Wiring a cooker hood

[Graeme]

Having found a supplier of carbon filters, I need to mount our new (to us!) cooker hood, which replaces an older non working hood. There is a

13 amp socket in the wall, used by the original hood, but, because the new hood is a different shape, and has to be mounted higher than the old one, the power socket will directly behind the hood.

Directly behind the 13 amp socket, which is on a ring main, is a wooden stud, so Plan A is to replace the socket with a junction box mounted on the stud, maintaining the ring main, and hard wire the cooker hood to the same junction box.

Plan B could be to just remount the existing socket on the stud, so that it is recessed rather than flush, although I am not sure that would give clearance for the cooker hood plug to be flush, too.

Are either of these options seriously non compliant or unsafe? I don't want to find an insurance claim, for example, failing because of allegedly dangerous wiring, or whatever.

[Tim Watts]

Non starter - you still need a fuse (so you need a fused spur, which takes up the same space as a socket, minus perhaps the space of the plugtop)

In this case, you could consider the fused spur option. But you still need to get to the fuse and have a means of isolation (so a switched fused spur).

Can you drop a cable from the ceiling down to the hood?

Or can you joint the ring, take a spur up 6" above the new hood and mount a socket there?

[tabbypurr]

then it's fused at 32A, bad idea. If the socket's on a 5 or 6A lighting circuit, no problem.

An FCU & wiring it direct into a lighting circuit are also options.

NT

[GB]

Does the cooker hood fit between two cupboards? If so, stick the socket inside one of those.

[Tricky Dicky]

If your cooker hood is a chimney type then most people tend to mount the co nnection unit (FCU) behind the chimney cowl so as not to see any wires, the cowls are usually easy to remove to access the FCU if needs be. However, y ou will still need an isolator switch mounted somewhere nearby and accessib le. If the existing ring main socket is ending up behind the hood then I wo uld be tempted to spur from it using Wago or other none maintenance connect ors fit a blanking plate on. I would run the spur to some convenient point to mount the isolator switch and from the switch to the FCU. If your cooker hood is not a chimney type then we need further details.

Richard

[Brian Gaff]

I've often wondered why this sort of device does not have an internal or get atable mains fuse as then it could be supplied with a hi quality cable and wired in to the cooker supply assuming an Electric cooker of course. Brian

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Since cooker hoods tend to be high up on a wall, I usually wire them to the lighting circuit which is closer. You can still fit an isolating switch etc if needed.

[Graeme]

OK, noted, thanks.

Not impossible, but the whole wall is tiled (no cupboards), and I don't really want to try cutting a hole for a socket, in existing tiles.

[Graeme]

Sadly not. Just a plain wall, tiled floor to ceiling.

[Graeme]

In message , Tricky Dicky writes

All of which seems to be the perfect solution. Yes, three sided bent tin chimney. Not sure why I need a separate isolation switch, but rules is rules.

Suppose I ran a short spur from the existing 13a socket, to a new surface mounted 13a socket above the hood and behind the chimney? The hood could still be isolated (by unplugging or switching off the new socket), and would also be fused, within the plug. That way, just three holes to drill through the existing tiles - two for screws, and one larger one for the cable. The chimney just lifts off the hood.

[leenowell]

Couldn't you just run the wire from the existing to the new socket on the t iles? Assume that new hood completely covers the existing socket? Eg if you put a switched fused spur faceplate on the existing could you get to the s witch by taking the cowl off the chimney bit?

[John Rumm]

Because that still leaves the appliance flex itself without adequate fault protection.

[John Rumm]

Cutting holes in tiles is easy enough with a diamond saw in a multimaster type tool:

[Graeme]

In message , [e-mail] writes

The existing socket will be completely covered by the hood, rather than the chimney, which is a pain. The old hood was over an electric hob, but the new hood will be over a gas hob, which means more clearance required (750mm), so the new hood has to be higher on the wall. Bummer.

[John Rumm]

Or swap the socket for a FCU, and hardware from there if that allows enough clearance.

[John Rumm]

Its anticipated that extractor fans etc may need cleaning from time to time, so have a means of isolation is needed to make them safe to work on. If there is a plug that can be withdrawn, then that will do you don't need an extra switch. Also the switch on a FCU will also suffice.

[Tricky Dicky]

I am not so sure about the rules but every professional installation I have seen has had an easily accessible isolating switch. I suppose if an earth fault develops and the casing becomes live or something catches fire you ha ve no means of killing the power if the only means to isolate it is behind the cowl. Maybe Adam (ARW)may have a definitive answer?

Richard

[Graeme]

Excellent, thanks.

[leenowell]

Could you remove the existing socket and replace with an ultra flat blankin g plate or maybe fashion a very thin cover so it is as flush to the existin g tiles as possible. Was thinking you will have the issue of the socket bri nging the new extractor off the wall a little.

[Graeme]

In message , [e-mail] writes

Yes, I thought that too, and there is just enough clearance behind the socket to recess it slightly - certainly enough to make it flush with the tiles, and it will never be used as a socket anyway, at least while the cooker hood is in place.