Replacing two old pin sockets

[DavidM]

When we first moved into our current house 30 years ago I installed a number of two pin round (3A?) sockets around the skirting board in the living room, linked to a light switch, for feeding table lamps around the room (we prefer that sort of low level distributed lighting). A couple of these have now cracked (courtesy of the vacuum cleaner) and we also have two metal table lamps. These sockets of course have no earth! I'd like to replace the lot with 3 pin (with earth) sockets, but not normal

3 pin square ones (don't want anyone plugging an electric fire into it). Can anyone suggest a suitable replacement (and source of them)? David (remove _notme to email)

[Andrew Gabriel]

You can only do this if the cables to the sockets carry an earth conductor which is connected all the way back to the consumer unit.

I would suggest using 2A BS546 plugs and sockets (the smallest of the old round pin plugs and sockets). They are ideal for this purpose. They are available from larger B&Q's and anywhere with a wide range of electrical accessories. Note that you must use shuttered sockets in the home (they are also available without shuttered sockets for commercial use). Some people use the 5A version, but this is not required unless the light itself uses more than 2A (480W), and you probably wouldn't want a lamp of that power on your lighting circuit anyway.

Another plug and socket type I use for lighting are the Klik ones, but you probably don't want a locking plug/socket for portable lamps -- they are better for fixed lighting. You would have to go to an electrical wholesaler for these, or a mail order supplier with a very wide range.

[Palindr☻me]

What he said.. But I wouldn't have put it that well.. ;)

[Jim Gregory]

The shuttered, 3-pole BS546 panel sockets - fitted either as a single or daisy-chained in a group - must be suitably protected via a switched fused connection unit (with or without neon) fed from a T&E spur. Jim

[Andrew Gabriel]

I was presuming they are on the lighting circuit, but I'll grant you that the OP didn't actually say that.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Both 2 and 5 amp 3 pin sockets are readily available from wholesalers - even the larger B&Q sell them.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Not if they're on a lighting circuit as implied.

[Andy Wade]

And the fused connection unit, if required, does not need to be switched.

[Nigel Molesworth]

Lots of advice on how to replace with old technology, why not look at the modern connectors for this very purpose. Here is an example:

[Jim Gregory]

Beyond present Regs, IMO it's prudent to fuse-protect a spur (is it lighting or power?) - especially if feeding poster's unfused plugs to metal lamps - and also to enable/interrupt those appliances via a switch at arm's reach - near their points of usage. Cost difference here to incorporate both aspects is minimal. Jim

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Rather larger than a 2 amp three pin setup, doesn't use standard boxes etc, and I'll bet costs a lot more. And that's before the hideous looks. ;-)

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Says to me lighting, given the OP said they were controlled by a lighting switch.

Who's to say any switch close to the outlet or wherever will be within arm's length? And the same could equally apply to any earthed object plugged into any socket.

However, I'm sure you could find a maker of switched round pin 5 amp sockets if you tried hard enough.

[Nigel Molesworth]

Fair point, but it was just one example.

MK used to make 13A plugs/sockets with a non-standard earth pin, but I couldn't find them on their web site. There is also a system that you insert the plug then twist, these are often used in wiring bays.

My situation is a bit different from the OP, but I have 13A sockets to power the striplights above my kitchen cupboards. It is unlikely that anyone would plug in a hoover by mistake.

Is there any reason why one couldn't use a Schuko?

[DavidM]

Thanks to all for your advice. The current light sockets are all on one spur from a light switch (and a

350w dimmer as it happens, but this keeps failing), which is in turn part of the ground floor lighting circuit supplied via an MCB in the CU. The sockets presently only have twin cable, but I will replace this with 1.5 T&E, with the earth linked back to the CU. Fortunately underfloor access is quite easy. Don't understand why a seperate fused switch plus neon is necessary, if these were all just fixed wall lights one wouldn't normally expect this. Anyway, as the sockets are all around the perimeter of a (long) room, they won't all be within arms reach of a single switch. I'll check B&Q for the 2A round pin sockets/plugs. David.

[david lang]

Wot one of them?

Sounds like a napoleonic soldiers hat?

Dave

[Nigel Molesworth]

See

[Andy Wade]

They're not listed in Section 553 of BS 7671 and in any case they're not shuttered. Moreover it's a 16 A connector and you wouldn't want them on a lighting circuit any more than you'd want a 13 A socket - due to the risk of someone plugging in a high-power appliance.

You seem to have dismissed the eminently suitable BS 546 round-pin types simply because they're "old technology." Insulated copper wires are quite old technology too.

[Andrew Gabriel]

It's not. Actually, it would be silly. The MCB will work better than any fuse in a fused connection unit, and extra fusing will just cause confusion. 2A sockets are designed to be used on commercial lighting circuits protected at up to 10A, so there's no problem running them on domestic 5A/6A lighting circuits.

[Andrew Gabriel]

These are the Klik plugs and sockets I mentioned earlier. They are only a tiny bit bigger than 2A plugs, and sockets are available to fit in architrave or BESA boxes. They are locking, because you can mount them on a ceiling and hang a pendant from them without the plug pulling out.

[Chris Hodges]

Very common in pubs etc. A mate of mine used to carry a cable with a 2A plug and 13A socket for charging his mobile off them.