i just had a free survey on my electrics and the inspector says i need a new
consumer unit cause i dont have a rcd on my socket outlets. is this a
requirement or is he just the salesman he appeared to be

larry

"LOZ34" wrote in message
...
i just had a free survey on my

On Thu, 10 Jul 2003 01:43:06 +0100, "LOZ34"
wrote:

i just had a free survey on my electrics and the inspector says i need a new
consumer unit cause i dont have a rcd on my socket outlets. is this a
requirement or is he just the salesman he appeared to be

What was the initial purpose of the "free survey"? And who is this
"inspector"?

Consumer units aren't so expensive, sales people aren't going to make
their targets by selling individual consumer units, so there has to be
some other value-added sale to this.

On a separate note entirely, having lived in houses which had no
consumer unit with RCD protection and houses that do, I'd be inclined
to want to change to RCD protection regardless. They can be life
savers, and also prevent fires from starting up. You can't put a price
on these things.

Andrew

Do you need a handyman service? Check out our
web site at http://www.handymac.co.uk

On Thu, 10 Jul 2003 08:08:59 +0100, Andrew McKay
wrote:

Consumer units aren't so expensive, sales people aren't going to make
their targets by selling individual consumer units, so there has to be
some other value-added sale to this.

I suspect the price quoted would make it a very profitable
enterprise.

On a separate note entirely, having lived in houses which had no
consumer unit with RCD protection and houses that do, I'd be inclined
to want to change to RCD protection regardless.

When I built this house I specifically excluded RCD protection in the
Consumer Unit. It contributes little in the way of overall safety.
Each socket used for outdoor jobs or in the garage is individually
RCD protected.

They can be life savers, and also prevent fires from starting up.

The can also be killers if fitted to lighting circuits. They don't
usually contribute much to fire prevention as the most usual causes
of electrical fires (and true electrical fires are relatively rare)
are simply overloaded circuits which they won't trip on.

You can't put a price on these things.

Yes you can - everything you do in life is a risk and you make
economic decisions with risk consequences every day. In the case of
RCD's it isn't a simple "these are good things to be had at any
price". They have advantages and disadvantages. Their benefits are
quite limited and installed on the incorrect circuits they increase
risk of harm significantly. If a Consumer Unit is being replaced
then replacing it with a split one with only a few circuits protected
by an RCD makes sense. Replacing a Consumer unit purely to achieve
this would probably be a waste of money. Putting in a single RCD
covering all circuits would be folly. Using an RCD on DIY tools and
devices used outside is a very wise move :-).

--
Peter Parry.
http://www.wpp.ltd.uk/

In message , LOZ34
writes
i just had a free survey on my electrics and the inspector says i need a new
consumer unit cause i dont have a rcd on my socket outlets. is this a
requirement or is he just the salesman he appeared to be

He is basically a salesman.

Was this one of those free surveys'; that leccy companies offer? What
did he actually do?

No you don't *need* and RCD or a new CU (unless they are in a dangerous
state of course).

RCD protection on sockets is a very good idea though - particularly on
sockets used to power stuff used outdoors, butt here are various ways
of providing this.

Yes you can put in a new CU and cover some of the circuits with an RCD,
you can put in an RCD just to cover say your downstairs ring main, or
you can just protect say a socket used for running out doors stuff.
--
Chris French, Leeds

In message ,
"LOZ34" wrote:

i just had a free survey on my electrics and the inspector says i need a new
consumer unit cause i dont have a rcd on my socket outlets. is this a
requirement or is he just the salesman he appeared to be

larry


RCD protection of sockets which can feed equipment used outdoors and
also of certain equipment installed in (for example) bathrooms is a
requirement of the currently in-force IEE wiring regulations. However,
if your installation was installed to a previous set of regulations and
fully complied with those there is no *requirement* for you to upgrade.
Also note that the regulations in question don't have the force of law
in domestic dwellings, though they are "best practice".

On the other hand, as other people have suggested, RCD protection is a
good idea and worth having from a life-saving point of view. Whether you
take the view that it's worthwhile getting this company in and find that
they also tell you you need a lot more work doing (bonding, earthing are
often problems) or whether you take the view that so long as you
remember to use an RCD plug whenever you mow the lawn is for you to say.

Were they a small local firm or a large national one? Or was it one of
the "free surveys" a lot of "Electricity Boards" are starting to offer?

Hwyl!

Martin.

--
Martin Angove (it's Cornish for "Smith") - ARM/Digital SA110 RPC
See the Aber Valley -- http://www.tridwr.demon.co.uk/abervalley.html
.... Apple: "I know! Let's call it the Raincoat."