UK Can I add an extra board or sub board to my old (1970's) fuse board?

[Michael W]

Hello everyone, This is my first post and I am looking for some good ,solid and honest advice. I'm a pretty confident all rounder (Carpenter by trade) but am reluctant to go in too deep on this one. I am hoping that your expertise and well earned knowledge could explain what for yourselves is probably very simple! I recently moved into a 1970 bungalow that has no electric shower. I have pulled through a 10mm2 cable from the consumer unit to the bathroom. It needs connecting to the main supply but there isn't room on the (very small) breaker board. Would it be possible to add another board off the main board to accommodate an extra fuse (or two)? Not a job for me but for an expert who will be given the work if they choose to do it. The house is wired up for economy 10 but all of the night stores have been removed and only an immersion heater runs on that side of the power. Am I looking at having to replace the board with a new one or is there a quicker way around it? Many thanks in advance.

 

[telectrix]

you can get a small CU ( RCD and 1 MCB ) for the shower. supply it not from your existing CU , but with tails from the double pole Henley block which has spare capacity for extra tails.

 

[pc1966]

As already said you can get a small dedicated CU (consumer unit = fuse box) for just the shower. That is the quickest & cheapest option.

But really you would be better to have the existing fuse box replaced with one that gives you RCD protection on all circuits and has a couple of spare slots for the future. If going down that path check out local electrician's reputations and get a couple of quotes from the reputable ones the work.

 

[ferg]

If you have an economy 10 tariff for only the hot water you may well be cheaper to get your tariff changed at the same time. IIRC you pay more for the daytime rate than a cheaper tariff but this is balanced out if you have enough night time usage in the form of storage heating and hot water.

 

[Michael W]

As already said you can get a small dedicated CU (consumer unit = fuse box) for just the shower. That is the quickest & cheapest option.

But really you would be better to have the existing fuse box replaced with one that gives you RCD protection on all circuits and has a couple of spare slots for the future. If going down that path check out local electrician's reputations and get a couple of quotes from the reputable ones the work.

Thank you for that. In the interim I'll go with the extra CU just to get me up and running. The longer term idea is to totally replace the old CU with something a little safer and more useful. As with all buildings of this age, every time

If you have an economy 10 tariff for only the hot water you may well be cheaper to get your tariff changed at the same time. IIRC you pay more for the daytime rate than a cheaper tariff but this is balanced out if you have enough night time usage in the form of storage heating and hot water.

I'm looking into that now. Right now my hot water comes from the immersion cylinder which heats up a couple of times in a 24 hour period. I need to junk the economy 10 system and put the cylinder on the main supply with a timer and over ride option. It's a pain in the neck running out of hot water!

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Sorry guys, my replies go a little muddled and chopped up!
Thank you all for your advice and insights. I'll go with the extra CU attached to my old board for now and upgrade the whole system next year.( Once I've recovered from the never ending task of remedying 'interesting' discoveries in the 'new' house). The economy 10 thing will be done away with and the hot water cylinder will end upon the main, regular circuitry when the new board gets fitted. Again,many thanks for the help and input. Regards. M.

 

[R-fur]

If you have removed the storage heaters it is often quite easy to convert the old points to sockets reusing the existing cables. You would have to get an electrician in to test and advise.

 

[pc1966]

A thumbs-up for @R-fur suggestion!

Installing/replacing wire is the worst aspect of any major work, but if you have perfectly usable cable in place then having them connected up for some useful extra sockets is a really good idea.

 

[davesparks]

Have you considered a better type of shower such as a power shower, or a shower pump?

Electric showers work, but will never be as good as a proper shower.

 

[littlespark]

Profile says OP is on Isle of Wight.... don’t we have a member out there?

 

[telectrix]

Profile says OP is on Isle of Wight.... don’t we have a member out there?

OP quiet. think the island may have sunk.

 

[UNG]

Rather than buying a small CU that will become redundant when you replace the existing CU buy a full size CU even if you blank most of the ways that you don't need it will probably be more cost effective in the long run when it comes to the CU swap

 

[Michael W]

I've just been quoted £250 for this job. Is that a reasonable amount? The guy will come with the necessary bits, and then check and certificate the installation as it is a new circuit and needs to be registered. Is that right? I'm not doubting the integrity or legitimacy of the tradesman's quote as I would like the work done right and asap. Just curious. He came on a recommendation of a neighbour who, quite frankly have often paid over the odds for what have times been overly simple jobs.

 

[telectrix]

I've just been quoted £250 for this job. Is that a reasonable amount? The guy will come with the necessary bits, and then check and certificate the installation as it is a new circuit and needs to be registered. Is that right? I'm not doubting the integrity or legitimacy of the tradesman's quote as I would like the work done right and asap. Just curious. He came on a recommendation of a neighbour who, quite frankly have often paid over the odds for what have times been overly simple jobs.

adding a small CU with RCD and 1 or 2 MCBs, splitting tails , testing and producing a cert..... £250 is not a bad price. a bit over what i would charge, but not much. when you consider a replacement for existing CU would be around £350 - £550, depending in the configuration ( dual RCD or RCBOs ) then it makes sense to go for that, rathe rthan £250 now, then a year or so later spend £---, and remove what you have paid £250 for.