Consumer unit change

[ste_miller21]

:hurray: i changed my first ever consumer unit today (for elecsa assessment) it took me 3hours. i know its slow by experienced standards but for a first timer i'm really pleased. how long does it generally take you guys?

 

[diditrain]

Take as long as you want until you are happy with the finished article. Post some pictures of the finished article if you are brave enough

 

[ste_miller21]

granted it's not very neat and tidy. but it was an old board i took out....it looked like everyone had opened it and snipped away. so to make it cables fit to terminals its a but like spaghetti junction.

 

[telectrix]

nowt wrong with 3 hours, mate. better to take your time and get it right and neat. i've had a CU change take nearly all day sometimes.

 

[acca]

It varies , changing the box can take 1hr to 4 ,depending on many factors...i find testing takes longer than the actual box change, unless like last week i had to extend every cable...:svengo:

 

[telectrix]

granted it's not very neat and tidy. but it was an old board i took out....it looked like everyone had opened it and snipped away. so to make it cables fit to terminals its a but like spaghetti junction.

if cables are short, i would either move the CU up or extend the cables. it's not always you can make a nice tidy job when you've not much to work with.

 

[ste_miller21]

PLEASE dont be too harsh with the laughter.....i know its not neat. but im proud its my first board change!

 

[telectrix]

i can't honestly say that my first board change was any neater.

 

[ste_miller21]

when I took the cover off the old unit i saw about 5mm of copper showing on the main tails.

a connector block on the neutral of the water heater feeding a light.

and a 2.5mm cable in with the 32A ring (as well as to two legs of the ring) which isnt connected to anywhere else, it was just left under the floor live

 

[ldworks]

Here's a key deal on putting ends away. Sweep all the neutral neatly so they will swoop into the neutral bar, same with the earths.Now the phases sweep in then down (90Degrees) into the breaker. Once you do 2-3 they will start to bunch together and will look really good. My first board was a mess dont know how NICEIC passed it but they did. 14years of experience says that a board will take a long as it take but make sure u walk away knowing you put every end in away properly/securely and that you 100% happy with what u've done.

 

[rhino1000]

good for you pal, it takes as long as necessary. its not a race. a change over can be really problematic, cables too short, lack of space for positioning etc. as long as when you walk away from the job you are pleased and happy with your work.

 

[macsood]

Hi Guys and Gals,

Just a quick question, i've always checked each circuit within the consumer unit to determine if its ok to upgrade the unit, but i've heard you can 'bank test' the whole unit thus saving time.
Can anyone explain how this is done? Please.

 

[Specialist]

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PLEASE dont be too harsh with the laughter.....i know its not neat. but im proud its my first board change!

That's not that bad mate to be honest, i've seen worse than that done by experienced Sparks out on site. Hopefully neatness will come with experience, don't worry about speed thats comes with experience as well. Just make sure that what you do is safe.

 

[GLENNSPARK]

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PLEASE dont be too harsh with the laughter.....i know its not neat. but im proud its my first board change!

i`v seen much worse mate....

 

[GLENNSPARK]

Hi Guys and Gals,

Just a quick question, i've always checked each circuit within the consumer unit to determine if its ok to upgrade the unit, but i've heard you can 'bank test' the whole unit thus saving time.
Can anyone explain how this is done? Please.

well i think if you are on about an IR test conducted all circuits at once or known as "global" IR testing...then you can test at the tails so as to test all circuits at once....just to remember to ensure all MCBs are closed and not to IR through RCDs/RCBOs as they dont like it....as for the accessories within the property/s such as 2 and intermediate switching or sensetive equipment vulnerable to testing...the same rules apply......