Plug sockets in cupboard

[Theo]

The OP hasn't made it clear if this is 'fabric', like a stud wall, or 'furniture', like a freestanding wardrobe. Fabric would be part of the fixed wiring installation, whereas it wouldn't be a good idea to hardwire an item that could be moved around because moving it around could affect the rest of the circuit (breaking the ring or loose connections).

There is a sort of ambiguous space in the way that fitted kitchens have sockets on the carcassing - they're freestanding and in theory movable, but it practice pretty fixed. The FCU approach addresses that because it means it's possible to remove the unit by simply unwiring the cable from the FCU without disturbing the rest of the circuit wiring, and it's possible to isolate the socket (for example you have a leaky sink over the dishwasher socket).

Without knowing the details it's hard to make the tradeoffs.

Theo

[Steve Walker]

I think that my parents may still have one lightswitch (the landing light) in a wooden back box.

[ARW]

If done properly then it's a 20A DP switch over the counter.

[ARW]

There were proper wooden backboxes and of course switches just sunk into the architrave etc - especially between two touching architrave on a small landing..

Of course this was not a problem until they invented plastic consumer units:-)

[John Rumm]

I am assuming this is a continuation from the thread on "Building cupboards and shelves" - i.e. a "built in" style set of cupboard and shelves.

[leen...]

Yes all part of the study refit project :) Fortunately, the cables in the original sockets were long enough to stretch into the cupboard so decided to cut out the side of the unit (18mm ply) and fit a plasterboard back box. The printers can then plug directly into one of the sockets and the extension lead for the desk to the other one.