Shaver Socket Alternative

[funkydiver]

So the wife has an electric tooth brush with a two pin charger and I have a rechargable razor with the same.

Are there UK sockets which are not so... clumpy / hotelly? (not sure that's a word, lol)

The only UK one's I've found are...

Single gang but not exactly decorative

Decorative, but not single gang

Would there be any non-legislative reason NOT to use a German socket?

Insert

They're very much similar to the combination range available in the UK, in that you can get different colours/style of insert/surround.

Or is there a non-white single gang version available in the UK?

The socket is going into a bedroom, I have never liked the whole socket in the bathroom idea, and when we do our bathroom it's going to have clean clean lines with no switches at all (taptile style switching - or at worst light switch outside the room)

 

[Taylortwocities]

First of all. The MK shaver socket in your first link is not permitted in a UK BATHROOM. (Yes, I know you are taking about a bedroom. See further)

The other sockets are designed for bathroom use and include a safety isolating transformer - that is why they are so chunky. Note that although they have two outlets (230v and 110v) you can use either outlet, but not nboth at the same time. There is an interlock to prevent this.


You could install the MK one in a bedroom. Probably you would need two if you needed to charge the toothbrush and shaver at the same time. I am not aware of a different colour version.

Johny Foreigner type sockets will not meet our BS4573 requirements, and may have other "issues".

 

[OwainDIYer]

Cut off the two-pin shaver plug and fit a 3-pin 13 A plug with a 1 A fuse

http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/TLF1.html

The 1 A fuse is advisable as these things often have very flimsy flexes.

This won't work if it's a plug-top charger of course.

 

[funkydiver]

Cheers for the replies.

OwainDIYer they're not plugs, they're transformers, else I'd have replaced the plugs at purchase.

The search continues, I know they must be available in the UK as I've seen them in hotel grid setups on the desk.

 

[OwainDIYer]

You can get Multi-plug sockets in Euro modules but as noted they don't comply with British regulations.

'Ideally' you'd have one protected by an adjacent fused connection unit.

Wandsworth do plates for hotels and can almost certainly make you a shaver socket in a decorative plate - at a price

http://www.wandsworthelectrical.com/

 

[funkydiver]

'Ideally' you'd have one protected by an adjacent fused connection unit.

Which is oddly enough exactly whast it's going to be connected to, or at the very least replace.

If I get really desperate, I could get a white one, take the leccy gubbins off the back and spray paint it and finish off with a nice satin laquer clear coat.

It's going on a dark brown wall, and typically, wife would like the lines to be nice and neat with sockets in a dark bronze colour, so a nice white square 4 inches above the skirting board is not in her master plan, lol.

 

[ericmark]

You raise an interesting point in the UK with the exception of shaver sockets because there have an isolating transformer you are not allowed to have sockets where the plugs can be inserted without having something which ensures the correct polarity.

German sockets therefore do not comply but French ones would.

the pin that sticks out means a class 1 plug with earth can only be inserted correct way around but a class 2 plug can be inserted either way.

For my radio which has a transformer built into the plug I made this

I grabbed the sockets on holiday in Spain not seen them on sale here. What seems daft is this

adaptor is OK as not permanent fixture but socket of same design is not.

As to the socket with fuse you linked to again no earth pin so not permitted in UK but this is BS7671:2008 rules not Part P rules the latter allows anything allowed in Europe to be used in the UK but that means the whole of the rule book so in Germany for example they have used RCD protection for many years we with our safer sockets were much latter.

The problem is scheme members have to do what the scheme says so even if Part P allows German regs they have to follow British regs.

Do note shaver sockets may take BS 4573 (UK shaver) and CEE 7/16 "Europlug" (Type C) but they are not the same and with some sockets using the CEE 7/16 "Europlug" (Type C) can bend the contacts so they do not make good contact with BS 4573 (UK shaver).