UK SWA Cable termination

[mjjm986]

Hi All,

Looking some advice. Had someone install a SWA cable to exterior outhouse. In the outhouse everything.looks.great, new consumer board and three double sockets all installed and looking good. My.concern is with how the SWA cable has been terminated at the main board in the house. Surely the SWA should have been terminated into a junction box or something similar, then a feed to the new RCBO's? Should I be concerned or leave as is?

 

[ipf]

It's a joke. We can talk about pride in our work but when someone is so incompetent, pride doesn't come into it.
FFS, he's even fixing 20mm conduit with knock on clips.
He's done it off the cuff.

Demand an Electrical installation Certificate before you part with any money and see what they come up with.
No way would a time served electrician or, from members on this forum, a qualified Domestic Installer offer such a load of rubbish.

Gawd that is gaggin'.....

At least most to$$ers know what a gland is, even if they can't fit them correctly.

 

[westward10]

Let your electrician have their say on here.

 

[Lister1987]

Really? I was gonna give him the chance to put right, but I must admit I'm worries that I won't know what right and what's not.

If you have the chap's (or chapette's...botchery is an equal opportunities 'skill') then I would get trading standards involved and use the case precedent recently posted on here under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Regulation 2008.

 

[DPG]

Whatever you do, don't pay him.

 

[mjjm986]

Whatever you do, don't pay him.

Haven't paid anything yet but will need to contact him soon to see if he can put right.

I'm up to speed with what he needs to do on the shed side of things, however correct me if I am wrong.

Gland the end of the armoured cable into a box on exterior wall and the carry cable through from box to the board (cable is not long enough to gland on inside). Add an earth wire from SWA gland to consumer unit, add a mains switch and adapt wiring to suit.

Can anyone tell me, what should he be doing on the supply end at the house? Is he on the right track with the RCB and MCB getting fed from the mains switch?

I'm assuming he also needs an earth coming from a gland at supply end in addition to the earth from the SWA cable, do both earth's go to same place?

If someone may be kind enough to explain what should happen at the supply end, it will help me have the conversation with him and I can guage the response and decide what to do from here.

As always all advice is very much appreciated.

On a side note, I think I know the answer, but is it possible to run three double sockets from a Spur?

My understanding is that if spurred from a socket, max is one double socket. Multiple can only be added if they are fused or taken from a junction?

 

[Electrics]

Has he put the SWA in that conduit? Like, the whole lot, or just the inner cores?

 

[IAmSparkytus!]

Think the conduit has singles in (if you mean the white conduit)

 

[littlespark]

I think the conduit is going out, supplying the sockets. The feed swa comes in the back of the CU, without a gland

 

[westward10]

Haven't paid anything yet but will need to contact him soon to see if he can put right.

I'm up to speed with what he needs to do on the shed side of things, however correct me if I am wrong.

Gland the end of the armoured cable into a box on exterior wall and the carry cable through from box to the board (cable is not long enough to gland on inside). Add an earth wire from SWA gland to consumer unit, add a mains switch and adapt wiring to suit.

Can anyone tell me, what should he be doing on the supply end at the house? Is he on the right track with the RCB and MCB getting fed from the mains switch?

I'm assuming he also needs an earth coming from a gland at supply end in addition to the earth from the SWA cable, do both earth's go to same place?

If someone may be kind enough to explain what should happen at the supply end, it will help me have the conversation with him and I can guage the response and decide what to do from here.

As always all advice is very much appreciated.

On a side note, I think I know the answer, but is it possible to run three double sockets from a Spur?

My understanding is that if spurred from a socket, max is one double socket. Multiple can only be added if they are fused or taken from a junction?

You haven't paid him that is good. As previously stated find an electrician to correct this shambles it is no good asking on here in the hope this individual will follow suit and carry out the compliant job they should have done in the first place. Wash your hands of them.

 

[telectrix]

do not get him back. he is a complete idiot. don't pay. get a real sparks to quote on putting it right.

 

[mjjm986]

I think the conduit is going out, supplying the sockets. The feed swa comes in the back of the CU, without a gland

Yeah that's right, conduit has the cables feeding the sockets.

 

[IAmSparkytus!]

Can anyone point to the regulation confirming that SWA glands must be used?

510.3 is the only one I can think of which states equipment shall be erected taking into account the manufacturers instructions. Not too sure if the SWA manufacturer actually make a recommendation of using armoured glands however.

 

[DPG]

Can anyone point to the regulation confirming that SWA glands must be used?

510.3 is the only one I can think of which states equipment shall be erected taking into account the manufacturers instructions. Not too sure if the SWA manufacturer actually make a recommendation of using armoured glands however.

Good workmanship would cover this. How else would you terminate a SWA without a gland and maintain good workmanship.

Except possibly using a PVC compression gland for isolating the earth if TTing something maybe.

 

[brianmoooore]

As rough as it is, I think you'd struggle to find regulations that this install has broken.
The steel wires are only connected at the shed end, which is bad practice, but contravenes nothing, as long as the copper equivalent csa of the number of wires connected is sufficient, which I would estimate they are. Should have sleeving on them, but that's a minor point.
At the house end, the only regulation breaches (from an English point of view) that I can see, are the single sheathed blue and brown, lack of strain relief, non fire resistant enclosures, and possible IP rating issues.

 

[DPG]

As rough as it is, I think you'd struggle to find regulations that this install has broken.
The steel wires are only connected at the shed end, which is bad practice, but contravenes nothing, as long as the copper equivalent csa of the number of wires connected is sufficient, which I would estimate they are. Should have sleeving on them, but that's a minor point.
At the house end, the only regulation breaches (from an English point of view) that I can see, are the single sheathed blue and brown, lack of strain relief, non fire resistant enclosures, and possible IP rating issues.

And most of those things would be against the good workmanship regulation.