Hello all, don't hate but here's another DIY garden electrics post...

[Chris.]

Hi one & all,

Im a Street Light Engineer and extremely use to dealing with multiple SWA terminations in street lights (of which i'm 100% confident in myself to do, i'm yet to be 'snagged' on any of my work)! However... there is a but...

I want to install 2x sockets and power a 70w light (which is a fancy 3ft street light i'm ashamed to say ) i'm planning to run some SWA cable from the rear of a double socket in my kitchen and then into a summer house at the back of my garden. From in there i want to install a double socket (one for a small lamp and the other for if anything, the lawnmower)! But also power the 'street/garden light' which is about 8m away.
The only thing i'm confused about is how to attach the SWA to my indoor socket, i was told that the best way to do it is by using T&E through the wall but upon reading through various old threads on this forum some of you were saying just attach the SWA straight through to save the fiddliness, my question to you guys is;

Which is the best method in doing this and what outdoor junction box is best to use?

Any help is greatly appreciated and if i think it is way out of my comfort zone i will just bite the bullet and pay the £420 i was quoted! (Which i'm trying to avoid for obvious reasons!)

Regards

Chris

 

[telectrix]

T/E from socket into an adjacent 13A FCU. then t/e straight through wall into wiska box, where you then connect to SWA to run to shed.

 

[Octopus]

£420 is a bit steep. How many prices did you get?

 

[HandySparks]

T/E from socket into an adjacent 13A FCU. then t/e straight through wall into wiska box, where you then connect to SWA to run to shed.

Yep. If you're going to take a feed off the socket circuit, then at least put in an isolator (switched FCU) before leaving the house. Then if there's a fault in the outside stuff, you can isolate it.

I'd gland the SWA into the external box, but leave the cores long enough to bring through the wall into the back of the SFCU. Sleeve the hole through the wall with a piece of 20mm pvc conduit.

Don't forget that you need to bring a wire through for earthing the armour too.

Where's the RCD in this setup?

And what's your earthing system?

 

[Chris.]

I'd gland the SWA into the external box, but leave the cores long enough to bring through the wall into the back of the SFCU. Sleeve the hole through the wall with a piece of 20mm pvc conduit.

Don't forget that you need to bring a wire through for earthing the armour too.

Surely this is a much easier way of doing things? Are there pros and cons to doing it other way?

I noticed your based in Hampshire, I'm based between Basingstoke & Reading. Rough quote on coming to have a look? (In case things get out of hand!)

 

[Chris.]

£420 is a bit steep. How many prices did you get?

5 in total. The priciest was £600!!! Maybe they're all just rip off artists in tadley! Lol

 

[telectrix]

leave the cores long enough to bring through the wall into the back of the SFCU. Sleeve the hole through the wall with a piece of 20mm pvc conduit.

good thinking. less joints to go wrong.

 

[HandySparks]

Surely this is a much easier way of doing things? Are there pros and cons to doing it other way?

If you mean as Tel's suggestion, then it's just a different way of achieving the same thing; but a little simpler.

Ask 10 electricians how to do a job and you'll get 10 different variations!

I noticed your based in Hampshire, I'm based between Basingstoke & Reading. Rough quote on coming to have a look? (In case things get out of hand!)

Tadley is well outside my usual area (I like to keep it local). If you're very keen, I'd do it in one trip, with estimate based on sketches and photos provided by you.



RCD?

Type of earthing?

Length of cable run?

How do you plan to control the light?