RCD installation to protect old consumer unit.

[marples_matthew]

HI All,

I am NVQ 3 qualified electricians. Can I install a RCD unit to protect my old consumer unit without having to replace all of the main board. Any details or explanations would be much appreciated? I have seen this in a previous house but wasn't if it was IEE Reg approved.

Matt

 

[Guest123]

Obviously a CU upgrade would be the best course of action.

By installing one front end RCD you would technically be in contravention of 314.1 as a fault on any one circuit would cause you to loose all power & lighting circuits which could pose a hazard if it were evening time and the house was plunged into darkness for instance, until the unit was reset.

 

[diditrain]

Maybe you could fit some emergency lights in case this happens

 

[telectrix]

for the cost of 3 emergency lights you could buy a 10way dual RCD CU.

 

[telectrix]

saw this: BG Dual RCD board, 10 ways, fully loaded £57 inc. VAT at 1 of my suppliers today.

 

[1shortcircuit]

Obviously a CU upgrade would be the best course of action.

By installing one front end RCD you would technically be in contravention of 314.1 as a fault on any one circuit would cause you to loose all power & lighting circuits which could pose a hazard if it were evening time and the house was plunged into darkness for instance, until the unit was reset.

British Gas did exactly this on a property of a family member only about 6 months ago. Property owned by my Wife's Grandparents

Was on a TT system

 

[telectrix]

they should stick to gas.

 

[Knobhead]

It was a regular thing to fit an in line MCCB feeding a CU before the regulations went stupid with the 16[SUP]th[/SUP] and 17[SUP]th[/SUP]

Other than that I’m saying nothing!

 

[Smugley]

I have done this a couple of times, and noted the modification as a temporary measure until the customer was in a position to do a proper upgrade and sort out borrowed neutrals etc. It is not ideal, but my position is that I am leaving the installation safer and better protected than it was, particularly with metal chandeliers in the properties, albeit without proper separation of circuits.

 

[Engineer54]

It was a regular thing to fit an in line MCCB feeding a CU before the regulations went stupid with the 16[SUP]th[/SUP] and 17[SUP]th[/SUP]
Other than that I’m saying nothing!

They still do in Cyprus. Every installation (Almost all are TT system earthing) be it single or three phase, is supplied via the cut-out Fuse(s) through an adjustable MCCB c/w integral 500mA RCD...