can different makes be put in different consumer units. Was at a job where the board was of a make that the wholesalers don't sell .as it happened the breaker start working
can different makes be put in different consumer units. Was at a job where the board was of a make that the wholesalers don't sell .as it happened the breaker start working
Philip, it is definitely d.c. else there would not be a huge shed about a mile (1.6 km) from here.
I can see how d.c. transmits power, but a.c. has always been a mystery to me, and probably always will be.
I believe there are currently three interconnectors between the UK and France (IFA / IFA-2 / ElecLink) all of which are high voltage direct current (HVDC).
The interconnector between the UK and the Isle of Man is the only undersea interconnector that I can think of that is alternating current (AC).
- Ross
I can see how d.c. transmits power, but a.c. has always been a mystery to me, and probably always will be.
One analogy I liked was a bike chain. You don't have to move the pedals very far to make the back wheel move (one link doesn't have to go all the way around before anything happens, it just needs to nudge its neighbour) - indeed where the wheel has a ratchet you can make the back wheel turn consistently in the same direction just by moving the pedals forward a little, then back by the same amount, repeat.
- Andy.
And a bike that has a shaft drive. Big cycles at the pedals. Small diameter shaft. Massive diameter at the wheels
[OK, so it has frequency changing bits for the cycles as well, but some ideas for large-small timescale conversion, compared to no pedals and a tow rope 
]
Personally I would say do not mix brands in a CU. (one Caveat in SPD type 2). They (MCB, RCD, RCBO) are NOT type tested in a mixed brand environment and in the court of UK law you will carry the burden IF something went wrong as YOU were the last person inside that CU.
Personally I won't mix makes unless I have compatibility confirmed, also very cautious about mixing different models from same company as there are plenty of compatibility issues. Especially with companies that white label products from others.
If I need to keep someone going on a temporary basis I dig in to my collection of old breakers. But on the clear understanding its temporary and the board needs changing.
Board probably already needs changing because of type ac rcds anyway.
Morning All and a Happy New Year to you All!
A special year this year for the Wiring Regulation, as an anorak, as a new regs book will be added to my extensive collection of Regs. books will be added to with a new book. I can only go back to 1924 with paper editions and a full house in PDFs.
Anyway the current edition in Regulation 536.4.203 says that intergration of devices and components in to assemblies conforming to BS EN 61439, "shall only be those declared suitable according to the assembly manufacturer's instructions and literature". Its a "shall" so not optional. Manufactuers will only warrant their components not other manufactuers, why would they ?
There is a Note to the regulation, and we know that notes are informatiove not normative, that says, " the person introducing the deviaton becomes the original manufactuer with the correspondig obligations". So you would be very brave to do that given the obligation you are taking on, and do you have the relavant insurance to do that?
If I see mix and match components in a board I would always report it on an EICR and record it as a C3 not an FI as I know the answer the OEM would give if I made an inquiry.
JP
can different makes be put in different consumer units. Was at a job where the board was of a make that the wholesalers don't sell .as it happened the breaker start working
Not really ... see Regulation 536.4.203 of BS 7671:2018+A2:2022.
One of the main reasons for this is the conditional prospective fault current rating and associated UK-specific testing ... discussed further in this post: engx.theiet.org/.../153686
John Peckham gives very sound advice
Can you tell me how many court cases have taken place over such instances whereby the mixing of brands has resulted in fire or serious damage? Please provide links.
Can anyone tell me what Type Testing comprises of? I.E. what methods are used?
Is it a case of applying a 100A rated supply to the main switch of say, a fully populated consumer unit and then applying a full load to each individual mcb up to it's rating?
How is Type testing actually done? What is measured? The ambient temp insde the enclosure? How do they measure for non-operation in the event of the air inside the enclosure reaching an overtemp state? What other parameters are measured and monitored?
As for obtaining a economical solution to a problem, what is worse? Fitting a correct but 2nd hand mcb or fitting a different branded one but with the same form factor/footprint whereby only the brand label on the front differs?
Forgive me for being a little cynical.
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