Q & A of the Day - Bathroom refurbishments – 17th Edition updating needed?

Question: I work with a housing association and we are about start a bathroom refurbishment contract. This includes installing electric showers, extractor fans and replacing light fittings. There are one or two questions that have arisen in our pre-contract meetings, which I hope you can assist with.

1. If an existing shower is wired in 10mm cable with red & black coloured conductors, are we obliged to replace it with the new colour coded cables?
2. By replacing the light fitting, do we have to upgrade the circuit protection to RCD?
3. We will also be installing 12V fans in the bathrooms with the isolator and transformer outside the bathroom. Do we have to protect this with an RCD?

Answers: The answers are given in order below:

1. If you are installing a new shower, and are using the existing 10mm cable in the old colour scheme, then it would be preferable to sleeve the conductors in the harmonised colours. But, as long as you are just replacing like for like, there would be no general requirement, as the regulations are not retrospective.
2. Again, replacing like for like does not necessarily mean that the circuit will require upgrading to the most recent regulations, and therefore it would not be a requirement to protect the circuit with an RCD. You would need to ensure that, if the light is within Zone 2, a fitting rated at IPX4 is used.
3. Again, the same answer.

Remember also, that the 17th Edition Wiring Regulations will only come into force for installations designed after June 30 2008.

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