FIRST HOME - Help with new Consumer Unit

[DaniQ]

My partner and I bought our first house a week ago. We don't have much DIY experience but we are determined to learn and do as much work as we can to save cost.

The house is a 3bed an ex-council house built in 1959 and needs a complete refurbishment.

The existing CU is not too old (pvc wires) but we have to add sockets, electric shower...and we prefer to get it upgraded. Please see photos.

I have had an electrician having a look a few hours ago. He said he can move the CU 180 degrees facing the hall with the length of the existing cables. He quoted me £250 for moving the CU, including new CU.

He said he could install the following CU:
http://www.screwfix.com/p/british-g...dual-rcd-consumer-unit/2920g?_requestid=39295

If I replace it I would like to get a good quality one with space for more modules and individual ring per floor for the lights and sockets, 2 sockets outside, an electric shower, induction cooker, oven...

I am thinking something Like:
RCD 1
32A Upstairs Ring Main
6A Upstairs lights
6A Smoke Detector
16A????? Immersion heater - in case the gas boiler fails

RCD 2
32A Kitchen Ring Main
32A Downstairs Ring Main
6A Downstairs Lights
45A Cooker

Do you think I could reuse the RCBOs from my current CU for the new one :
RCBO 1
Electric Shower (9-10kw)

RCBO 2
Outside sockets or kitchen sockets


My questions are:

1. Could you recommend a better Consumer Unit?

2. Would it be to much work and too expensive to split the existing ring socket and lights per floor? Or should just leave as it is?

3. What do you think about using the RCBO for shower and outside or kitchen socket?

4. Could you please arrange the two RCDs in a better way?

5. Do you think the MCD specs are OK (amps)?

6. What do you think about this job for £250?

Thank you very much. We are quite stressed wih the refurbishment and your help would be much appreciated.

 

[Richard Burns]

Ah could be that you,Richard and me are the only ones who fit them properly then Tel ?

Sounds a reasonable hypothesis!

 

[Dave OCD]

I do recall early ones I fitted a few years ago had tight neutral and earth bar screws, maybe caused by threadlock applied to excess but these days they're fine.

 

[telectrix]

I do recall early ones I fitted a few years ago had tight neutral and earth bar screws, maybe caused by threadlock applied to excess but these days they're fine.

i remember that. theyy still can be a bit tight so you think you've got the cable secured, then it drops out. just makes you a bit more on the ball. at least with BG, the MCBs sit straight, not like MK.

 

[Des 56]

MK was once a name that went hand in hand with the word quality

I find it incredible (given the absolute crap that MK now manufacture) they are being considered as somehow superior to BG or other low cost consumer units

The days of MK and quality are long gone,numerous quantities of their consumer units (with main switches that were found to be burned out embers after little use) are without doubt still in use
Along with the abysmal standard of Crabtree sockets both are no better than most of the other junk on the market
edit
I will give Crabtree their due,the Crabtree consumer units are a standard above the usual junk that gets fitted

 

[SJD]

With MK and their LH switch, as you are tightening the MCBs onto the busbar the MCB tops tend to move to the right with the screw turning. I kind of assumed this was a flaw with LH switch units, whereas with a RH switch unit, it is the opposite.

 

[telectrix]

With MK and their LH switch, as you are tightening the MCBs onto the busbar the MCB tops tend to move to the right with the screw turning. I kind of assumed this was a flaw with LH switch units, whereas with a RH switch unit, it is the opposite.

easily solved. we get MK to mod all their gear ( main switch,RCD, MCBs) to left-hand thread. not only would that cure the problem of crooked MCBs, it would also fry the brains of NICEIC Electrical Trainee's. sssssimplessss.

 

[suffolkspark]

MK MCB's probably out of all brands do have the sloppiest grip on the din rail to be fair but just hold them square as you tighten them with your torque driver and they will stay square!
On a side note I fitted an Eaton AM 3 board a bit ago and you know what it was very well built with both square and round knockouts, and the MCB's held that DIN rail like nothing I've ever come across, defo recommend.

 

[Midwest]

With MK and their LH switch, as you are tightening the MCBs onto the busbar the MCB tops tend to move to the right with the screw turning. I kind of assumed this was a flaw with LH switch units, whereas with a RH switch unit, it is the opposite.

See'ins though we've gone off the rails, agree with SJD, and the twisting effect of the MK modules, which allegedly the new A3 din rail was designed to prevent.

And another thing. The MK blanks which fit on the din rail, can only be obtained in the colour (cream) of the old plastic CU's. The blanks which fit in the lid, can be obtained in the new colour of the A3 CU's (off white), but they are not the same width as mcb (e.g.) and so you end up with a gap (which increase with each blank).

So you end up with a shiny new off white coloured CU, with cream coloured blanks or colour matching blanks with a hole someone can poke a fist through.

Four paragraphs again, telextrical