The IET is carrying out some important updates between 17-30 April and all of our websites will be view only. For more information, read this Announcement

This discussion is locked.
You cannot post a reply to this discussion. If you have a question start a new discussion

Plastic consumer units/enclosures etc

I have a job where a small former outside toilet is being converted into a hobby pottery complete with water supply and small kiln.

I propose to fit a small plastic consumer unit with the appropriate IP rating for protection against ingress of water.

This will be a home brew job with a generic enclosure and a RCD main switch and mcbs from my spares stock.

I have seen many metal enclosures rusting quietly away in detached garages/w/shops/outbuildings and thought they would be better served by using plastic.


I think there is still a case to be made for fitting plastic consumer unit enclosures in outbuildings in order to prevent deteriation caused by external influences. Moist atmosphere, unheated spaces and the like.


Any other like-minded souls out there?

Comments welcome.
Parents
  • A solid magnesium CU would be quite awkward from a corrosion perspective and perhaps quite fun in a very hot fire. However, I do not believe that magnesium when bonded to other atoms has to always count  - if it did in a blanket sense, then magnesium oxide , present in fire resistant plaster board and as a inert whitener, would be  a problem (it is also the white powder inside pyrotenax cable).


    I agree that at some point, magnesium with hint of aluminium might be an issue, but Aluminium with silicon and perhaps 3 to 8 % magnesium  in to stiffen up a soft metal, less so. It is an awful idea from the point of corrosion of course, as no doubt it will be fixed with steel screws, but the Mg content is not a big concern.  typical die cast alloy composition


    This building regs ban you mention, I presume it is new,  - do you have a reference or link? It is always possible that once again our civil service (who are often neither) need reminding of some basic science, and that atoms in an alloy behave very differently to the pure element.
Reply
  • A solid magnesium CU would be quite awkward from a corrosion perspective and perhaps quite fun in a very hot fire. However, I do not believe that magnesium when bonded to other atoms has to always count  - if it did in a blanket sense, then magnesium oxide , present in fire resistant plaster board and as a inert whitener, would be  a problem (it is also the white powder inside pyrotenax cable).


    I agree that at some point, magnesium with hint of aluminium might be an issue, but Aluminium with silicon and perhaps 3 to 8 % magnesium  in to stiffen up a soft metal, less so. It is an awful idea from the point of corrosion of course, as no doubt it will be fixed with steel screws, but the Mg content is not a big concern.  typical die cast alloy composition


    This building regs ban you mention, I presume it is new,  - do you have a reference or link? It is always possible that once again our civil service (who are often neither) need reminding of some basic science, and that atoms in an alloy behave very differently to the pure element.
Children
No Data