Splitting power in shed

[SGKent]

Hello all,

I have a workshop shed and an armoured power cable running under the ground to it. I want to split the power for sockets and a light. Anyone done this before? What did you use to split the power to go to a light switch and sockets?

Many thanks.

 

[woodbrains]

Hello,

Put in a small consumer unit. You can get garage/shed ones, or, if you are planning to make a workshop with several machines, get a dual RCD split consumer unit and fit the appropriate rated MCB's.

Mike.

 

[n0legs]

Does your cable and installation have the capacity to do both lights and sockets?
What does it feed at the moment?

Like Woodbrains said, you'll need a consumer unit and it will best if it's a metal one.

 

[bussy]

Hi
As from 1st Jan 2016 all DB's must be constructed of a non conbustable material, or house in a cabinet or enclosure constructed of non conbustable material.

Marty

 

[Adam9453]

This needs to be done by a qualified person

 

[mrpercysnodgrass]

This is what you will need for your shed, its pretty straight forward to fit.

http://www.screwfix.com/p/wylex-2-way-m ... -rcd/3401h

 

[AJB Temple]

Depedning on how much space you have got in your shed and what you want to power, it may be worth fitting a consumer unit with some spare capacity. For example in mine I have

Rotary isolator switch (cuts everything). I think this is a good idea for safety purposes.
Consumer unit with full RCCD protection then supplies: 13 amp ring main (and two outside sockets), lighting circuit (including outside lights and I think probably the alarm system), roof ventilator circuit (6 fans), dust extraction circuit and a 16amp supply, and finally a secondary supply to our potting shed and greenhouse. Plus a couple of spares. This is run through a 4mm armoured (original supply) and a 16mm armoured (new supply).

I did all the wiring myself (having agreed a spec with the electrician) and to comply with Part P of the building regs it was inspected, tested and signed off by a quaffed electrician (who was excellent). You are in Kent as well so I can give you his details if you want.

 

[SGKent]

Thanks for the feedback guys. Much appreciated.

Here's some more info just to put a couple of minds at rest. The cable which currently runs to the workshop was for the old shed the previous owner had. The cable itself is up to scratch, what isn't is the power source, which is a socket in the conservatory. I plan to get a sparky in to join the circuit with the one which currently goes to the garage, or however he would recommend it. The wiring inside the shed I will do myself.

In the workshop itself, I plan to have 3 or more lighting points which will use low wattage LED lamps. I will have up to 4 double sockets in there too, more for convenience than any industrial level machinery. At most I plan to have a chop saw and router otherwise the power will be for a spot light and any lighter hand power tools I may need, there will be no instance in which more than one tool is active.

AJB, that would be nice if you could PM his details. Thanks a lot. I'm between Sittingbourne and Faversham which is a right faff to get to from your neck of the woods, so it depends where he's based more than anything I suppose - but would be good to get someone who I can trust to know his stuff.

 

[AJB Temple]

PM me your email address and I will send you the details. Not sure if he goes as far afield as you but he may be able to recommend someone. Adrian

 

[SGKent]

I used the suggested consumer unit and wired the workshop with a coil circuit for the sockets and a parallel circuit for the lights. I got in touch with the electrician AJB recommended - he was happy with the work I did and will finish it off by connecting the armoured cable to the main fuse box... I also needed other work done which he will do. very nice guy with integrity, very thorough and passionate and knowledgeable about what he does, which is always great to see.

 

[AJB Temple]

Good to hear. I would recommend him publicly but then he would get even busier and I would not get my installations done!

 

[woodpig]

I had an electrician wire up my shed and he used a standard two way garage/shed style consumer unit and it's rubbish. The RCD is on the input side so if a power socket trips the RCD it turns off the lights as well.

 

[DTR]

I had an electrician wire up my shed and he used a standard two way garage/shed style consumer unit and it's rubbish. The RCD is on the input side so if a power socket trips the RCD it turns off the lights as well.

I'm fairly certain that's the norm, I've never seen it done any other way.

 

[HappyHacker]

I had an electrician wire up my shed and he used a standard two way garage/shed style consumer unit and it's rubbish. The RCD is on the input side so if a power socket trips the RCD it turns off the lights as well.

That is indeed the norm. But for a workshop where there may be hazards on the floor and sharp things going round and round I would recommend RCBOs which incorporate the RCD and the MCB in one unit so you have one for lights and one for power or many more in a larger workshop with more circuits.

The normal problem however is that if the supply to the workshop is from the house it may already have an RCD at the house consumer unit and RCDs do not discriminate so if two or more are in series the quickest will trip first which in my experience is the one furthest away :-( . The type of wiring from the house to the workshop dictates whether or not an RCD is needed at the house end.

If the lights going out is a problem, fit a little LED emergency light to the lighting circuit supply and it will turn on when the power trips. They are available for less than £20.00 and are bright enough to let you see what is going on. I often fit them near consumer units so that people can see to reset RCDs or MCBs.