Hi John,
Each of the switches I've changed so far have had the 'loop-through'
wiring done inside the wall switch.
This is sometimes done, especially in older properties where there may not
be a ceiling void.

Annoyingly, this means there's very little space in the back box for
the extended depth of a dimmer.
This can be a real pain - as I'm sure you've found out. You may find you
need to fit deeper back boxes. They usually need a deeper back-box than the
16mm ones often used for light switches.

Can anyone please give me guidance whether this conforms to 16th
Edition regs, or if I should get another qualified electrician to
inspect.
Yes it does conform. Debatable whether it is good practice. In your case I'd
say it is good practice, as any joints are more easily accessible to inspect
etc. than ones hidden away in the ceiling void.

Interestingly this months "Professional Electrician" mag, Nov 03 p61 has an
NICEIC article that covers (more-or-less) this point.
--
John
"Dan Sloane" wrote in message
om...
I've recently started changing normal switches to dimmer switches in
my 1 ear-old home and noticed a very strange wiring technique....

Each of the switches I've changed so far have had the 'loop-through'
wiring done inside the wall switch. Most rooms are fitted with LV
halogen downlighters, so there's no ceiling rose - but surely the
looping should have been done in junction boxes.

Annoyingly, this means there's very little space in the back box for
the extended depth of a dimmer.

Can anyone please give me guidance whether this conforms to 16th
Edition regs, or if I should get another qualified electrician to
inspect.


Regards, Dan