lh Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 Hi,We're renovating a property in the south-west and we're starting to think about the electrics. The electricity currently comes into the house at the front and the EDF meter, etc is just inside the hallway. However we are hoping (in the long-term) to have that moved to the back. Due to that, we'd like to have the tableau at the other side of the room to the meter - between 2m and 3m away - so that we won't have to have it moved when we eventually cough up that fortune to EDF to have the pole moved. Is that possible? Can anyone help with the rules around this?Thanks, Lynne Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idun Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 Our meters were on the boundary of our land with the public road, so that the meter could be read without coming onto our land. I would think that this is what the EDF expect to happen if the meter is to be moved, easy access for them. I'll be curious to know what others have to say about this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 My meter is on the outside wall of a barn at the nearest point to the road, but still 20 metres inside my property boundary. The tableau is in the house which is a 40 or 50 metres underground cable run from the meter. This long cable was newly laid 6 years ago during renovations.I think the regulations will depend on whether you have an exisiting electricity supply or are installing a new one; it sounds like the former and the rules are less strict. I seen some peculiar arrangements and only new builds have any standard format.In our case it's all historical, the buildings were once a working farm and requirements have gradually changed over the years but the meter remained in the original position.I suggest that you speak to EDF before making any changes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Hi just about to do mine.. we were told in the first place, to upgrade our meter from 6 to 9, EDF came along and said we cant do that, your electrician must do all the work, but then once he has we will connect to the meter with an upgraded line.. no idea of cost.. I think im in for a shock.. They will string the new connection thru the underground conduit about 30 meters.. any ideas of what thats is likel;y to cost me ? the point / contribution to make, was that apprntly, no need to come into the house any more, they can read from outside ... even though the meter is inside.. rgds bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loiseau Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 My meter is on the boundary wall, adjacent to the front of the house, so that it can be read without the EDF guys coming onto my property at all.This was effectively a new build about 20 years ago, on the site of an old cottage, so presumably conformed to regulations in force at the time.Angela Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Meter reading is normally done from outside the building these days; there's a circular beige plastic disc, either on the meter or on the outside wall, and it's read by a handheld sensor. It must be really annoying at our place as the meter man has to get out of his van and traipse across the garden to the meter box.(Our water meter has recently been replaced and can now be read from the van when driving past - it's got a new wireless transponder device).The upgrading of the electricity supply from 6kva to 9kva is done by changing a "fuse" in the meter box, but it's sealed with a lead crimp wire and can only be done by the electricity company. Takes minutes so I can't imagine it will cost much. I've put fuse in quotes as I'm not sure whether it's actually a fuse or some other sort of breaker device.30 metres of cabling: I can't tell you how much it will cost. We had a new water main installed at the same time as the electrics were replaced so the cable and water pipe went into the same trench (separated as specified in the normes). The ground here is virtually all stones so a mini-digger was used. It was all done in a day though. EDIT This was 6 years ago so the costs will have changed (I wonder in which direction!!??) but the trench was 75 metres, from the road to the meter and then from the meter to the house, and cost 1371€ not including the cost of the gaine, cabling and water pipe.Only one way to find out... get some "devis". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 Thanks Sid, um aargh I expected a breaker to be the answer, but seems things have to be more complicated.. but that was a few months ago, and now we are getting to the point the electrics have to be joined back up to the mains, its something we have to resolve soon. they said, o that supply cable isnt good enough.. I will set the electrician on him and he can sort it out french man to french man.. rgds Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lh Posted October 4, 2012 Author Share Posted October 4, 2012 Thanks for the prompt responses but you haven't quite given me the info I wanted. Perhaps I haven't explained it well enough. We know that when we contact EDF to get the supply moved/upgraded, we might end up with a new meter outside but for now the power comes in through the front wall where there is the EDF connection and a very old meter, followed by a switch we use to put the power on and off and then there's a single socket wired in. We use this with an extension lead to run the fridge & kettle and occasional tools - very limited use but it makes the house 'habitable'. If we contact EDF, I suspect we will have our supply disconnected! What we'd like to do is replace the single socket with an appropriate tableau but locate this on the other side of the hall, approx 2-3m away and start all the wiring from there. That will mean a long wire from the disjoncteur to the tableau - is that allowed? We're doing the renovation bit-by-bit so will probably only wire up a couple of habitable rooms, plus shower room to start with. I'm sure that when we start to get any devis, the electrician will be able to answer these questions, but we'd like to make a head-start on planning where gaine might need to go, etc. If we have the tableau beside the current meter position, then every set of wiring will need that extra 2-3m of length as the plan is to run all cables along one side of the house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 I can't remember what size the cable was from the meter to the house, but 2x6 rings a bell. I think that's 2 cores of 6 sq mm, but your electrician should know! You will also need a signal cable for the off-peak switching; it's worth installing this now even if you don't intend to use "heures creuses" yet, as it'll be a beggar to have to dig it all up again at a later date if you change your mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 That's what I understood you meant but maybe it's me who didn't reply properly. I don't think they'll disconnect you! Our tableau is a considerable distance form the main switch (disjoncteur generale), about 40 metres, so installing your tableau just a few feet (that's metric feet!!) away shouldn't be a problem, and it certainly wasn't an issue with us when we renovated the electrics.I think you have to chat to your electrician; he won't disconnect you either, and he'll get everything ready for the electricity company to reconnect you.Sorry, I think I've replied to two different posters here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 EDF's responsibility ends at the disjoncteur de branchment, they wont cut off an existing supply unless their wiring to the DB is damaged in a fire or whatever.Beyond the DB what you do (to an existing supply) is your affair, try to follow the normes and above all be safe but its your funeral [;-)]When I have time to upload them I will post some photos of some of my wiring that I replaced today, a connection that the EDF remade 7 years ago whilst wishing me "good luck, - you're gonna need it!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 5, 2012 Share Posted October 5, 2012 Thanks Chancer, you've summed up very well what I thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angie Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Could I ask a similar question please?Our trip switch goes at the slightest hint of a storm and its a real pain to have to traipse down to the meter box to re-set it especially in the dark and when its raining. Our house is fairly new but the meter is 80 metres away at the end of our drive (but in a sort of ditch at the side of the road!). Does anyone know if its possible to have the meter box moved to nearer the house, or preferably whether the trip switch only can be altered/moved so we can re-set it from indoors? Sorry to sound so naive but know nothing at all about electrics. Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 We have the same problem. I doubt that the main switch can be moved; if it is possible I can see it being expensive. Certainly in our case it would be impractical now.Our main switch clicks off at the drop of a hat in stromy weather, or at least used to. I've posted about this previously on here. I asked the supply company (not EDF in our case, but SEOLIS) if they would replace the switch dated 1989 with a new one, but they refused, even though I offered to pay. The worrying instances are when we are away and the freezer goes off along with all the food inside it.The solution is to get a neighbour to check while you are absent! This is the technical answer from the company, and we now leave a key with a neighbour.Since we've had the house wiring updated there hasn't been another "off" (touch wood) for a while, but then we haven't had much in the way of electrical stormy weather for a while either. There was a suggestion that a faulty earth somewhere in the house could have been contributing to the fault. I don't know; maybe the it's fixed now?There is an expensive automatic resetter (re-enclencheur) available but I can see some safety issues with it, for example when you want the supply to cut-off for valid reasons. It mounts at the side or underneath the main switch and pushes the lever back up when it clicks off. Crude.) Different models depending on the type of switch you have.http://www.d-home-otik.com/arc-rl25-telc-ddb-reenclencheur-avec-signalisation-defaut-secteur-p-3839.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idun Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 MaryW, is your meter a proper meter and not just one that was put their for the chantier when the house was being built. The disjoncteur should be on your board, in your house...........and you shouldn't have to touch the meter for anything other than the readings. Well that is what he who knows has said. So what happens to the disjoncteur (sp) in the house when all goes off? Think you should be in touch with the EDF or whoever deals with your electricity about this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 No, the meter doesn't have to be in the house. It depends when the supply was installed which could be many years ago, and whether there has been a change of use in the buildings. Our meter is in a weather proof box on the exterior wall of the building which is closest to the road, not the house itself. This building was a barn at one time and now is just a roofless shell. Modern normes are quite different, but as far as I can see on the new lotissement being developed in the village the new idea is to have all the utilities with connections and meters on the property boundary, so again the meter wouldn't actually be in the house. It makes it more convenient for the meter reader. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chancer Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 I dont have the info to hand but in the normes there is a distance specified between the boundary of the property and the dwelling, over a certain figure the meter and the AGCP must be fitted in the outside box.In terms of user satisfaction its counter intuitive, if you only have a tiny front garden you can have the AGCP by your tableau, if you have a long drive then you have to go for a walk in the dark and rain to reset it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angie Posted October 9, 2012 Share Posted October 9, 2012 Hi there, thanks for all your advice. Yes, its a proper meter which was installed by EDF (at considerable cost) 4 years ago. It is on our boundary which unfortunately by the sound of things means I shall have to continue to walk down in the dark and rain. There is a large red button on the internal circuit board (is this the tableau) inside the house which we use to turn all the electricity off when we leave. Pressing this restores the electricity to the house but will not do so if the electric has tripped because of storm or "overload". This can only be done by a visit to the coffre which also houses the meter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted October 10, 2012 Share Posted October 10, 2012 Welcome to the "reset in the dark and rain" club, Mary!And yes, the board, with all your circuit breakers, situated inside the house is known as the "tableau". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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