Fixing deep back box for shower isolator

Pete Zahut · 2017-02-17T13:04:36+00:00

We live in a 1960s semi-detached dormer bungalow, the internal walls of which seem to be made of something like an egg-box construction. There's a 45A double pole switch for the shower mounted outside the bathroom but whoever fitted it should have used a dry-lining box rather than a metal back box. Presumably the reason they didn't, is that there are no dry-lining boxes that have the lugs in the correct orientation for this situation. The metal back box that's there at the moment is a very deep one (don't know if they're 45 or 50mm deep) but we can't get away with anything shallower because of the two 10mm twin+earth cables and the depth of the switch. The problem is, the box is actually touching the plasterboard (or whatever it is) at the other side of the wall, so there's no depth to be able to plug and screw and fixings - which is why it needs a dry-lining box that no one makes! I've tried gluing the back box in but as soon as there is any movement of the cables, which there obviously is when connecting the switch, the glue can't hold and the box moves about again. Any great ideas what to do? Photo here:

Feb 17, 2017 21 Replies

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ARW 9 years ago

It's better than a dryliner box. I think I have mentioned before that I believe that dry liner boxes are made from the devils spunk.

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Dave Plowman (News) 9 years ago

It's probably me, but anything like that made out of plastic with knockouts or whatever seems to always break in the wrong place. Like JBs with that thin snap out part for the wires where the entire side broke off.

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