Is it allowed ...

... to use 3 core (ie, brown/blue/earth) flex where the earth is used as a live conductor? (With appropriate red markings)?

The twilight sensor on my outside lighting has failed, and I don't really want to reuse the 20 y/o wiring to it, nor do I want to buy a couple of meters of 3 core (no earth required; the sensor isn't earthed). Last time I just used 2 pieces of 2 core flex in parallel & marked one of them up as the switched live, but that's a nasty kludge, too.

Reply to
Huge
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nope.

Reply to
Andy Burns

What if the OP used brown markings and not red ones:-)?

Reply to
ARW

I suspected not. Oh, well, better look forward to getting reamed for a couple of meters of appropriate cable. Probably costs more than the bloody sensor, which was 6 quid on eBay.

Reply to
Huge

I'd think not really, but I doubt if ,in practice if it matters, just disconnect it before you

1 die 2 Move 3 go into hospital!

Brian

Reply to
Brian Gaff

It's disconnecting it before someone else dies that's the issue!

The chapter and verse is

"514-04-02 The bi-colour combination green-and-yellow shall be used exclusively for identification of a protective conductor and this combination shall not be used for any other purpose. Single-core cables that are coloured green-and-yellow throughout their length shall only be used as a protective conductor and shall not be over-marked at their terminations, except as permitted by Regulation 514-04-03"

514-04-03 relates to combined earth/neutral conductors which can be green/yellow marked with blue sleeving, or blue marked with green/yellow sleeving.
Reply to
Andy Burns

This

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is £3.50 a metre on ebay.

Triple+E cable is a lot cheaper.

Or strip some flex to get the cores you need and heatshrink them all togeth er to make your own cable?

Owain

Reply to
spuorgelgoog

5m for just under 6 quid delivered on ebay so not quite :-)

Darren

Reply to
D.M.Chapman

I've got a drum of 3+E sitting in the garage, that's of no use as it's old colours. I'm sure a couple of meters could find their way into a jiffy bag ...

Reply to
Andy Burns

BTW, when the original one failed & I came to replace it with the present one, it had been wired with T+E, with the earth used as a live conductor. It had been wrapped in red tape ...

Reply to
Huge

Well, a little more:

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but you will have some spare for the next time.

Reply to
fred

Looking at that reg I'd say it wasn't a problem. He's thinking of using 3 core with the terminations marked, not single core, nor an unmarked green/yellow core.

Reply to
John

I realise you can "twist" it that way ... if you're saying the second sentence isn't the operative one in Huge's case because he isn't using single core cable, then the first sentence must be, and it says green/yellow must not be used for any other purpose.

Reply to
Andy Burns

The second sentence outlaws marking at the terminations for single core cables, the first sentence does not outlaw marking at the terminations.

Reply to
John

On Saturday 23 November 2013 17:00 Huge wrote in uk.d-i-y:

No, never.

If anyone cares, I'm pretty sure that I can locate a specific regulation, because I *think* I recall coming across it a long time ago.

Anyway, Irrespective, to use a core that is designated along is length with green/yellow markings is highly unwise when some other bugger[1] comes along, makes a valid assumption then kills themselves.

[1] This type of scenario usually involves "some other bugger" because you know what you did. But not your sparky (if heaven forbid, you got too old to fix something, or you were away and SWMBO had to call one in in an emergency) or the guy you sold your house to...

It's a safer kludge... The correct way of course is a bit of 4 core, earthed at one end and the redundant earth terminated blind at the far.

>
Reply to
Tim Watts

On Saturday 23 November 2013 17:23 Andy Burns wrote in uk.d-i-y:

Ah - knew I'd seen that before...

Reply to
Tim Watts

On Saturday 23 November 2013 17:42 Huge wrote in uk.d-i-y:

Even worse - conductor without basic insulation (the sheath's job is to protect not to insulate).

Reply to
Tim Watts

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- a useful supplier for short lengths - do YY control flex by the metre at sensible prices. N-core YY cable gives you one grn/ylw core for the CPC plus N-1 numbered black cores which you can sleeve brown or blue etc. as required.

Reply to
Andy Wade

In message , Tim Watts writes

I asked a similar question in here a little while ago when I found my electro-mechanical thermostat actually needed a neutral to work correctly. Like you I remember the answer was definitely no.

Reply to
bert

For short lengths of twin/triple and earth in that situation, I tend to just pull out the whole conductor. Being uninsulated, it comes out pretty easily.

Cheers,

Colin.

Reply to
Colin Stamp

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