Surely the whole point of a DIY install is the removal of notification bodies, approved contractors etc from the loop ;-) Much like we had pre part P for all electrics. 

Mike.

Below is something I penned a few months ago on the discussion called

Plug-in Solar supposedly going to be 'easier'?

It seems that we are going to repeat the EVSE issue again.  The industry is moving much faster than the regulations thus with no regulations/product specifications in place in the UK we are at the mercy of the sales and marketing team of the manufacturer.  Uk government and BSI and IET need to take a somewhat proactive approach to the product spec and start getting something down on paper (other type of medium are available).  I agree that version 1 may not be a a mature specification but it is better than nothing.  

As a sidenote with DIY solar/DIY inverter/DIY battery storage there needs to be a working group for the UK discussing and designing UK power stability be it through inertia or other mechanisms to proactively stabilising the UK power grid.  

psychicwarrior said:

Cue another early amendment and Section in BS7671 and   another 'membership' level in the brilliant CPSs for the trade to do DIY Solar installs.

BS7671 AMD5 does have a ring to it.  JPEL64 must be fuming

Sergio Fernandez said:

BS7671 AMD5 does have a ring to it.  JPEL64 must be fuming

It's not like balcony solar is new, it's been available in Germany since 2021 or earlier and, quick check, there's over 1 Million systems installed in Germany, so this has been coming for a long time and for anyone following developments outside UK, was visible over the last few years.

They've only themselves to blame, these bodies and committees should be carrying out some horizon scanning type activity, to see what new technologies and topics are coming along, being rolled out in other countries and require considering because they're likely to arrive in Britain at some point. 

TurboGen said:

They've only themselves to blame, these bodies and committees should be carrying out some horizon scanning type activity, to see what new technologies and topics are coming along, being rolled out in other countries and require considering because they're likely to arrive in Britain at some point. 

That's a bit harsh. Perhaps if the manufacturers wish to market the systems in UK, they should have been finding a way to make them compliant with BS 7671, etc.

Chris Pearson said:

That's a bit harsh. Perhaps if the manufacturers wish to market the systems in UK, they should have been finding a way to make them compliant with BS 7671, etc.

Why does a system that is not permanently installed, and plugs in to a socket, even need to comply with BS7671? My kettle doesn't comply with BS7671 either.

just wait 'till 'they' throw it on the roof with an extension lead   ;-)     hehe

It might be easier to have this discussion in one thread instead of two. Granted a 'balcony' PV system is not part of the installation, but 551.7.2(ii) forbids its connection to a final circuit with a plug and socket.

551.7.2(ii) forbids its connection to a final circuit with a plug and socket.

Curiously a circuit with only a generator connected to it wouldn't count as a final circuit - as it has no current-using equipment (or sockets for current-using equipment) - and that prohibition doesn't apply to non-final circuits. Probably not what was intended, but...

Then there's the question of whether a plug-in appliance generator (presumably complying with some suitable equipment standard) are deemed to be part of the BS 7671 installation at all - The scope of 551 talks about "installations which incorporate generating sets" - the dictionary meaning of incorporate could be read either way to my mind - whether something that could be unplugged at a whim is really an part of the whole, or merely a temporary addition to it.

   - Andy.

I think that the Government's press release makes it clear that existing ordinary BS 1363 sockets would be used:

The free solar power can be used directly through a mains socket like any other device, without an installation cost ..."[my emphasis].

However, let's park that for the moment.

AJJewsbury said:

Curiously a circuit with only a generator connected to it wouldn't count as a final circuit

Agreed. However, if you were to use a plug and socket, it would have to be distinct from BS 1363, etc., so why not the special German one?

The German socket appears to have female contacts, so would comply with the definition of a socket-outlet, but a socket-inlet could be defined.

On this basis, indent 1 of 551.7.2 applies, so we do not have to worry about sub-paragraph (ii) of indent 2.

AJJewsbury said:

The scope of 551 talks about "installations which incorporate generating sets"

It is an interesting choice of word. An alternative might be, "embody". Also, 550.1 refers to, "... equipment ... intended to be part of the fixed installation." 

There I struggle. If any generating set which is plugged in is out of scope of Chapter 55, sub-paragraph (ii) of 551.7.2 is otiose.

Interesting debate!