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Putting in own electrics


melmoth
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I'm considering putting in a new consumer unit and have a choice - I have a good electrician who will put one ine in with breakers etc or I can do it myself - can anyone tell me how practicable this is? For instance whilst replacing some wiring a couple of years ago I got a shock which I'm told shouldn't have happened and that I';ve probably got a problem with the earth. Could I fix that easilt? Is it a big deal to connect the unit to the main supply?

Also any advice on which Internet provider to go for would be most useful.

Also - I wanyt a French PAYG mobile mainly to make emergency calls and to receive calls free - any suggestions?

Thanks

Brendan

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[quote user="melmoth"]

 I';ve probably got a problem with the earth. Could I fix that easilt? Is it a big deal to connect the unit to the main supply?

[/quote]

If you don't know the answers to these questions, then should you be replacing a consumer unit ? [8-)]

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As stated if you have to ask this question re electrics then you are definately not qualified.

I have answered this type of question before.

Leaking plumbing will get you wet.

Leaking electrics KILLS!!!

I have no problem if you are foolish enough to kill yourself by messing with electricity but some poor innocent man, wmoan, or child is different.

Electricians serve a 4 year apprenticeship for a reason.

Be warned

John

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Which part are you referring to?

The Numpty blowing himself up with his 'consumer unit'. You would have thought he would have found out what it is called in French, "Le bomb pour Les Anglais imbecile".

Or the fact that he will be able to operate a mobile phone???

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[quote user="jxedwards"]

The Numpty blowing himself up with his 'consumer unit'. [/quote]

ooooh!

Funnily enough i have just updated two fuse boards, and any electrician will tell you, is the devils job, not to drop a wire, put one in the place etc etc, its much easier to do a new installation, so I might advise you give it a miss unless your 100% sure you can complete it,,,,,,,,can imagine how an electrician will charge to put it right if you make mess of it.

Also, dont have it right to hand, but recently read a canadian piece on the dangers, some guy wiring an office was asked by a receptionist what she was going to do about her typing if the power was off,,,so Mr electrician said no problem he would make some change so they had power......while he had been working earlier he had disturbed a 480v incoming line which he couldnt see but had damaged, in his haste to give them power, the explosion that occurred killed him and hospitalised 5 of the office staff, ELECTRICITY REALLY IS DANGEROUS, and unfortunately theres no known cure.

the labour costs to update a consumer unit should not be so expensive 3 - 500 euros plus breakers etc

:)

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[quote user="tj"]

Funnily enough i have just updated two fuse boards, and any electrician will tell you, is the devils job, not to drop a wire, put one in the place etc etc, its much easier to do a new installation, so I might advise you give it a miss unless your 100% sure you can complete it,,,,,,,,can imagine how an electrician will charge to put it right if you make mess of it.

[/quote]

Quite so. Get a neutral in the wrong place and nothing will happen until you plug something in, then the breaker goes. Nightmare to find.

BTW, I've always reckoned that faulty plumbing is alot more destructive than faulty electrics; Electricty doesn't leak out of a (untouched) broken wire, water does! Then again, I hate plumbing, leaks always occur on the cold side...

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I'd like to go against the grain and suggest that I think it is practical to do so without prior experience.  I did it with no prior experience and found French electrics very straightforward and the whole system rather intuitive.  I consulted an excellent guidebook - l'installation electrique, had some good advice from others and applied some common sense.
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[quote user="Nick Trollope"][quote user="tj"][/quote]

BTW, I've always reckoned that faulty plumbing is alot more destructive than faulty electrics; Electricty doesn't leak out of a (untouched) broken wire, water does! [/quote]

I maintain that there is very little difference between plumbing and electrics, in plumbing the copper or plastic pipe keeps the water inside unless there is a leak, in electrics the insulation keeps the smoke inside until it breaks down[:D]

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It's all a wee bit 'Fundamentalist PC' The way the OP is being responded to is it not? 5 posts from joining the board bit early days for 'Robust' reponses maybe........

Wiring a board can be relatively simpledepending upon circumstances / site conditions.

Water when it leaks has an uncanny knack of being able to find electrics.......

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I disagree, its not fundamentalist PC, its valid warning comments.

The OP seemed to be somewhat unsure of his capabilities regarding wiring and, as such, its not really a good idea to start working on systems which can be seriously health threatening.

Many of us on this forum are electrically experienced, I am, although not a "certified" electrician (does being a fully qualified Electrical Engineer count?). We give our advice freely and without prejudice. At the end of the day its up to the individual to decide whether to take the chance based on his/her own assessment of their capabilities and knowledge.

I agree that wiring a tableau is (or an be) relatively simple but my view is based on knowledge and experience as no doubt yours is. The problem is that it can look simple enough to someone who has never done it and thinks "thats simple, I can do that", its the lack of underlying knowledge of principles and practice that can make it very dangerous.

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PC please don't get me started on that!!!

Blunt and to the point I strongly believe that people should be made aware of the hazards that badly installed electrical devices/installations can pose/threat.

Would the OP consider installing his own gas installation? I somewhat doubt it as gas smells and explodes. As has been pointed out electricity is an unseen hazard but still a potentially lethal hazard.

Am I qualified to comment, yes. Opposite to powerdeseal I am a UK qualified electrician in another life, and I now work as an electrical commissioning engineer of 18 years experience. To date I have never lost anyone on my watch and do not intend to do so.

Dispite early comments I really do not want the OP to end his days prematurely which if he goes ahead with this retrofit is a distinct possibility.

Please oh gentle kind friendly people be aware that electricity can be a potential hazard.

Is that PC enough?

Me I prefer;

 

Pay attention out there anyone non-qualified meddling halfwit DIYer's out there think they can mess with electricity because it looks easy don't. It kills suddenly you have been warned!!!

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Electrics to me is a mechanical thing......

You use screws or other mechanical means to make connections.

There is nothing in the wires or the pipes until you turn on the electrics or water. Electrics are even colour coded.

The problem is when, due to incorrectly wiring something the thing is live OR there is no earth connection.

In the house we have bought I assume that it was a 'qualified electrician' who installed some additional socket outlets of the live, neutral and earth variety by extending the existing two wire system thereby not requiring to install an earth cable because there was nothing to connect it to.

Paul

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If you are buying a property to renovate here then the one thing you should not skimp on by trying to save money and that is electrical work. Spend some money and get it done properly and safely by a qualified artisan and you will sleep better at night rather than wondering IF you have done it properly. My son is a fully qualified french electrician and sometimes sees properties where his Dad is working and has a fit at the DIY the owners have carried out. Remember if there is a fire or a death related to poor unqualified work,insurers will not pay a single centime. Please do not be another BF or P&O electrician.
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[quote user="Val_2"]If you are buying a property to renovate here then the one thing you should not skimp on by trying to save money and that is electrical work. Spend some money and get it done properly and safely by a qualified artisan and you will sleep better at night rather than wondering IF you have done it properly. My son is a fully qualified french electrician and sometimes sees properties where his Dad is working and has a fit at the DIY the owners have carried out. Remember if there is a fire or a death related to poor unqualified work,insurers will not pay a single centime. Please do not be another BF or P&O electrician.[/quote]

Agreed - we have had a complete rewire including new fusebox (5 bed, 3 bathroom, 250 m2 house) for less that 4k euro by a french fully qualified and insured electrician.  Imho - not  worth the hassle / risk of trying to do it ourselves.  Plus we have a guarantee if (heaven forbid) there should be a problem.

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[quote user="melmoth"]

I'm considering putting in a new consumer unit and have a choice - I have a good electrician who will put one ine in with breakers etc or I can do it myself - can anyone tell me how practicable this is? For instance whilst replacing some wiring a couple of years ago I got a shock which I'm told shouldn't have happened and that I';ve probably got a problem with the earth. Could I fix that easilt? Is it a big deal to connect the unit to the main supply?

Also any advice on which Internet provider to go for would be most useful.

Also - I wanyt a French PAYG mobile mainly to make emergency calls and to receive calls free - any suggestions?

Thanks

Brendan

[/quote]

Hi are you still there Melmoth 18 posts and not a word of reply, hope you have not blown your house up.

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Let us put the cat amongst the pigeons.

I am pretty upset about the tone of replies to this :

“ I'm considering putting in a new consumer unit and have a choice - I have a good electrician who will put one ine in with breakers etc or I can do it myself - can anyone tell me how practicable this is? For instance whilst replacing some wiring a couple of years ago I got a shock which I'm told shouldn't have happened and that I';ve probably got a problem with the earth. Could I fix that easilt? Is it a big deal to connect the unit to the main supply? “

Returning to the original question :

 

It is perfectly possible provided you are prepared to research and understand the theory and practise and can work methodically. You need either a reasonable command of French or and understanding of the rules in the UK and an acceptance that in France they do things differently. Both Castorama and Leroy Merlin produce very short and in my opinion totally inadequate leaflets on replacing Tablea d electricite. The parts of your original posting that are bold suggest you may have problems with this.

 

http://www.leroymerlin.fr/mpng2-front/pre?zone=zonecatalogue&idLSPub=1081511655

 

 

If you work with a French installation without switching off all power and then checking all wires are dead you will eventually receive a shock. Ways to dusty death include mixed power and light wires within the same conduit. Telerupte/Relay feeds on different circuit breakers to the lights they switch. Use of green and yellow wires for power to and from switches. Parts of a house actually on the neighbour’s power supply.

 

I cannot see why a problem with the earth would cause you to receive a shock if you had switched off the entire system. It is easy to improve the quality of a French earth. Picquets be Terre (earth spikes you hammer in) a thicker copper feed to replace the thin strands that you frequently see in older French homes. The proper testing of an earth is a complex procedure but not that difficult.

 

I am basically a coward / know my limits. I have reshelled cars, caved, scuba dived, serviced light aircraft, navigated light aircraft and small boats, replaced brake disc and drums on cars any of which if you do not do it correctly will kill you. If it were legal and I owned the appropriate test equipment I would instal my own gas pipes.

 

On average I think you will find more people die from badly vented chimneys / CO1 poisoning that are electrocuted in Europe each year .

 Now would one of you sanctimonious people like to post in detail about how you test the quality an earth with or without a MEGGAR I would be pleased to read it. Sorry if this sounds a bit aggressive but I thought most of the replies were less use than a condom which had encountered a cheese grater.

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[quote user="Tandem_Pilot"][quote user="Val_2"] Please do not be another BF or P&O electrician.[/quote]

? [8-)]

[/quote]

Alex - a common phrase here to describe people who come here from one profession,nothing to do with building trades and suddenly they are expert electricians,builders;plumbers etc starting up businesses with no idea of what they are doing when the real artisans have had to study for years,take exams etc and work hard to earn a living, also known as cowboys.

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I don't know whether we may have dissuaded the OP from entering into the electrical fray or from the Forum itself. Simply put electrical work like any other engineering work in my opinion can be done one of two ways  1) The right way 2) The wrong way. Option 2 can be very unforgiving, option 1 is perfectly achievable if you have the moxy, wherewithall and plan to ensure you don't dim the lights in the village on your way to meet God.

And for the record

I am not a sparks and never will be, does supervising electrical installation in a nuclear reactor chamber count as valid experience?

I would rather try to help in a supportive fashion, call me old fashioned................

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[quote user="Anton Redman"]

 Now would one of you sanctimonious people like to post in detail about how you test the quality an earth with or without a MEGGAR

[/quote]

I doubt if a MEGGER would be much use in measuring earth resistance. I'd use (indeed I do use) an earth resistance tester, a specialist bit of kit, used for measuring earth resistance...

Sanctimonious enough?

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