Shower feed

Talk Electrician Forum

Help Support Talk Electrician Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

geoffm1066

Junior Member
Joined
May 15, 2008
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Hello to all

I need a little advice regarding the current method used to power the mother in laws shower.

She has just recently moved to a smaller but more modern house circa 1980, and the previous owner has at some point installed an electric shower over the bath, nothing wrong in that but when i visited the first thing i noticed was a white twin and earth cable running down the outside front wall and of course wondered what is was for.

On tracing the route i found it was the power supply to the shower, the installation at the shower point appears to conform but the cable and the 40amp isolation switch in the ground floor meter cupboard looks iffy to say the least. The three tails from the switch run into the old fuse box ( No consumer unit fitted as yet ) i have told her not to use the shower as i feel the installation is dangerous, i have looked and can run a new larger cable supply internally and fit a shower consumer unit. What i need to know is by turning off the main fuse box and pulling the fuses can i be sure the power to the existing 40amp switch unit will be off and safe to swap over to new unit?

Thanks

Geoffm.

 
Hello to allI need a little advice regarding the current method used to power the mother in laws shower.

She has just recently moved to a smaller but more modern house circa 1980, and the previous owner has at some point installed an electric shower over the bath, nothing wrong in that but when i visited the first thing i noticed was a white twin and earth cable running down the outside front wall and of course wondered what is was for.

On tracing the route i found it was the power supply to the shower, the installation at the shower point appears to conform but the cable and the 40amp isolation switch in the ground floor meter cupboard looks iffy to say the least. The three tails from the switch run into the old fuse box ( No consumer unit fitted as yet ) i have told her not to use the shower as i feel the installation is dangerous, i have looked and can run a new larger cable supply internally and fit a shower consumer unit. What i need to know is by turning off the main fuse box and pulling the fuses can i be sure the power to the existing 40amp switch unit will be off and safe to swap over to new unit?

Thanks

Geoffm.
Hi Geoffm

Welcome M8.

Does the wire on the outside wall have any mechanical protection on it???

What size is the cable? 6.0mmT&E??

No RCD on the circuit??

Are you spark? trainee spark? do you have a meter?

the only safe way to confirm the cable is dead...

Is to meter it before & after carrying out your isolation method

(and verify your meter is still working after disconnect test carried out)

Because a shower is a high power item... and close proximity to water..

It does need to be done right to avoid any risks of injury in the event of a fault.

Bit hard to say much more without any pictures??

Can you pop some digital snaps on Photobucket or similar??

can then have a better look tomorrow! :)

SL:)

 
Hi Welsh Wizard

Thank you for the welcome note and quick response.

To answer your questions,

1. At college awaiting placement for practical skills tution

2. No protection whats so ever, hence why i told mother in law not use

3.Yes, 6mm twin and earth

4. And no RCD

I shall be visiting her in the few days and will take some photos.

Geoffm

 
Some people just never learn.

Not aimed at you Geoff, but the Muppet who installed the shower, welcome to the forum by the way.

 
Some people just never learn.Not aimed at you Geoff, but the Muppet who installed the shower, welcome to the forum by the way.
That may be a bit harsh on Muppets! :(

at least Muppets were good wholesome fun! :)

don't sound like this shower installer was even that bright? :D :^O:^O

 
That may be a bit harsh on Muppets! :( at least Muppets were good wholesome fun! :)

don't sound like this shower installer was even that bright? :D :^O:^O
You do have a point there. :^O

 
Hi Welsh WizardThank you for the welcome note and quick response.

To answer your questions,

1. At college awaiting placement for practical skills tution

2. No protection whats so ever, hence why i told mother in law not use

3.Yes, 6mm twin and earth

4. And no RCD

I shall be visiting her in the few days and will take some photos.

Geoffm
Wot, of your Mum in the shower?

 
Do you have to Nicky?

It's his Mother-in-laws house.

 
Maybe i could have worded my reply a little better, photos of my mother in law in a shower would resemble something from a Stephen King novel, harsh but true.

Anyway i'm correct in stopping her from using the shower yes/no?

Have yet to get over there to take photos of ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION not mother in law in shower.

geoff

 
Maybe i could have worded my reply a little better, photos of my mother in law in a shower would resemble something from a Stephen King novel, harsh but true.Have yet to get over there to take photos of ELECTRICAL INSTALLATION not mother in law in shower.

geoff
Ahh but the thread would of been a lot more boring without that little mental deviation into photo's in the shower... :eek: :O:O

Anyway i'm correct in stopping her from using the shower yes/no?
It may be that the current setup is no worse than any other average DIY shower set up...

But if you say there is no RCD in circuit.... which most manufactures recommend to be installed...

Then it is not as safe as it could be with full RCD protection!

It is a hard call to make without any pictures or test readings..

but the old saying 'If in doubt don't' often rings true.

With the obvious increased power consumption of a shower, the risks can be proportionally higher than other average circuits?

screw terminal correctly tightened can often be a problem area for overheating with showers?

and DIY bobs have a habit of not correctly tightening screws! :|

 
DIY bobs have a habit of not correctly tightening screws!

Oh god yes, it always makes me shudder when I see a DIY shower install. :)

 
Top