Any recommendations for good books on the practical aspects of domestic wiring. the onsite guide is pretty good for all the mathematical and regulatory stuff but am looking for something that covers the practical installation.
Andrew
Mostly common sense, assuming you have actually done some mains electrical work before.
Plus apart from the electrical considerations :-
In any property built before mid-80's, be mindful of the possibility that there may be asbestos-cement sheeting where you can't see it, before drilling big holes. Even if there was some and it has been removed, did the remover just smash it to bits and chuck in bin leaving loads of asbestos dust sitting on top of a ceiling just waiting for someone to disturb.
Also artex ceiling pre-mid-80's might contain asbestos.
Be aware of notching and drilling zones in *solid* joists :- First 0.7 times span from the wall is out of bounds.
From 0.7 to 0.25 span you may notch up to one eigth ? depth (definately NOT I-beams though)
From 0.25 to 0.4 span you can drill holes up to one eighth joist depth but only in the centre of the joist. I-beams should have knock-outs ??.
Always assume that all previous work was done by a numpty so anticipate cooker cables lying in notches in joists etc before you power up your circular saw or whatever and start chopping through flooring.
I found a 4-way round connector in the ring main of my house (built 1976) with two spurs each feeding a twin socket, one of which was fed by the cable going down inside the cavity.
The odd thing was, when I pulled down the kitchen ceiling and discovered this, the ceiling was entirely the original 8x4 sheets of p'board, and the t&g flooring above was original and intact.
QED, this was done by the builders in 1976 before the plaster board was installed. First owner must have asked for an extra power point after first fit had been done.
That's a good question actually... as you have no doubt spotted about
90% of domestic electrical work has nothing much to do with electrical wiring practice at all, and is more about house bashing.I have not seen any books that focus specifically on the task, although there may be some. Lots of general DIY guides will also cover most of the details.
We have stuck some of the relevant stuff in this article:
Since very little has changed in those terms, look in the charity shops for the Reader's Digest DIY book.
Yes nobody keeps documentation of any alterations done, sadly. It was even worse here, we came in in 1956, house built 1939. All sorts of bodges abounded. In the end it all needed rewiring in the
1970s. My good what a lot of dust that caused!Brian
In message <qkr1th$b7l$ snipped-for-privacy@dont-email.me, Andrew May <andrew_d snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com writes
My favourite is Home Electrics edited by Julian Worthington, but do be aware that it was published (Orbis) in 1981 so any rules and regs will be out of date, although the actual practicalities will be unchanged. Lots of coloured pictures and diagrams.
eBay item 382998445963, 2.56 BIN, including postage.
The above book was part of a series including plumbing, metalwork, general DIY projects, woodwork and probably others. Dummies Guides from nearly 40 years ago, but lots of great info and illustrations.
As I pointed out to friend recently the most useful chapter in the book he had on domestic wiring was the one on resuscitation after receiving an electric shock. His practical experience on electrics was zero and he had purchased some inappropriate wire on the advice of someone working in a local hardware store for a job he was about to undertake.
Well the choice of wire wasn't the cause of his shock then.
Totally agree - house bashing - visualising the hidden construction, planning routes.
Another "skill" is knowing what is available.
Just visited a house owned by a very old lady. Was rewired in recent years. Everything surface. No bashing required.
No RCD needed then ??
Apart from the sockets and lights:-)
House bashing is my favourite job.
I have concrete floors and concrete ceilings.
The downstairs neighbours sometimes complain when I do any bashing :-(
Owain
So did the massage parlour next door to the last place I worked at.
But all the wiring is surface mounted ??
The 18th edition requires that all the lights and sockets are RCD protected in a domestic property.
However there is no requirement to provide RCD protection to surface mounted cable.
You don't need a RCD to protect the cables since they are exposed. However all sockets and now lights need RCD protection.
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