Asked to supply a log cabin

Wondering what other sparks would do here.

Got asked to go look at supplying a future log home in a back garden. The client wished to make it into an AIr BNB, so bathroom with a shower and a kitchen with appliances etc. On my arrival, I looked at consumer units within the property and discovered there was 7 boards different ones in different locations.

Nearest consumer unit was a container which i was pretty sure it only had a 6mm supplying it and it was a rewire able fuse db.

I then went back to the main consumer unit within the property which was plastic and had no RCD protection. With so much going on within the property I advised on carrying out an EICR as i believed someone has been doing additions/alterations themselves.

Turns out there is 56 circuits within the house and out buildings. I gave the client a price which they didn't expect, i also made them aware after the EICR there will no doubt be plenty observations.

To keep costs down i was thinking about just testing the circuits within the main DB and working it out from there - again i wouldn't be too pleased in doing this.

What do we think?

Thanks

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  • More questions than answers I think.

    Is this a single phase 100A supply ? Is there an obvious 'origin' CU feeding the others - so really it is 'container supply' or 'garage supply' or whatever that are 30A sub mains  feeding final circuit sub-boards at the  locations. or is it lots of boards on Henley splitters only fused at the meter tails level of protection ? 
    The former would sound like an industrial spark used to big factories but working on domestics, and  may be OK if the final circuits have RCD cover, that latter would be a someone too tight to pay for a larger main board ;-) 

    Agree, a quick tot-up of total loads to see if an upgrade is recommended, but there are plenty of flats with showers sharing fuses that give no issue, so it may be alright.
    Does it look like things have been overheating or damaged ?

    are there heavy loads ?

    Do you want the aggro ?

    Mike.
    PS cheapest if slightly dishonourable  is to do your bit as another small CU, split at the meter  tails and say ' I'm leaving all that alone and not testing it ' to the existing rest of it.

  • Yes 100a main fuse supplying the property. 

    There is a main cu withing the property which supplies other boards, but im sure it was like a cu will feed another one then that one would feed another one and so on.

    Kind of dont want to get involved with testing Smiley

  •  it was like a cu will feed another one then that one would feed another one and so on

    Yep. that is someone used to industrial work, stick another DB instead of run more than one cable all the way back !


    Mind you I can't really be too disapproving, I have a CU in the house one way of which is a 32A sub main that feeds a small DB in the garage, that in turn has RCBOs doing garage lights and power, and one more MCB way in that feeds an SWA submain that goes to the two sheds, each of which has small DB that splits the supply over separate power and lights RCBOs . It minimises the walk to reset things, and in practice has never tripped on anything that was not a real fault.
    So I can sympathise. (quick sanity check is an IR test over the whole lot from the house CU end and R2 wander to verify as many far point earths as can  sensibly be reached and note the highest ... )

    Mike.

Reply
  •  it was like a cu will feed another one then that one would feed another one and so on

    Yep. that is someone used to industrial work, stick another DB instead of run more than one cable all the way back !


    Mind you I can't really be too disapproving, I have a CU in the house one way of which is a 32A sub main that feeds a small DB in the garage, that in turn has RCBOs doing garage lights and power, and one more MCB way in that feeds an SWA submain that goes to the two sheds, each of which has small DB that splits the supply over separate power and lights RCBOs . It minimises the walk to reset things, and in practice has never tripped on anything that was not a real fault.
    So I can sympathise. (quick sanity check is an IR test over the whole lot from the house CU end and R2 wander to verify as many far point earths as can  sensibly be reached and note the highest ... )

    Mike.

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