Safe Or Legal? (Yes, There Is A Shed Involved)

[nosmoke]

I have checked through many posts regarding exterior mains wiring but not found anything for this situation -

My house has an exterior 13A socket installed for a previous owner and as far as I know it was professionally installed and approved/certified.

The socket is the other side of a driveway from a shed, so if I need any light/power in the shed I just plug in an extension lead.

Here's the question - The drive is being dug up and replaced, so I have the opportunity to extend the existing exterior wiring under the drive and into the shed.  This could be done by burying a 3m length of SWA under the drive and having a permanent connection to the existing wiring, but would this need to be notified/certified??

 

[Blue Duck]

yes

:coat

 

[Murdoch]

Would you want to retain the existing outside socket you have too?

 

[ProDave]

Would you want to retain the existing outside socket you have too?

That's still possible depending how it's connected inside.

 

[Murdoch]

That's still possible depending how it's connected inside.

yes maybe but I'm not giving step by step directions.....

 

[nosmoke]

Keeping the existing socket would be preferable but not essential - I could still use the extension lead if the socket was in the shed...​

 ​

The inside connection is from a circuit in the fusebox (!).  When we bought the house there was an electrical survey which didn't flag any problems.​

 ​

The motivation for the question was that I would like a 'permanent' supply to power a security camera and it seems overkill to have to get Part P approval or whatever when it would apparently be acceptable to have a 'temporary' B&Q plastic extension lead with a plug on the end trailing across the drive.​

 

[Sharpend]

There in is the difference.

Temporary or permanent! permanent needs to be correctly installed and certified, temporary lead protected by 13 amp fuse in plug.

 

[Andy™]

There in is the difference.

Temporary or permanent! permanent needs to be correctly installed and certified, temporary lead protected by 13 amp fuse in plug.

but even if its connected by a 13a plug, it may still be notifiable

 

[Blue Duck]

all depends how it's is currently wired? dedicated radial? or a spur? what size cable/breaker? what earthing arrangement? and what power you intend to use further down the line?

you can do the donkey work your self and even buy the equipment and pay a local spark to connect up.

 

[Essex1]

As I understand it anything external not fitted to the exterior wall is now classed as a special location so I believe it is notifiable.

 

[Murdoch]

all depends how it's is currently wired? dedicated radial? or a spur? what size cable/breaker? what earthing arrangement? and what power you intend to use further down the line?

you can do the donkey work your self and even buy the equipment and pay a local spark to connect up.

But without a site visit now on earth could anyone decide what parts are actually required?

 

[Andy™]

i would fit what others supply... however, if its wrong or faulty, then you will be paying for time wasted which would end up costing more. you will also have no warranty on the materials either if they do fail

 

[Essex1]

The only time anyone would want to supply their own equipment is to save money. But electricians do not put a mark up on for nothing. There abilty to spend a lot of money in one place normally means the electrician get a decent discount. There also is an element of risk with fitting equipment such as it becoming faulty within a year (or 6 years under Part P) which means the greedy electrician needs to speak with the supplier, get a replacement and fit it FOC. So if the customer wants to purchase the equipment themselves then it is only fare that the customer accepts all the risk too.

 

[Blue Duck]

But without a site visit now on earth could anyone decide what parts are actually required?

They can't. obviously someone would need to go look. It seems that the OP is concerned with costs and Im concerned that the job should be done properly and somewhere in the middle the 2 should meet.

 

[Essex1]

You get what you pay for in this world.

 

[Murdoch]

They can't. obviously someone would need to go look. It seems that the OP is concerned with costs and Im concerned that the job should be done properly and somewhere in the middle the 2 should meet.

hum... if the customer buys the bits I increase my hourly rate to compensate for the lost profit on the parts. I don't graft for 50 hours a week, not to earn a living.

 

[nosmoke]

Thanks for these views. I fully agree that any new work should be correctly specified, installed, and certified as required.

The point that was disturbing me was that extending an existing cable with an extension lead that is open to weather/abuse is ok, but once the connections are solidly made using the correct junction boxes and the armoured cable buried underground then the whole scheme is (officially) a potential hazard.

I get the temporary vs permanent distinction, though I wonder how it is defined...

 

[Essex1]

To get back to your op whether or not the job is notifiable or not should not be on your list of concerns. Whether the installation is the safest it can be for you and your family should be your only concern. Part P notification is a strange reason not to do a job properly in my mind. Why are you concerned about Part P notification?

 

[NozSpark]

The thing is though,, is that even some work connected by a plug can still be notifyable under Part P

 

[Essex1]

The thing is though,, is that even some work connected by a plug can still be notifyable under Part P

Excuse my ignorance but such as?