Extending ring main

[s--p--o--n--i--x]

A friend is needing more sockets downstairs.

They currently have about 10 sockets on the downstairs ring main and would like to add two more.

They called up an electrician who quoted an extortionate price. The explaination given was that he could only take one spur off a single socket, hence the cost involved with running cables from two existing sockets.

However, I have had a look and the ring main runs below where the new sockets are to be placed. It looks like a 30 minute job to be honest.

Whilst he is correct in saying that you can only take a single spur off of an individual socket, why can't he simply extend the ring main?

Am I missing something? Why isn't it possible to simply cut the ring main at this point and add the two new sockets?

(The floor area of the house is small, the fuse is, I think, 30amp)

sponix

[Andrew Gabriel]

Actually he's wrong on this point. There may be specific reasons in this case such as not enough wiring space in the back box or not enough space in the terminals (easily solvable by replacing the socket with a different make) or grossley loading the ring very near one end, but there's no rule stating that you can only take one spur from one socket. I sounds like he's got confused about the recommendation on the total number of spurs on a ring circuit, which makes no reference to their placement.

You would have to ask him. However, it sounds like you would be better off finding a different electrician -- he might have simply not wanted the job.

[s--p--o--n--i--x]

Thanks. Just wanted to check I wasn't having one of my dense moments.

[Martin Angove]

Ok, define "extortionate". Bear in mind that if this electrician is going to certify everything that his tests and paper filling alone will probably take at least 30 minutes onsite and then a bit more offsite as he notifies Building Control.

When you say the cables run "below" the sockets, do you mean below a suspended wooden floor? If so, without taking up floorboards and the like (difficult to do on a free evaluation visit) how would the electrician have known? He might have assumed the cables run down the walls buried in the plaster and that spurring would be the only easy way to add sockets.

He might also have assumed you wanted flush sockets. If so, you can probably add at least an hour per socket just for making the hole and cleaning up the mess.

Hwyl!

M.