Discuss Is it within the regs to fit sockets without securing them to a wall/cupboard? in the Electrical Wiring, Theories and Regulations area at ElectriciansForums.net

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Pete G

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Hi, moved into a new home and the sockets for the fridge and freezer have just been left loose on the floor behind the kitchen cupboard base trim. To me this look like a rough installation but Persimmon insist it is within the regs. Can anyone confirm and if it isn't do you know which reg I can quote back to them that it doesn't comply with.
Thanks
 
Do you have any pictures as this could contravene a number of regs not only because they are not fixed but how the cable is secured to the socket
Also as it is a new installation do you have an electrical test certificate for the installation
 
Sockets slung under the plinths or behind the units is standard new build wiring I’m afraid
 
If it’s persimmon, check for loose connections and green sleeving.

oh, and check the plumbing too, my house has the grey hep2o push fittings, and one of the green rings with the teeth had been put in back to front
 
Do you have any pictures as this could contravene a number of regs not only because they are not fixed but how the cable is secured to the socket
Also as it is a new installation do you have an electrical test certificate for the installation
I should have the cert, probably filed it somewhere
 

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If you upload the cert please ensure you redact any information like names and addresses etc.

My take on this is the cables used are not designed for flexing, they are not correctly secured into the socket boxes IE - if you move the sockets about the movement of the cable can act directly on the terminations in the bac of the sockets.

This is not professional and reeks of poor workmanship, it would also contravene the regulations because of what I mentioned above, they should have at the very least been mounted in one of the adjacent cupboards and a hole drilled to feed the plug through.
I will add, writing on the front in big black marker pen is as rough as it gets, couldn't even bother with a labelling machine.
 
I should have the cert, probably filed it somewhere
Standard new build wiring , this is replicated thousands of times up and down the country

our new build flat we rented had about 6 bare connector block joints underneath the plinth just flapping in the wind , flat was built in late 2008 and wired by a cps contractor, obviously bare connector block slung under the kitchen is acceptable under the cps
 
This is one of those situations which boils down to poor can't be bothered practice.
Does the manufacturer suggest this is suitable a installation method. Last sentence of Regulation 134.1.1 "The installation of electrical equipment shall take account of manufacturers' instructions".
Are terminations at the socket prone to undue stress because the socket outlet and associated cabling are not fixed. First sentence of Regulation 522.8.1 "A wiring system shall be selected and erected to avoid during installation, use or maintenance, damage to the sheath or insulation of cables and their terminations".
 
I have seen many just like it and TBH not found one yet where it has caused a problem.

The issue is that quite often there is no room behind appliances to fit a standard plug and socket arrangement.

I have in the past been guilty of similar but I have either used a pvc back box with pvc stuffing glands or a specifically designed trailing socket, arguably not designed for T&E but for flex.

As the appliances are fixed, or very close to it, the chances of the T&E being flexed beyond it's limits is very low. Similar to the millions of cookers wired in 6mm T&E.

Poor practice certainly and I would not have done it that way myself.

A symptom of price work unfortunately.
 
Hi, moved into a new home and the sockets for the fridge and freezer have just been left loose on the floor behind the kitchen cupboard base trim. To me this look like a rough installation but Persimmon insist it is within the regs. Can anyone confirm and if it isn't do you know which reg I can quote back to them that it doesn't comply with.
Thanks
Do the appliances have switches above the worktop?
 
If it like mine, there will be a bank of grid switches.
That's what I would have expected, or similar. If so, aside from the lack of strain relief where the T+E enters the pattresses, and it looking a little rough, I personally don't think it's all that bad a way of connecting appliances.

We have this regulation, which perhaps applies in this case:

521.9.3
Stationary equipment which is moved temporarily for the purposes of connecting, cleaning etc., e.g. cookers or flush-mounting units for installations in false floors, shall be connected with flexible cable. If the equipment is not subject to vibration then non-flexible cables may be used.
 
Sinks, washers, dishwashers are all prone to leaks etc simply having them on the floor loose would suggest they are not suitable to the environment, raising them into an adjacent cupboard for example would resolve this, I also fit outdoor IP rated sockets under sink units for the same regulations, seals around drains etc do not last forever so one should consider that when fitting a socket under a sink or behind a water using appliance.
 
On domestic new builds that I’ve done in the past, I’ve overcome this problem by having a switch / SFU above counter but then run a long length of chased in flex from it downwards to below the plaster line, couple of meters of slack and then fitted a 13a trailing socket.
 
The only time I've ever done anything like this is when I provided a supply under some units, fed from a bank of light switches, to feed some LEDs
to be fitted in the plinth.
When the LEDs turned up, their PSU was a wall wart, so I fitted a surface box and a 1G unswitched socket to a small rectangle of left over plinth, with a couple of cable event cable clips, and pushed the whole lot under the unit s.
 

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