electrical wiring in uk. What product do I use as cable to supply 240v lights and a normal 240v socket?

Question

I wish to lay out the wiring in a room extension before sealing the walls. Therefore need to know the correct product to use for two different applications. 1. For the normal 240v sockets ie to plug in a tv 2. What cable do you use for lighting? aiming to use normal bulb fittings and flouresant (sp) lights?

Answer 1

30 amp twin and earth for wall sockets
15 amp twin and earth for lighting

check with the professionals for free advice and local suppliers
example: http://www.wf-online.com

(I don't have any connection to WF, just know them as good, reliable, well informed suppliers

Answer 2

As has been said, this work now needs to be done (or at least certified) by a qualified electrician, under the new building regulations.

UK 13A sockets are wired on a ring main system; few other countries use this system. The ring main is a ring of 2core + earth cable, with blue and brown cores, blue neutral, brown live (hot). The earth wire is usually bare in the cable, but is sleeved with green-and-yellow sleeving inside the socket outlet fitting. Many sockets are connected to the ring, so each socket has two live and two neutral connections back to the fuseboard. The circuit breaker will probably be rated at 30 or 32A, but each plug can only take 13A, so UK plugs have fuses in them, for a TV, you should put a 5A fuse in the plug. (that bit you don't need an electrician for).

Until a year or two ago, house cabling in the UK was coloured red live black neutral, but now EU-harmonised colours are used. In the US, the black wire is the hot (live) wire in single-phase wiring with white neutral. Now, across the EU, blue is always neutral in new wiring - but there's a lot of legacy 3-phase wiring in the UK with the blue wire one of the live phases along with red and yellow.

Answer 3

Consult a qualified electrician is the best bet. If the extension is likely to become either a kitchen or bathroom then this is notifiable work under the present Part P of the building regs.It is true that any extension to existing circuits is okay along with like for like replacement but generally the only people to be competent in this respect are practising, fully qualified electricians.

Answer 4

If the wiring is an extension to a previously-existing circuit then despite what others have claimed it is not illegal to D_I_Y but you must be electrically 'competent'. Nor is it notifiable under building regulations unless you are creating a new circuit or installing a bath or shower in there along with your TV.

From the reading of it, the 'electrically competent' doesn't include you. Call in an electrician.

Answer 5

As this is a new installation, it needs to certified to Part P of the electrical installation regulations, so it will need to be carried out by a competant person in accordance with building regulation requirements.

That aside, depending on length of cable run - 1.0 - 1.5 mm for the lighting and 2.5 mm for the ring main sockets.

Answer 6

you need a 2.5 twin earth ring mains for your sockets etc and 1.5 twin earth for lights,triple core earth for two way switches and if you do not know the meaning of what i am saying get a sparks in.

Answer 7

get a qualified electrician to do this for you, under current UK laws you invalidate your insurance if your electic system isnt tested by a qualified electrician after any modifications.

so if you do your own wiring and the house burns down, the insurance company WILL NOT pay out.

Answer 8

lofty76 has the correct answer
Sparky 33 years