Best Way To Supply Electricity To Summerhouse In Garden

[shepped0]

Hi All

I am new this site so please be gentle with me.
May I first state I am not a qualified electrician and have hired one to do the job however I have been misguided by previous sparkys that have ended up costing me a lot more to put right.

job to do is to supply electricity to summerhouse in my garden.
in the summerhouse will be 1 double and 2 single metal clad wall plugs
in addition to this 2 outside wall lights to the structure.

supplied is 30 metres of armour cable 3 core 2.5 mm , 1 weatherproofed switched spur unit and 1 metal clad fused spur.

Power will be taken from inside my house from an existing wall plug which is protected by the main RCD of the house then outside to the weatherproof spur then into building to double socket then to spur then to single socket.As far as the outside wall lights go I am not sure.

All the work will be signed off by him (certificated) but advise much welcome

 

[HandySparks]

Hi All

I am new this site so please be gentle with me.
May I first state I am not a qualified electrician and have hired one to do the job however I have been misguided by previous sparkys that have ended up costing me a lot more to put right.

job to do is to supply electricity to summerhouse in my garden.
in the summerhouse will be 1 double and 2 single metal clad wall plugs
in addition to this 2 outside wall lights to the structure.

supplied is 30 metres of armour cable 3 core 2.5 mm , 1 weatherproofed switched spur unit and 1 metal clad fused spur.

Power will be taken from inside my house from an existing wall plug which is protected by the main RCD of the house then outside to the weatherproof spur then into building to double socket then to spur then to single socket.As far as the outside wall lights go I am not sure.

All the work will be signed off by him (certificated) but advise much welcome

Is the above 'specification' your work or the electrician's?

What is the summerhouse to be used for?

What do you expect to plug into the sockets?

 

[shepped0]

All above is to electricians specifications.

The sumerhouse will be used to power a lap top, table lamp and maybe garden tools in the summer.Clearly this is my requirements however if we ever sold the house i want it to be 100% this to be safe for future owners.
these are my requirements for now however the structure could be a good use as a art studio for my wife which would include an extra printer.
I would not have heating up there purely because it is not insulated and would cost a fortune

 

[telectrix]

for the extra cost, i'd run a 6mm SWA direct from your consumer unit to a sub-board in the summer house. this would give some latitude for extra loading in the future without needing to replace the SWA when it was found the be inadequate.

 

[shepped0]

for the extra cost, i'd run a 6mm SWA direct from your consumer unit to a sub-board in the summer house. this would give some latitude for extra loading in the future without needing to replace the SWA when it was found the be inadequate.

Thanks for this trouble is comsumer unit is at the front of the house and would be difficult to connect to as there is no ducting and all floors are concrete/tiled as part of a new extention. Would 6 mm cable from the back of wall plug not be suffice or would this be asking too much from the circuit

 

[uksparks]

The last summerhouse I did, I took a 16mm feed down there and gave them a 63A supply LOL.

 

[telectrix]

you can't really do that as it would be counter productive. you'd be fitting 47A SWA onto a circuit that should only spur off at < 20A.

 

[HandySparks]

For the purposes you state, a 13A supply off the house socket circuit will be OK. 2.5mm² SWA will be just about big enough. A little over 3% voltage drop at 13A, but I wouldn't worry about it as long as your electrician is happy to sign his installation certificate.

There may be other factors to consider, but only your electrician can make the final decision on the installation.

 

[shepped0]

you can't really do that as it would be counter productive. you'd be fitting 47A SWA onto a circuit that should only spur off at < 20A.

thanks for your reply sorry to sound dim but not sure about the numbers you are quoting - i get that putting in larger cable would be pointless as the circuit can only supply a lesser amount of power i think.
Would it be worth putting in 6mm armour (as i dont think anybody would like to did it up again) then if and when more power is required then (a) a circuit board in the summer house could be installed and (b) pick up from where the swa has terminated to the main circuit board....a problem that the next owners will have. Is this a short sighted view and if the system is overloaded are we talking about just a fuse blowing or worse?

 

[telectrix]

ks long as the fuse/MCB is selected accroding to the smallest csa cable it feeds, then your only pporblem would be tripping of fuse/MCB if you added too much load. and now i must be out, as fat fringres , small keys and beer, coulped wtih being knacrerd meam ot's paste my bredtime.

 

[telectrix]

sodd it. tried edit and irt cmae oot worst.

 

[Octopus]

Not sure the op is any the wiser. Best he consults his sparky, assuming he exists

 

[shepped0]

Not sure the op is any the wiser. Best he consults his sparky, assuming he exists

Ah man of little faith !!!
well thank you for to everyone for their positive inputs I have decided to consult my electrician and try and get him (he is a real person) and install from main RCD as suggested by many..thanks again for the advice

 

[telectrix]

better to have the SWA non-RCD so you won't have to return to house following a trip in at the shed. fit your RCD protection at the shed end, upset some chelsea fans.

 

[Octopus]

Ah man of little faith !!!
well thank you for to everyone for their positive inputs I have decided to consult my electrician and try and get him (he is a real person) and install from main RCD as suggested by many..thanks again for the advice

My point being, as demonstrated very well by the input, is that there a few ways to do this - and they will all come at different costs with a variety and pro's and con's

 

[telectrix]

you could string some 2.5mm T/E across. additional benefit is to use it as a washing line, but with these winds, your lady's bloomers could end up soaring above belgium and they's think the germans were coming back, or isis had launched an airborne attack. :001_9898:

 

[shepped0]

My point being, as demonstrated very well by the input, is that there a few ways to do this
Not too sure what point you re making with this comment either as stated from the outset a professional was installing and I explained the reasons for my concerns no other reasons no hidden agenda.
Cost was never the question that was submitted or questioned just advice which I have received in abundance..... without the incorrect assumption that there is no professional person to do this - wouldn't even consider that as it needs to be certified.
Desperatly trying to avoid sounding like a keyboard warrior, I again thank those who have been supportive !