I'm working with a friend up grading a flat for multi occupancy use.
Seemingly the hall cupboard has to be locked and the key removed from
the site so that it cannot be confused for the exit door if there is a
fire. However the CU is in this cupboard - now it could be argued
that it is a good thing that the student occupants do not access to
the CU but it does raise an interesting problem if a fuse blows.

Anyone got any experience of this ?

Cheers
Rob

"robgraham" wrote in message
ups.com...
I'm working with a friend up grading a flat for multi occupancy use.
Seemingly the hall cupboard has to be locked and the key removed from
the site so that it cannot be confused for the exit door if there is a
fire. However the CU is in this cupboard - now it could be argued
that it is a good thing that the student occupants do not access to
the CU but it does raise an interesting problem if a fuse blows.

Did they say that the key has to be off site?

Can't it be kept in a kitchen cupboard?

tim

On Tue, 14 Aug 2007 23:41:56 +0100, "tim....."
mused:


"robgraham" wrote in message
oups.com...
I'm working with a friend up grading a flat for multi occupancy use.
Seemingly the hall cupboard has to be locked and the key removed from
the site so that it cannot be confused for the exit door if there is a
fire. However the CU is in this cupboard - now it could be argued
that it is a good thing that the student occupants do not access to
the CU but it does raise an interesting problem if a fuse blows.

Did they say that the key has to be off site?

Can't it be kept in a kitchen cupboard?

I think the location of the key is a moot point as I'm fairly certain
you can't hide a tenants consumer unit in a communal closet.
--
Regards,
Stuart.

"Lurch" wrote in message
...
On Tue, 14 Aug 2007 23:41:56 +0100, "tim....."
mused:


"robgraham" wrote in message
roups.com...
I'm working with a friend up grading a flat for multi occupancy use.
Seemingly the hall cupboard has to be locked and the key removed from
the site so that it cannot be confused for the exit door if there is a
fire. However the CU is in this cupboard - now it could be argued
that it is a good thing that the student occupants do not access to
the CU but it does raise an interesting problem if a fuse blows.

Did they say that the key has to be off site?

Can't it be kept in a kitchen cupboard?

I think the location of the key is a moot point as I'm fairly certain
you can't hide a tenants consumer unit in a communal closet.

I think perhaps you are misunderstanding.

This is (I assume) a normal house being rented out to a group
of sharers with one CU, covering the whole house, in a cupboard.

It is only the imposition of the HMO rules that puts the CU in a
locked cupboard. (I have no idea if this is a normal HMO rule or
not)

tim

On Wed, 15 Aug 2007 10:01:13 +0100, "tim....."
mused:


"Lurch" wrote in message
.. .
On Tue, 14 Aug 2007 23:41:56 +0100, "tim....."
mused:


"robgraham" wrote in message
groups.com...
I'm working with a friend up grading a flat for multi occupancy use.
Seemingly the hall cupboard has to be locked and the key removed from
the site so that it cannot be confused for the exit door if there is a
fire. However the CU is in this cupboard - now it could be argued
that it is a good thing that the student occupants do not access to
the CU but it does raise an interesting problem if a fuse blows.

Did they say that the key has to be off site?

Can't it be kept in a kitchen cupboard?

I think the location of the key is a moot point as I'm fairly certain
you can't hide a tenants consumer unit in a communal closet.

I think perhaps you are misunderstanding.

This is (I assume) a normal house being rented out to a group
of sharers with one CU, covering the whole house, in a cupboard.

It is only the imposition of the HMO rules that puts the CU in a
locked cupboard. (I have no idea if this is a normal HMO rule or
not)

Possibly. I read HMO as seperately self contained flats but that's
probably just because that's what I'm installing a fire alarm in atm
so it's in the front of of my mind.


I don't think the key has to be removed from site and the door locked,
if you stand in the hall there's surely more than 2 doors (the exit
and the cupboard). Do all these have to be permenantly locked and the
keys kept off site? I think a rule may have been misinterpretated
somewhere.
--
Regards,
Stuart.

On 14 Aug, 23:35, robgraham wrote:
I'm working with a friend up grading a flat for multi occupancy use.
Seemingly the hall cupboard has to be locked and the key removed from
the site so that it cannot be confused for the exit door if there is a
fire. However the CU is in this cupboard - now it could be argued
that it is a good thing that the student occupants do not access to
the CU but it does raise an interesting problem if a fuse blows.

Anyone got any experience of this ?

Cheers
Rob

Sorry guys - got the 'Off Site' bit wrong, though I'm sure my mate
told me that last night! He's now saying that it's up to the 'senior'
tenant to keep it locked.

However there's another catch - this cupboard contain the CH boiler
and the Corgi guy has insisted that ventilation holes are drilled in
one panel on the access door. However the HMO people require that all
the panelled doors have anti-tumescent panels attached to increase
their fire tolerance time. Bit of a conflict there !

Rob

On Tue, 14 Aug 2007 15:35:30 -0700, robgraham wrote:

I'm working with a friend up grading a flat for multi occupancy use.
Seemingly the hall cupboard has to be locked and the key removed from
the site so that it cannot be confused for the exit door if there is a
fire.
Replace cupboard lock with "digital" push button lock.

Geo