do you have to fit a dual rcd board

[John Bunning]

best way rcbo on all [sorted]

 

[chrisreid186]

RCBO on all would be the best, but lets face it the customer would run a mile if you quoted for that

 

[nickblake]

A single rcd covering the whole of an installation

I have done just that recently

It complies with current regs,"honestly"

For a start,a property can have more than one installation

When it covers the whole of the property,deviations to current regs can be cited,"minimise inconveniance"

I am not so struck with shock and horror when it is mentioned, as many seem to be

Instead of proclaiming that 2 rcds must be used,
It would be interesting to hear of "why" you think there is a need to minimise inconveniance,practically,what is the situation that demonstrates this requirement

If a situation can be given as an example, and other ways of minimising inconveniance can be given,then where lies the "You must have a 2xrcd 17th edition board" (whatever that is supposed to be)

My view on the matter is that they brought in the all encompassing "requirement for rcds for everything in most circumstances" then realised that in practice this was a naive action because of the reality and real world away from the desktop fantasy land

The consequence of the rcd everything,was boards with rcbo's
Expensive and not very accepted because of the cost
It was then dreamed up to have 2 rcds and split the circuits,then cross their fingers this covered the inconveniance issue

The 16th ed. where the split board was in use (and the best system that I have encountered through the different editions) could have been adapted to rcd the special locations and leave the other rcd unpoteced side circuits alone

The fob that is the dual rcd board and accepted as the right thing to have,has only been adapted in spite of its shortfalls ,not because it was the best means of complying with the over the top requirments

Its good to know that they are getting back to reality with some of their proposed changes

Elderly lady in bed 1st floor RCD trips house plunged into darkness trips and falls down the staires trying to get to the CDU to reset the RCD, and thats the reason why a single RCD shouldnt be used . This was given as an example by the NIC and i have come across this situation when the exact thing has happend

 

[nickblake]

RCBO on all would be the best, but lets face it the customer would run a mile if you quoted for that

£145.00 for a board loaded with RCBO's for a Pro lec not the worlds greates but are not bad £250 labour so £395.00

 

[telectrix]

Elderly lady in bed 1st floor RCD trips house plunged into darkness trips and falls down the staires trying to get to the CDU to reset , and thats the reason why a single RCD shouldnt be used . This was given as an example by the NIC and i have come across this situation when the exact thing has happend

a good argument for emergency lighting in all homes of the elderly. along with mains smoke detectors. sfaety of vunerable people should take priority over cost IMO. be a better use of government grants than filling attics with itchy muck that should be banned anyway.

 

[nickblake]

Must admit i do do that in very vunerable elderly peoples propertys now this was after the lady in question 86 and fell down the stairs breaking her hip ,luckely she survived the fall but she'll never walk properly again

 

[Des 56]

Elderly lady in bed 1st floor RCD trips house plunged into darkness trips and falls down the staires trying to get to the CDU to reset the RCD, and thats the reason why a single RCD shouldnt be used . This was given as an example by the NIC and i have come across this situation when the exact thing has happend

Elederly lady with rcbo populated board,supplied by a credit or coin meter
Lack of funds.whole of supply disconnected,

Elderly lady with either rcd over whole of installation or rcbo or Twin rcd board with emergency lights
She manages for a little while, whilst situation resolved

Inconveniance is subjective

The possible loss of supply is a much bigger priority than the type of board, if the elderly ladies welfare and safety was the main priority

Instead of being horrified by the single rcd board.I believe that emergency lights for new installations are the better option and by far the best means of minimising inconveniance

 

[nickblake]

I agree Des and your comments made a very good point emergency lighting would be a far better idea ,your right about credit meters to they will cut off so makes a big farce about dual RCD / RCBO boards

 

[pushrod]

was talking to my doc the other day and he was telling me a case where an elderly lady fell on the stairs because she reckoned the energy saving bulb, she had just switched on, was so dim at start up that she missed her footing ! But at least it was using less energy

 

[Deleted member 9648]

Interesting discussion chaps......personally whilst I dont throw a wobbly over a single RCD...it has to be a very bad idea given that the least little thing takes them out, and not everyone is able to follow simple fault isolation proceedures to get it to reset till the sparks arrives. It strikes me that if you want to rcd everything for absolute safety then two rcd's are better than one,common sense innit?
Dual RCD boards are a step forward from split load IMO if RCBO's are cost prohibitive....E/lights?...there's defo a case for one adjacent to the CU being compulsory on new build or major refurbs.

 

[nickblake]

Wirepuller very good point too i think we need an amendment to the regs ,

 

[chrisreid186]

cheers for the advice guys

 

[prideofengland]

Had a situation installing some small apartments in a halfway house, small livng room, bedroom and shower room. Therefore only one lighting circuit and one ring main. Checked with the NIC they were happy for us to fit a single RCD 4 way board in each appartment.

Generally however I think dual RCD boards are the best option untill the price of RCBO's come down further.