Clipping Cables side-on

[Benny_Boy]

Hello one and all, (my first post).....

I've been doing electrical work with an old school spark for a while now (I'm in training) and he occasionally groups cables together and clips them side on.

For example, wiring some kitchen lights, he had the feed coming into the switch which then went off somewhere else and three lights being fed from said 3 gang switch. He told me to gather together the three cables which fed the lights (1.0mm) and clip them side-on with a 6mm clip, which I duly did. Is this common/correct practise?

I seem to remember from BS7671 2008 that this was far from hunky dory but having just glanced through it again I can't seem to find anything pertinent regarding the orientation of clips!

Any thoughts?

Cheers
Ben

 

[acat]

Im sure he will have worked out the current carrying capacity of the cables first your thoughts are correct and it is best shown on page 28 of building regs book. The idea is so that the wires themselves are not crushed together causing a weak point.

Having said that it shows single cables only I doubt it would have the same effect on a group of cables held by one clip.

Chris

 

[MarcT]

That was an issue that cropped up on my 2391 practical

 

[bluestar]

comes under bad practise!!1

 

[Benny_Boy]

I thought as much but when asked about it both he and the younger guy who was with him seemed to think this was common practice. Ah well, I suppose that's the benefit of a forum like this. Cheers chaps.

 

[A-Non-eMouse]

i think its also to do with cable grouping. ie three cables grouped together the outside two can dissapate their heat outwards while poor little piggy in the middle is left sweating his nuts off! it derates the current carrying capacity of the cable so technically a bigger cable is required to carry the same current. by how much in this occurence is negligible.

 

[Davey101]

Probably not technically correct, but dont shoot him down in flames, its hardly the biggest crime out there. At least he was trying to make them neat (or is he just to tight to buy more clips)

 

[uksel]

I was in the exam centre where i'll be doing my 2391 next week, also wondered myself to the technical correctness of this clipping doubled up. think it would be more likely in the on-site guide than the regs if it's anywhere

 

[MarcT]

it's one of the faults you have to find on the practical, and to do with cable management, i.e a flat cable is only designed to be clipped flat, another one to look out for is bend radius, it's doesn't look that bad but is too tight.
good luck next week

 

[Benny_Boy]

Probably not technically correct, but dont shoot him down in flames, its hardly the biggest crime out there. At least he was trying to make them neat (or is he just to tight to buy more clips)

It's a distinct possibility.

 

[mechelec]

I was taught years ago to clip like this and for a long time I did, however I have realised the error of my ways and stopped even though done right it can look very neat.

 

[Guest123]

On the 2391 practical, on the visual inspection section where you have to find 10 or 12 faults, one is a pair of 1mm T+E's clipped on edge with a 2.5mm clip.

 

[bramboy]

We were told told many moons ago that it splices the c.p.c then the fun begins..