Hello, in preparation for renting out our home we have requested an Electrical Certificate and our electrician is doing a few minor tidy up jobs before the inspection takes place. He has just advised that we should get our circuit board replaced as it is in a plastic casing. The board is on the wall above a cloaks cupboard in the hallway near the front door. Apparently this is now seen as a fire hazard and if it caught fire it would obstruct exiting the building from the front door. However, we live in and upside down house which is a concrete build and there is an external door into the garden and street near the bedrooms. Does this make any difference. The house is about 20 years old and we have experienced no problems with our existing circuit board. We have had a new kitchen fitted recently and the wiring has been certified. Do we really need to change our circuit board now?
- Nov 6, 2016
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- If you're a qualified, trainee, or retired electrician - Which country is it that your work will be / is / was aimed at?
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You do not have to replace your existing consumer unit as long as it has full RCD protection on all circuits.
D
davesparks
A plastic consumer unit would normally be given a C3 code, this means that it is recommended that you improve on the current situation.
A C3 code doesn't normally prevent the overall assessment of the installation from being satisfactory.
What you will be given after the inspection and testing has been done is an EICR, this is an electrical installation condition report. This does exactly what it says on the tin, it reports on the condition of the installation with the only possible overall outcomes of satisfactory for continued use or unsatisfactory for continued use.
If the outcome is unsatisfactory then there will be one or more things which have been coded as C1 or C2, these things will need to be addressed before the installation is considered safe.
Any items coded C3 are recommended safety improvements, you should carefully consider the merits of making these improvements.
A C3 code doesn't normally prevent the overall assessment of the installation from being satisfactory.
What you will be given after the inspection and testing has been done is an EICR, this is an electrical installation condition report. This does exactly what it says on the tin, it reports on the condition of the installation with the only possible overall outcomes of satisfactory for continued use or unsatisfactory for continued use.
If the outcome is unsatisfactory then there will be one or more things which have been coded as C1 or C2, these things will need to be addressed before the installation is considered safe.
Any items coded C3 are recommended safety improvements, you should carefully consider the merits of making these improvements.
- Aug 12, 2017
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- If you're a qualified, trainee, or retired electrician - Which country is it that your work will be / is / was aimed at?
- United Kingdom
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- Nov 6, 2016
- 492
- 923
- 101,268
- If you're a qualified, trainee, or retired electrician - Which country is it that your work will be / is / was aimed at?
- United Kingdom
- What type of forum member are you?
- Practising Electrician (Qualified - Domestic or Commercial etc)
Ask him which regulation number he is basing his demand on and post it up here for us to look at?
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