Regs relating to the position of services?

[Vladimir3000]

Hi

Are there any regulations governing how close a CU or meter is to a boiler?

Ive been browsing the BRB but cant find an easy answer,

Real life example is a spark mate of mine is currently working on a rewire which i have been helping on. The house has the meter and CU in a tallish cupboard under the stairs. The house owner informed us the other day that the boiler was going to be installed in there too.

I thought it might be a bit dodgy and/or against regs to have a boiler that close to the electrical stuff.

What say you?

 

[Bez]

You'll find the info you need in OSG, page 18

 

[Lurch]

Well there is guidance in the OSG regarding the electrical equipment having to be located 150mm from gas meters and cabling 25-50mm from gas pipes. Other than that it's down to what the boiler instructions say regarding the compartment in which it is to be located. If there is any concern you could split the cupboard with a non-combustible board in between the 2 halves.

 

[green-hornet]

In reality there is little or minimal risk if the cu is situated alongside a boiler.

The main reason why a distance from a gas meter and electrical stuff is the spark theory of possible ignition of leaks, and general roximity to the main gas supply in the home or factory.

I did a house last year or the year before where the gas meter had been fitted after the electrics, and the gas utitlitiy company fitted it so close the the cu that you could not get access to the cu, the drop down front panal would not come down all the way.

So that was well inside the 150mm minimum distance that we are asked to keep to.

 

[Vladimir3000]

You'll find the info you need in OSG, page 18

That only relates to pipework and the meter, not the boiler itself........... granted the boiler will be near these though

In reality there is little or minimal risk if the cu is situated alongside a boiler.

What about the boiler ****ing water all over the CU?!

In this instance, the boiler and CU have to be on opposite walls of this cupboard, im concerned if the boiler develops a pressurised leak it could easily end up in the electrics...........

Hmmmm.

Another way of looking at it:

We installed the electrics in the same place as the previous install as instructed by the customer.

Only after we did this were we informed about the boiler going in.

So, isn't it now the plumbers problem! :^O

 

[Lurch]

That only relates to pipework and the meter, not the boiler itself........... granted the boiler will be near these though

But the bottom of the boiler contains a gas pipe, so therefore it does sort of apply. It's only guidance anyway so you can do whatever you want.

What about the boiler ****ing water all over the CU?!In this instance, the boiler and CU have to be on opposite walls of this cupboard, im concerned if the boiler develops a pressurised leak it could easily end up in the electrics...........

Although it is more likely to leak directly onto the CU if the boiler leaks, it's not a lot different to putting it under something else that could leak onto the CU anyway, such as a tank in the loft, or some pipes running over it.

Another way of looking at it:We installed the electrics in the same place as the previous install as instructed by the customer.

Only after we did this were we informed about the boiler going in.

So, isn't it now the plumbers problem! :^O

Yes. If you have highlighted the potential issues and they don;t want to do anything then there's not much more you can do.

 

[jimleen]

I'd be a bit concerned about the boiler ****ing water as well. Something else to remember is that boilers get rather warm. And as they're usually in small cupboards, the small cupboards get rather warm too, which may affect the cable performance.

 

[batty]

I'd be a bit concerned about the boiler ****ing water as well. Something else to remember is that boilers get rather warm. And as they're usually in small cupboards, the small cupboards get rather warm too, which may affect the cable performance.

Modern boilers are well insulated so that should not be a problem. The way I see it if you can put one in a bathroom surely they can go just about anywhere

 

[Apache]

If you are really worried you could always quote to fit a CU with suitable IP rating!

http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Consumer_Units_Index/MK_Sentry_Weatherproof_Enc/index.html