Hi, went on a job today, to swap over an oven. On arrival, the homeowner was on a work video call and I couldn't isolate the circuit as there were no labels on the fuseboard. Worse, there was no local isolator for the oven so I had to walk off the job as it needed a new quote etc. (My Job Quote).
Anyway, I was confronted by this fuseboard thing with switches. I have come across BS3036 and plug in MCBs but not this. Are they a plug in replacement and pull out like the bladed fuses?
20240703_151157.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi, went on a job today, to swap over an oven. On arrival, the homeowner was on a work video call and I couldn't isolate the circuit as there were no labels on the fuseboard. Worse, there was no local isolator for the oven so I had to walk off the job as it needed a new quote etc. (My Job Quote).
Anyway, I was confronted by this fuseboard thing with switches. I have come across BS3036 and plug in MCBs but not this. Are they a plug in replacement and pull out like the bladed fuses?
Crabtree c50
 
As above, Crabtree circuit breakers, the values for each circuit are marked on the ends of the levers. The photo shows the ON & OFF positions. Nothing to pull out or plug in!

You can see there are three 30A circuits (typically cooker & 2 socket circuits), one 15A circuit (typically immersion and whatever has been added to it such as a shower pump or new boiler), and two 5A lighting circuits (normally Up and Down).

So if the oven is not connected to the cooker circuit, likely it will instead be on the socket circuit that supplies the kitchen. If not properly labelled, sometimes the circuits get marked on the outside of the flap or a loose bit of card.
 
Very robust circuit breakers, John Ward has done some content on them on Youtube, only potential pitfall is relatively low breaking capacity (3KA if memory serves) shouldn't be a problem in nearly all cases, although difficulty in providing RCD protection would see that board replaced in the event of significant works
 
Don't know if it's just me but whenever I see some stout old kit like this out there still giving faithful service my first thought is: 'How can I get away with keeping this?' getting harder and harder to find the work-arounds of course..
 
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What is this 1970s fuseboard?
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UK Electrical Forum
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Barnet Al,
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westward10,
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