young lad needing sound advise on cooker/shower probs.

[hevknn06]

hi there,i've just bought a house and there is no electric shower, the CU is an old wylex type with 4 fuses,labeled

cooker 30amp fuse
ring 30amp
immersion heater 15amp (not used)
lights 5amp

the cooker i have is duel fuel gas hob elec oven on a 13amp plug.the cooker has a cable from CU which goes into a cooker switch (above worktop) which also has a plug socket and then goes to the back of cooker plate.
i disconnected the cooker from the CU and ran a 10mm cable to an isolator switch outside of bathroom then connected to shower (9.5kv)
we are looking to replace the cooker now for another duel fuel,what im asking is by law do i need a separate cooker feed with isolator or could i safely and legally plug into a normal socket on the ring main? i ask this because i was going to get a new modern type CU fitted so that i could run the shower and cooker on there own supply but being a young first time buyer money is always needed else where.
thanks in advance.

 

[davy_owen_88]

A single electric oven can be safely plugged into a standard socket on a ring circuit.

I would seriously consider putting some money aside each month though for a rewire if you have a very dated installation.

 

[hevknn06]

also could i change the 15amp fuse on the old immersionm heater to a bigger one and run the cooker off of that? the immersion heater is no longer used.

 

[davy_owen_88]

No, you can't start sharing fuses between circuits, and you also can't upgrade fuses without ensuring the cable used is suitable.

 

[hevknn06]

No, you can't start sharing fuses between circuits, and you also can't upgrade fuses without ensuring the cable used is suitable.

it wouldnt be shared as immersion heater not used any more so that fuse location is not being used,the cooker cable is still behind CU just not being used.

 

[davy_owen_88]

Do you know what size cable is installed between CU and cooker?

 

[hevknn06]

10mm t&E

 

[davy_owen_88]

You can connect the cooker cable to the immersion heater fuse (15A) and that will be fine for the oven.

 

[hevknn06]

ok thanks for that.

 

[Adam_151]

9500/240 is ~40A, well above 30A!

If you used 10mm² cable then that should be ok as long as you haven't got extreme correction factors at play, but its not just a case of upgrading the fuse as most of those wylex standard boards were designed to a maximum of 30A per fuseway (if it has a main switch rated at 60A this is the case), it'll have a tab to keep 40A breakers out (though this is often counter productive as brute force and ignorance often see them forced in anyway, and with the result that its twisted to the side and probably increases the chance of it burning up!)

So new CU time, it looks like, sorry!

 

[hevknn06]

so is it still safe for me to connect the cooker cable to the 15amp fuse where the immersion heater once was?

 

[davy_owen_88]

Well its safe in the sense that the cable will be suitably protected, but Adams point was that older CU's weren't made for high power electric showers such as the one you fitted.

 

[hevknn06]

yes i understand that but the shower is safe isnt it? ive contacted a qualified electrician to do the CU swap just waiting on electric supplier to fit an isolator.