow for phone and data wiring and the power cable would not have to be armoured and therefore cheaper.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

I suggest you ignore watson, as he is giving you bad advice, on 2 counts.

1) This "sleeve" of which he speaks will not provide sufficient mechanical protection.

2) Unless you can find phone and data cables insulated to 230V you may not have them in the same containment as the power cable.

 

[JohnW2]

1) This "sleeve" of which he speaks will not provide sufficient mechanical protection.

Is that because you believe that it (I presume ducting or conduit) would not provide as much mechanical protection as does MICC?

Kind Regards, John

 

[bernardgreen]

http://www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/in...ice/need-help/what-is-electrical-ducting.html

What type of ducting do I need?
UK Power Networks will supply ducting if requested when you apply or you can buy ducting from any supplier whose ducting meets our safety and design standards.

The following are approved and used by UK Power Networks
a. 32mm Polyduct (Single Phase)
b. 50mm Polyduct (Three Phase)
c. 32mm Polyduct Coupling
d. 50mm Polyduct Coupling
e. 125mm Ridgiduct 3m (Road Crossing)

and the 32 mm duct is here

http://www.polypipe.com/civils-and-...m-polyduct-black-50m-coil-electric-cable-duct

wall thickness 2.5 mm Internal diameter 32 mm

If it is good enough for the supply cable from the street ( fused at 300 or 400 amps or more ) then it is good enough for under tha garden, but put the warning tape above it..

 

[JohnW2]

If it is good enough for the supply cable from the street ( fused at 300 or 400 amps or more ) then it is good enough for under tha garden, but put the warning tape above it..

Whilst I strongly suspect that it would be adequate (to contain, say, T+E cable carrying 230V), as recently mentioned DNOs appear regard the type of cables they use as being suitable for burying directly, without any ducting or other protection. It therefore does not necessarily follow that the ducting would be adequate, to the satisfaction of BS7671, to protect a cable which, itself, was not suitable for direct burying. That is currently the subject of exchanges between BAS and myself.

Kind Regards, John

 

[flameport]

So do I have any other options or is it just a standard extension cable that I remove each night in case of rain etc?

You can use armoured cable, but it must be correctly terminated, which means permanent installation.
It must also be of the correct size and type.

 

[ebberz]

Cheers for some of the replies

No idea how the wiring on the outside of the house is put together, it's a new build and we asked for a double plug socket rather than the single. So it's one of those housed in a water proof casing.
I did originally think I could pass wire down a plastic conduit from the house to the corner of the garden where the summerhouse is going to be.

The gardener turned up as he'd already given us a quote, I asked him what we needed to do to put power into a potential summerhouse, it's probably 10 meters from the house (and another 4 from the mains box).
He just said no problem, buy some armoured cable and I'll run it under the tiling (which he's doing) and leave enough at the end so you can fix it up once you get the summerhouse...

For a stereo and maybe some fairy lights I didn't think I'd need to go down the electrician route.
I guess I'll need to get a quote.

 

[DaveHerns]

What does a gardener know about outside electrics?

 

[sparkwright]

Gardeners think they know everything.

This job needs doing properly. It needs to be hard-wired in at the house end and the summerhouse end.

Terminating armoured cable isn't really a DIY job - there are hundreds of ways of doing it wrong, and one (or two) way of doing it right.

Special glands need fitting on each end of the cable. Everything outside needs to be water-tight. And the armour needs to be earthed.

Have you thought about any of that?

With respect, if you can have a gardener round laying slabs, you can have an electrician round to carry out this work.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

It needs to be hard-wired in at the house end and the summerhouse end.

It may be possible to take the supply from the outside socket, as it is, or after a small change, hence the questions I asked, and to fit a SWA gland into its enclosure.

However, there's another issue here - for some reason I didn't spot this, nor has anybody else:

It may power some lights / stereo / hot tub temporarily at some point but be switched off during the night etc.

A hot tub on a 13A supply?

That will not work at all well.

 

[Iggifer]

A hot tub on a 13A supply?

That will not work at all well.

No but they make them and they're sold (fairly well I assume as I've seen a couple). Not sure they can market it as a hot tub though! Lukewarm tub?