Presumably there are minimum distances between a mains socket and a
(gas) hob or sink?

I'm in the process of finishing the kitchen re-wire that I started last
year ;-)

The area between the hob and sink is ideal for locating a kettle. In
order to discourage the use of a socket that is too close to the hob and
sink by any items with long cables, could I fit what I call a Euro
socket thus restricting it's use to devices bearing a Euro plug? I
could drastically shorten the kettle lead and fit a Euro plug.

If that is not acceptable could I fit a switched fused cable outlet and
wire my kettle base direct into that?

I am talking about kettles that sit on a base, not those with a cable
attached to the jug.

Perhaps Euro socket is better described as IEC socket? They're the
plugs and sockets on PCs and Hi Fi


TIA

Richard

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Richard wrote:
Presumably there are minimum distances between a mains socket and a
(gas) hob or sink?
I'm in the process of finishing the kitchen re-wire that I started last
year ;-)

Whenever this comes up, the consensus seems to be that there's no stated
minimum: just the general requirement not to do things which are silly
and obviously hazardous - and that wiring accessories (sockets etc)
should be 'suitable' for the situation they're installed in. So mounting
a 'normal' 13A socket where it's likely to be splashed (right behind the
taps) or likely to give you cables trailed across a hot surface (on the
wall next to the cooker, first bit of worktop on the other side of the
cooker) is a no-no. But other than that, "be sensible" is the right
principle.

There are non-standard plugs and sockets you could source - RS
(rswww.com) for example supply a 13A socket and plug with the earth pin
rotated through 90 degrees; that has the advantage of retaining the
fuse-in-plug idea which UK appliances and the flexes supplying them are
designed for. Your FCU+kettle-base idea is also OK, especially if so
mounted that it's not possible for the kettle base to be knocked into
the water-filled sink. The IEC connector is less ideal - the 'normal'
IEC320 is rated for 10A? (from memory), making it inappropriate for some
heftier-draw kettles. There's a 16A-rated variant (also in the RS cat),
or there's the 20A Powercon ones derived from the Speakon style of
speaker connector (246-8313 + 236-8284 would be the right pair from the
RS range, but you'd have to then tool around mounting the chassis socket
in a blanking plate + deep box, and provide for fusing it down with a
13A FCU or ideological equivalent...)

HTH - Stefek

Stefek Zaba wrote:



HTH - Stefek

Thanks Stefak, very helpful.

I worked on a govt site for some years where the 'clean' computer
supply was identified by, IIRC, a circular earth pin with a flat on one
side.

I was hoping that 'be sensible' was the approach but feared that there
would be stringent regulations to deal with those of little sense. I
suspect that the FCU+kettle-base solution, provided it can be sold to
SWMBO, is best - not least of all because I can obtain a suitable
fitting in the same black nickel as the other fittings. My preference
would be for a standard 13A outlet but I fear that, to be equidistant
from both hazards, it would have to be located under a window sill which
would mean very little distance below the socket to the work surface,
thus introducing the problem of kinking the flex as it enters the
plugtop. The only solution to that would be to mount a single 13A
outlet rotated through 90 deg!

Rgds Richard

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