In an earlier contribution to this discussion,
John Rumm wrote:
Roger Mills wrote:
I've looked at the MK stuff on TLC's website, and can't quite work
out what I need - not for a reasonable price anyway! Their split
load CUs are 70-odd quid +VAT before putting any innards in. Can you
suggest a shopping list of bits which would give me MCB protection for
lights and RCBO for
power - and be compatible with my mains supply - without costing an
arm and a leg? [The price reference is the Screwfix garage enclosure
for ?37 - so I'm
hoping to get something which *doesn't* take out the lights when the
RCD trips for not too much more than this].
If you go the split load route, then you don't need the RCBOs and can
use ordinary MCBs for all the circuits. However as you have found;
split load CUs tend to be big and expensive.
Does it have to be MK?
Not necessarily. I quoted MK because someone said you could buy their loose
bits, and do a mix & match. I'm sure you can do that with other makes.
If not, how about (For a TN supply):
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/CMM4N.html
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/CM7106B.html
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/CM92003SP.html
Your difficulty there is the price of RCBOs - one of them costs about
that!
Ouch - that's expensive. I wasn't sure whether you could use an RCBO with
that board - 'cos it isn't listed among the compatible MCBs.
Cheapest (but not smallest) option may be:
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products...0slash80N.html
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/CM7106B.html
http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/CM7120B.html
Although that still tops £50
According to my calculations, it's about £48 - including VAT and a load of
blanking bits. It would probably do - but it does seem a bit of an overkill
to have a bigger CU in the garage than in the house!
Just to stick another spanner in the works . . I was told today by one
supplier that a detached garage is considered to be 'outside', and that
everything in it has to be protected by an RCD - hence the design od the
standard garage CU. Is there any truth in this? If so, the above solutions
wouldn't comply anyway - so I'm back to losing the lights when I saw through
my power cable?!
Incidentally, my current thinking is to join the T&E to the SWA
using an adaptable box in the roofspace. This means that there won't
be any joints exposed to the weather, and the cable won't need
chasing so deep into the wall of the en-suite. Hopefully, I can
strip the end of the SWA and fit the gland in the en-suite, and then
poke it up through the hole in the ceiling, and then grovel in the
attic to make the actual connection, which shouldn't be too bad.
Does this sound reasonable?
Groveling never sounds reasonable, bit if is what you have got to
do.... ;-)
Actually, it's not *that* bad. It's a difficult bit of roofspace to get into
because it's part of an extension without proper access - so I have to
grovel under a purlin of the main house to get in. Once in, I can pull the
cables through to a place where there's a reasonable amount of headroom, and
make the joint there. I just have to make sure that I take everything I need
with me, to avoid multiple grovellings!
--
Cheers,
Roger
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