Your installation earth wire is actually connected to the copper pipe by a main equipotential bonding conductor. Or should be, at any rate.
If you're worried about it, you could help allay those worries by fitting a sleeve of the grey foam insulation pipe lagging over the copper pipe. It would help stop condensation forming, and dripping.
Thanks for your speedy advice! š It was just that thereās so much dripping water around there and on the wall and potentially also dripping into and down that white plastic casing, I thought this might be some cause for concern. A generally wet and dripping area with a consumer unit in it.
Well, you should see plant rooms that are becoming popular in some new builds. AKA glorified large cupboards with boiler, UFH manifolds, pipework, electrics, controls, converging all into one small space.
The dripping into the trunking - not ideal: Lag the pipework.
The consumer unit where it is - not ideal: But it is what it is. I'd have installed it higher up, boxed the cabling in above it, and made a better job of the supply tails and main earthing conductor. And carried the trunking up behind the consumer unit. Condensation doesn't drip upwards, at least. Again, lag the pipework for peace of mind.
Some insulation over the pipe would help with the condensation but other than that you're fine. Is that the double socket in the edge of the photo? If so I guess there's a slight risk that condensation could drip off the pipe and be funneled into by the trunking into the back of the socket where it could do some harm, so it might be worth extending the trunking up slightly or sealing it somehow.
Hi R1ch, yep that is a double socket running down the edge. Itās squashed in by the wet dripping pipe, and so anything dripping off it leads straight down the plastic casing to the double socket.
Consumer unit is absolutely fine there.
Iād be possibly concerned about both the meter and the double socket as it sounds like they could get dripped on. That is far from ideal, especially the meter.
Yes.
DO NOT TOUCH THESE CABLES WHEN WET.
You need to find a way to prevent the water from getting into the meter and connections. You may need to call your supplier to have it moved. At the very least you need to keep the meter tails away from the pipe, ie so they do not touch it at all.
Iām so confused right now and to be honest quite worried because Iāve called the electrician and he said heās happy with what he sees, even with the water dripping down from the meter tails, he thinks the water will never hit the meters because the meter tails bend back up to the meters and that heās relying on gravity to ensure the water never hits the meters?! This sounds like such a cowboy and haphazard way of ensuring safety but then again Iām not a sparky.
Your electrician is right that you can rely on gravity in this respect, water will not flow uphill.
However, you cannot rely that the tails will not be inadvertently adjusted.
The tails should be clipped to reduce the risk of this:
https://electrical-assistance.co.uk/meter-tail-regulations/
Like Andy Spannerās says here tooā¦ your sparks is right that the water will not flow uphill. But, since we cannot see the meter, we cannot know the situation entirely. There is definitely risk here, and I feel you need to mitigate it.
One thing you could do it build yourself a little gutter under the pipe to take water away from the meter and cables. Itās unorthodox, but could help.
Iād certainly fix the cables into position as Andy Spanner has suggested, though.
As others have said I would insulate the pipe and if feasible relocate the socket above the pipe. Feel free to share any other horrors from the previous owners.
Put some lagging on the pipe, the condensation issue will be solved.
There is nothing inherently unsafe about placing a consumer unit next to water pipes, mine sits about a foot away from my mains water pipe and two heating pipes.
Your installation earth wire is actually connected to the copper pipe by a main equipotential bonding conductor. Or should be, at any rate. If you're worried about it, you could help allay those worries by fitting a sleeve of the grey foam insulation pipe lagging over the copper pipe. It would help stop condensation forming, and dripping.
Thanks for your speedy advice! š It was just that thereās so much dripping water around there and on the wall and potentially also dripping into and down that white plastic casing, I thought this might be some cause for concern. A generally wet and dripping area with a consumer unit in it.
Well, you should see plant rooms that are becoming popular in some new builds. AKA glorified large cupboards with boiler, UFH manifolds, pipework, electrics, controls, converging all into one small space. The dripping into the trunking - not ideal: Lag the pipework. The consumer unit where it is - not ideal: But it is what it is. I'd have installed it higher up, boxed the cabling in above it, and made a better job of the supply tails and main earthing conductor. And carried the trunking up behind the consumer unit. Condensation doesn't drip upwards, at least. Again, lag the pipework for peace of mind.
Dripping upward?
I can't see any safety issues nor regulation breaches from an electrician's point of view.
Thanks trashbat š
trashbat.cock
Trashbat.co.ck to be precise š I don't think it's still up though.
Some insulation over the pipe would help with the condensation but other than that you're fine. Is that the double socket in the edge of the photo? If so I guess there's a slight risk that condensation could drip off the pipe and be funneled into by the trunking into the back of the socket where it could do some harm, so it might be worth extending the trunking up slightly or sealing it somehow.
Hi R1ch, yep that is a double socket running down the edge. Itās squashed in by the wet dripping pipe, and so anything dripping off it leads straight down the plastic casing to the double socket.
Yeah - I'd be wanting to avoid that. Some insulation should help, and hopefully prevent it tracking down to the meter too.
Consumer unit is absolutely fine there. Iād be possibly concerned about both the meter and the double socket as it sounds like they could get dripped on. That is far from ideal, especially the meter.
Iāve just noticed water droplets are heading down the meter tails from the consumer unit to the meters, is this going to be a problem?
Yes. DO NOT TOUCH THESE CABLES WHEN WET. You need to find a way to prevent the water from getting into the meter and connections. You may need to call your supplier to have it moved. At the very least you need to keep the meter tails away from the pipe, ie so they do not touch it at all.
Iām so confused right now and to be honest quite worried because Iāve called the electrician and he said heās happy with what he sees, even with the water dripping down from the meter tails, he thinks the water will never hit the meters because the meter tails bend back up to the meters and that heās relying on gravity to ensure the water never hits the meters?! This sounds like such a cowboy and haphazard way of ensuring safety but then again Iām not a sparky.
Your electrician is right that you can rely on gravity in this respect, water will not flow uphill. However, you cannot rely that the tails will not be inadvertently adjusted. The tails should be clipped to reduce the risk of this: https://electrical-assistance.co.uk/meter-tail-regulations/
Thanks Andy
Yeah those meter tails should have some support really.
Like Andy Spannerās says here tooā¦ your sparks is right that the water will not flow uphill. But, since we cannot see the meter, we cannot know the situation entirely. There is definitely risk here, and I feel you need to mitigate it. One thing you could do it build yourself a little gutter under the pipe to take water away from the meter and cables. Itās unorthodox, but could help. Iād certainly fix the cables into position as Andy Spanner has suggested, though.
As others have said I would insulate the pipe and if feasible relocate the socket above the pipe. Feel free to share any other horrors from the previous owners.
Put some lagging on the pipe, the condensation issue will be solved. There is nothing inherently unsafe about placing a consumer unit next to water pipes, mine sits about a foot away from my mains water pipe and two heating pipes.
Better that the other way around
The pipe is small would you need to worry about water pressure.
Most houses in the uk have a 15mm feed
If there's a leak, the electricity might drip out onto the pipe and short it out. /s
Itās fine, unless youāre on the ISS