Fitting sealed shower enclosure quadrant, could do with some help. Bit puzzled

[blueschill]

I have to fit a fiberglass molded hydro/massage shower that has molded base, backing, top and sides, all sealed.
underneath the base is a junction box and a water tank/heater ( lots of wiring ) and on the back of the enclosure are lots of pipe going to various nozzles and cables for lights and thermostats etc...

Coming from the junction box is 6mm flex cable that is around a mtr and a half.

The bathroom it is being fitted in is being renovated and the unit will be fitted and sealed to the wall leaving a cavity behind it for wiring, pipes molding etc..

Problem is there is no fitting instructions and I cannot identify the unit!

I am aware that The space under the bath tub or shower basin is considered to be zone 1. However, if the space under the bath or shower basin is only accessible with a tool, it is considered to be outside the zones.

so this is the question as it will have an inaccessible area ( without using tools ) behind the molded unit, doesn't it count as being outside the zones? I am not sure as it has lots of water pipes around the area and I am a bit dubious.


If it is considered outside the zones can I run from a pull cord switch a buried supply cable down the wall into a major surface mounted junction box waterproof of course like a ip68 (just in-case of a pressurized leak) and hook the showers original flex up to the junction box for ease of installment and maintenance to the shower unit ( pulling it out, to get in behind it ).

If it is however considered to be a zone should i just run a buried cable down near the bottom of the wall and directly wire it into the shower unit?

Please bear in mind I have never fitted anything like this before


Cheers guys

 

[Farmelectrics]

Blue you need to obtain a copy of the manufactures instructions I wouldn't be happy installing this until I've had a good read of them

 

[telectrix]

did one of these the other week. took cable through wall into adjacent bedroom and fitted 13A FCU in bedroom. you don't want to be ripping the unit apart to get to the point of isolation. as always, follow manufacturer's instructions.

 

[blueschill]

Unfortunately I cannot find a name , number or model for this unit, and i have trawled the internet for hour trying to find matching pictures ect.. to identify it.

The unit is currently fed from a 32a breaker and rcd with 10mm t&e all already installed.
The supply from the bathroom is switched from a double pole pull cord isolation switch.

Im not satisfied a 13A FCU will be man enough for the unit as I am led to believe on average these thing draw 6kw-10kw+.
I cant be sure how much it draws but I am more than sure it will be more than 13A.

I gave it a test run in my garage, and everything runs fine on a 32 a breaker without tripping, although it was just my luck my clamp meter was on the blink at the time
I will get my meter on it again at some point to make sure it is running within cable carrying parameters but thats not the problem i just want to know,

The question still stands,

I still need to know what zone would it be counted as?
And if that area is exempt from zones can I fit a water proof junction box behind it to connect the flex and the 10mm buried cable into there?




Cheers guys for your help so far

 

[telectrix]

the one i fitted was 2kW. check and see if the shower has hot and cold water connections.

 

[blueschill]

Yeah it has hot and cold connection, I know the water pressure has to be balanced for the thermostat, which I checked and it is.an
But it also had what looks like a steam generator or water heater.
Its just a big unmarked sealed steel box with water pipes in and out, and insulation around it, so I did some research on the net and came up with two results that it is either a steam generator or a water heater for the floor pan foot bath.

Either way my research says it will bump up the kw needed a lot probably way over 2kw.

It was advertised as a steam hydro shower.
The previous owners removed it from their then new house when they moved it so have not got a clue as to what the unit as a whole is.

Again its not a problem through once i get my clamp meter on it what i want to know is what zone if any would it be behind the unit?

 

[blueschill]

or infact i could just install an ip56 rated wall socket and put a plug on on the flew depending on the zones of course.

 

[telectrix]

steam generator is what pulls the most juice. the one i fitted came with a moulded RCD plug on the flex, which was 1.5mm. a call to the manufacturer resulted in ( and i quote) " plug it in to test then cut RCD plug off and hard wire into a 13A FCU as long as the circuit has RCD protection".

 

[blueschill]

thats good to know telectrix i have one in my garage no problem but i still need to know if behind the shower enclosure is zone exempt?

 

[telectrix]

if access needs a tool or a key, then it's out of zones. but i would not fit the FCU underneath as you can't get at it without dragging the shower unit out. what i did was to connect the flex to 2.5mm T/E in a back box, using wagos and a blank faceplate under the unit, then fed the T/E from FCU ib bedroom.