Company Head and CU in a wetroom

[scribblesvurt]

Hello,


We are buying a house and there has been a WC and shower wetroom created under the stairs, We found that the Consumer unit and main board are in a small floor level wooden cabinet in the same wetroom?!? This has to be against regs? What would be best? Have the whole feed and CU moved or would it be possible to seal it in a waterproof cabinet?


Any advice?


Thanks.

 

[DPG]

Nice tiles though. Daz

 

[Paul.M]

Ok let's put this one to bed if what I assume is correct going by the pics and description.

You say the c/u is out off shot, right hand side of the toilet, on the wall under the window. That looks very close to the shower head. Because you have got a removable partition in the form of a glass shower screen your bathroom zone 1 is 1.2m from the head horizontally. C/u's can not be in zone 1, reg 701.55.

Even if your c/u is just outside of zone 1 its still too close for me and I would move it or build a better cabinet around it to ensure that water doesn't ingress the c/u. I would put it in an IP66 housing if this was my bathroom but that's is if it was possible to do so.

Measure the distance at the same height of your c/u to the wall directly underneath the shower head. Infact scratch that, its not a fixed shower head so you would be well within 1.2m when its taken out of its holder. Get an electrician, only way this will be sorted.

 

[scribblesvurt]

Thanks thats sound advice. I will have a proper picture of the unit in an hour. Id hope to be able to just put it all in some IP66 Housing but we shall see. I'm not a spark but I do believe Regs say its the distance from the end of the fixed shower pipe though even it it has a flexible length.

The limit of zone 1 horizontally is 1.2 m from the centre point of the fixed water outlet (the end of the rigid pipe of the fixed water installation) on the wall or ceiling, irrespective of whether the shower head is fixed or on the end of a flexible hose. Beyond zone 1, the general rules of BS 7671 apply, including Regulation 512.2 concerning external influences. In particular, the IP rating of any electrical equipment must be adequate.
Regulation number(s)

• 701.32.3
• 512.2

I really appreciate the help. Another spark is checking I'll post final conclusion to wrap it up. Cheers.

 

[Adam W]

Without going through the regs to be able to mention specific ones I don't like the idea of having the cu and service head in a location containing a bath or shower, whether or not it's behind a little door - think about if something trips, then you could potentially have to reset a breaker in a steam filled room while standing on a wet floor, plus you have part of the equipment in that cupboard which is only protected by the main service fuse; in fact part of it is only protected by the main suppliers cutout in the street, so you really don't want water seeping into that when you're standing next to it naked and wet (ooh-er).
I haven't seen the door, but there is probably a chance that in certain circumstances the door could break or be left open, effectively leaving a consumer unit and service head in a bathroom, where the regs prohibit having a light switch if it's not far enough away from the bath or shower (in a wet room the whole room is effectively the shower tray so the consumer unit is actually in the shower).

IMO you either need to move the service head and consumer unit or the shower. It could well be cheaper to get rid of the shower and use the room as a downstairs toilet and cloakroom, however I wouldn't like to be the one to tell someone they have to rip out their nice new wetroom because they just didn't think it through properly.

 

[Paul.M]

"I'm not a spark but I do believe Regs say its the distance from the end of the fixed shower pipe though even it it has a flexible length."


The terminology is "fixed water outlet" (shower head) and although the 17th ed doesn't mention dismountable shower heads (the 16th did) I would use my common sense on this one knowing full well that the none designed housing for the c/u is easily reached with a water jet from the removable shower head and a sliding partition, I'd move it.

As Adam W has said above, there is way too much potential danger in this case. I wouldn't be happy letting any children take a shower in that room, you know what kids and women are like, water everywhere. If a loved one was taking a shower and then your tv and lights went off at the same time, please walk into that bathroom with great caution. I'm not trying to scare monger anyone but this could be a life threatening situation and all it needs to fix it is a bit of money? If you had a problem with the safe running of your car eg brakes/tyres you would get it fixed straight away without thinking about it because you can see the dangers as where we know the dangers of what youve got.

 

[Paul.M]

^^^^^ May be a bit ott but you know what I mean.

 

[scribblesvurt]

OK, better photos for clarity. I'm guessing you would have to get the supplier out to move this? Could it be put on the external wall outside in the same position its in now?

 

[DPG]

Glad that's not in my bathroom. Sorry, not much help that I suppose. Daz

 

[Paul.M]

A picture makes all the difference.

The enclosure is adequate for the location, the only thing I would say is to put a lever door handle on the cupboard so not just relying on those magnets to keep it shut. As for the height of the incomer and c/u they are fine. It would take a mighty flood to reach any energized part.

This has turned out cheap, just go to a DIY store and get a latch for the door.


Ps nice bathroom.

 

[scribblesvurt]

Seriously?? The guy who did the inspection is saying thousands. I was thinking proper latch for the door, a rubber seal and perhaps lining inside the case.

 

[Mark_Burgess]

Okay, now seeing it, I would go rubber seal and proper latch as mentioned.

 

[Paul.M]

Seriously?? The guy who did the inspection is saying thousands. I was thinking proper latch for the door, a rubber seal and perhaps lining inside the case.

Wish i/we could charge for when er save people money .

Put your money back in your pocket, none of it contravenes any regs. Just nip out to your local shed and buy a latch, silicon and a rubber draft excluder. Seal the cupboard up the best you can so steam and any water can not get in it. Silicon the bottom of it internally and externally to stop any ground water getting in and check it every now and again (when bathroom is dry) to ensure your seals are holding up.

That's it, that's all you need to do. Saved you a packet there, a four pack of stellar via paypal is fine with me .