shed electrics

[Joe Shmoe]

Hi.

I had electrics put into my two sheds last year. SWA was ran from the house MCB into the first shed where it terminated into an RCD.

To save money on using SWA unnecessarily, they then ran twin and earth from the first RCD, through the length of the first shed, before connecting back to SWA in a junction box, to take it outside to the next shed where it terminated in another RCD.

A picture is worth a thousand words, so I have drawn up a diagram.

Now, I want to add a junction box in the first shed where the red X is drawn, so I can spur off some SWA and run it across the garden where it will terminate into a suitable waterproof box where I can have some outdoor plugs and a garden light connected.

I'm not stupid or like taking chances which is why I got an electrician to install the electrics previously, but I do know how to wire up extra spurs and sockets, so I am wondering if this is a job I can do myself. Money is so tight so I don't really want to get an electrician to do it, if its something I could do. Could anyone shed some light on what this job would entail so I can make a judgment call ?


Thanks guys.
Joe.

 

[RogerS]

Good news or bad news?

Good news is that I'm sure it is well within your competence.

The bad news is that according to my take on Part P, the garden is a special location and so needs a bit of paper ....ie signed off.

maybe you could find a sparks who is happy for you to do all the bulk of the work, lay the cable etc and then he does the final connection

 

[bosshogg]

I know part "P" of the regs. is there for reasons of safety, but more normally is a clause of liability of blame should something go wrong. However I found the following breakdown of the regs which states the fitments of an extra socket to a shed does come under part "P" http://www.diydoctor.org.uk/projects/partp.htm
Now you refer to why you got electricians in to do the job in the first place and I assume you will take similar precautions this time. That having been said - taking a spur feed to a double socket is fairly simple, if not a little cramped in the socket you take the feed from (you could as you say/show, cut your cable and insert a junction box and do all the joining in it, but that requires you have sufficient slack cable between the ring circuit, in the first shed, and the spur that has bean taken to the second shed...hope all of this makes sense) although not prudent, you can fit as many sockets to a spur as you like, once again I state not very prudent. As you have stated you can do the work, even competently, but you might want to have a word with a sparks, telling him what you intend doing and have him view your work before making the final connection, and if satisfied he might also sign/countersign a self competency certificate to the effect, whatever is required by the insurance company (remember I said this is more to do with liability, rather than just safety)...bosshogg (hammer)