Shed Electrics Advice Please :)

[Ron_UK]

Hello

I'd like to add some electrics to my Shed (Lights & Sockets) located at the bottom of my garden which is approx 100 feet from the house / fusebox.

What is the correct procedure to notify the council of planned works??

Does the Electrician notify the council or do i need to do it?
Does the council visit to inspect the works or is an Electricians Certificate enough?

Any advice would be much appreciate, in order of procedure.

Thanks
Ron

 

[motorbiking]

It doesn't necessarily need notification, depends how you do it. A sparky will give you a certificate for the work though. Depending on the load in the shed, you have a couple of options. Fused Spur off the ring via a outdoor rated junction box, connected to SWA (at least 1.5mm, ideally 2.5mm) with earthing, glands etc.. buried deep enough (e.g. 600 with warning tape at 400) in to another junction box on the shed and then you can fuse down for the lights (5A) from there etc. If you can get a radial back to the consumer unit (which I think is notifiable) then you could avoid the Fused spur. It should be protected by RCD, but the consumer unit one if fine if fitted.

A qualified electrician should put a lot more thought in to the design though given potential load on the circuit.

 

[Ron_UK]

Hi Motorbiking

I used to Lecture in Electronics (not same as Electrics) but i'm very hands on with things so if it is possible for me to do the work and get a qualified electrician to inspect it, it would save me some money.

I just thought the council had to be notified of any such works?
I did plan to run the armoured cable along the fence if that would be allowed?

Thanks
Ron

 

[motorbiking]

So did I, but apparently not - the regs were softened a year or 2 back. You still have to comply though.

I don't think you are allowed to have it clipped to a fence. I'm no expert. Not a sparky - I work in IP law, but have picked up enough knowledge to be dangerous

The usual crowd will be along shortly - many will know the answer

 

[JohnW2]

I just thought the council had to be notified of any such works?

As you've been told, the requirements for notification were very much relaxed (in England, but not Wales) a few years ago, such that very little is now 'notifiable'.

One of the very few things which remains notifiable in the installation of a 'new circuit'. As has been suggested, if it were a 'new circuit' (coming from your CU), it would therefore be notifiable, but if you supplied your shed by 'extending' an existing circuit (presuimably a 'sockets' one) that would not be notifiable (in England).

If you decided to go by the 'notifiable' route, it would probably make no financial sense to do it yourself, since you could then end up having to pay £xxx of notification fees - an expense you would avoid if a 'registered' self-certifying electrician did the work (who can notify him/herself for a few pounds).

Kind Regards, John

 

[John D v2.0]

Regarding the fixing of the cable, you can either fix it to a permanent structure (not a fence, but if it has concrete posts it would be OK in my non professional opinion.) Or you can bury it, preferably at the edge of the garden or where digging is unlikely, with some marker tape a couple of hundred mm above it. Should certainly be more than a spade depth down unless it's under concrete or something.
Also leave a plan by the consumer unit for good practice.

 

[John D v2.0]

Another option that may be possible is to fix a cable tray (galvanised) on stainless posts concreted into the ground (beside the fence). I don't see any reason against that other than visual impact!!

 

[JohnW2]

Another option that may be possible is to fix a cable tray (galvanised) on stainless posts concreted into the ground (beside the fence). I don't see any reason against that other than visual impact!!

I think that I would personally count that as a pretty good "reason against"!

Kind Regards, John

 

[motorbiking]

would start to look like a railway siding.

 

[John D v2.0]

That's not my place to advise, only the op can decide

 

[Ron_UK]

Hi Everyone

My sincere thanks for everyone's input & advice.
I promise to look into this in more detail to be 100% safe and of course in line with part P.

I'm not sure the missus will be pleased with a railway track down the garden
I can easily run in 25mm conduit, i believe that would be ok.

Just so i have the terminology correct, when you say a new circuit i presume you mean
a new ring main but if i was say connecting an armoured cable to run down to the shed
would that also be considered as a circuit?

My plan was to put a small CU in the shed, run a strip light and three double sockets from it.
In the shed i'd wire each light & electrical circuit in a ring but from the main house CU it would
be just the armoured cable to the shed. I could bypass the main CU and take a spur from a
double socket which would then feed the CU in the shed, how does that sound?

Thanks again for all your help.
Ron

 

[flameport]

My plan was to put a small CU in the shed, run a strip light and three double sockets from it.
In the shed i'd wire each light & electrical circuit in a ring but from the main house CU it would
be just the armoured cable to the shed. I could bypass the main CU and take a spur from a
double socket which would then feed the CU in the shed, how does that sound?

No.

No point in wiring 3 sockets as a ring
No real point in having a CU for such a tiny installation
Certainly no point in connecting a CU to an existing socket, as that would require the use of a 13A FCU and therefore be limited to a maximum of 13A for everything connected.

As far as notification goes, notifiable items are consumer units, new circuits (which would involve new cabling connected to a consumer unit) and certain things in bathrooms.

I can easily run in 25mm conduit,

Run what in the conduit?
Armoured cable does not need conduit, it can be directly buried or fixed to a wall or whatever.

 

[Ron_UK]

Hi Flameport

I'd only fit a CU in the shed if the circuit was dedicated for the shed and came directly from the main house CU via armoured cable, sorry i did not make that clear.
It will come clear after i do some research as i normally work in Electronics not Electrics.

I like things in Conduit .

Ron

 

[winston1]

I'd only fit a CU in the shed if the circuit was dedicated for the shed and came directly from the main house CU via armoured cable, sorry i did not make that clear.

But you still don't need to.

 

[Ron_UK]

I see what you mean winston1 .

I'm actually planning another project so i'm getting one confused with the other.