Some 17th Edition VoltiBLOG comments

To add your own comments visit: www.wiring-regulations.co.uk:

Comment From: Stephen Cooke
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: Principal Electrical Design Engineer
Date posted: Tue Jan 15 14:42:55 UTC 2008
Comment: Ring final circuits and fused plug tops will be the next to go in the watering down of our World leading electrical standards. The IEE/IET seem intent on throwing away everything that makes our system the safest in the World, to harmonise with the rest of Europe - why not get them to come up to our standards?

Comment From: Patrick O'Brien
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: Managing Director
Date posted: Thu Jan 10 16:52:50 UTC 2008
Comment: The new 17th Edition has a number of 'hidden' issues. 1. It appears that all circuits (except those run entirely on the surface) will now need to be protected by a 30mA RCD. 2. Each installation must have a single isolation facility. 3. The designer must minimise danger and inconvenience caused by the operation of the RCD if used as the main device.

It appears that the impact of complying with these requirements has not been properly thought through by those who have compiled the 17th Edition. It seems that we are at present left with the following alternatives. a) Install a consumer unit with an integral 100A isolator and install RCBOs on each circuit: very costly b) Install say 2 or 3 separate RCD protected distribution boards each with a mixture of power and lighting circuits The distribution boards to then be connected to the meter via a mains switch/tails block - expensive, probably untidy using considerable space, possible nuisance problems with neutral earth faults.

Surely the answer would be a split board with a 100mA time delay RCD as the main isolator providing protection for lighting circuits, and a 30mA RCD (or RCBOs) to protect power and bathroom circuits? Unfortunately, it appears that this solution would not comply with the 17th Edition. We need the compilers of the 17th edition to provide us with a economical solution as to how we can install a main electrical distribution board in order to comply with the new wiring regulations.

Comment From: David Latimer
Company Type: Please pick a company type
Job title:
Date posted: Tue Jan 8 11:32:37 UTC 2008
Comment: Having read some of the comments on the 17th Edition, with questions as to its relationship with ENs and references to IEC documents yet to be incorporated, and as to why changes have been made, it is clear that few, if any, have any idea of the international and European standardisation process and the constraints which they place on the IET JPEL 64. Some new requirements (as well as requirement in the 15th and 16th Editions) will be ones against which the UK fought. But, at the end of the day, once a requirement has been incorporated into HD 384, it is all over and the UK must accept it. Sockets in bathrooms is an example. The UK fought that for 30 years!

Comment From: Croy Robertson
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: Alarm Engineer
Date posted: Sat Jan 5 14:02:07 UTC 2008
Comment: I think the new regulations will be great. When I was working on new build houses, alarm engineers were no longer allowed to work on DBs and the alarm had to be on its own DB switch. I feel that this illuminates a lot of incompetence due to lack of electrical training for alarm engineers, and I hope that electronics engineers are forced to take this qualification for everyone's safety.

Comment From: David Wheeler
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: electrician
Date posted: Tue Dec 11 09:59:21 UTC 2007
Comment: I understand that the 17th Edition will require all circuits to be RCD protected, I feel that burglar alarms and, in particular, fire/smoke alarms should be RCBO protected before the first RCD on the DB. This should mean that they will always be 'on'. Your observations please. Regards David

Comment From: Chris Berry
Company Type: Manufacturer
Job title:
Date posted: Tue Nov 20 14:37:06 UTC 2007
Comment: If an outlet is raised to waist height (for easier access) by means of a short flex on 13A plug secured with trunking leading to a surface mounted box, does the cable need to be clamped within that s/m box? if so, how? i can't find an s/m box with provision for cable clamping - perhaps there's a good reason for this...

Comment From: Pat Lyne
Company Type: Specifier of Electrical Products
Job title: Senior Electrical Engineer
Date posted: Tue Oct 9 17:58:39 UTC+0100 2007
Comment: The end of the split load consumer units would be good. The price of RCBOs are coming down. Why should three or four healthy circuits be knocked out because of a fault on one circuit? With more people using RCBOs the price will drop further. Thanks - Pat Lyne Senior Electrical Engineer.

Comment From: Peter Papp
Company Type: Please pick a company type
Job title: Elec. designer
Date posted:
Comment: 'Outlets that are to be used by the non-skilled or non-supervised must be RCD protected'. Does it mean practically that every outlet has to be RCD protected? Please let me know the connection between BS7671 and the relevant EN codes. Thank you, best regards.

Comment From: Barry Martin
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: DIRECTOR
Date posted: Sat Jul 14 21:37:44 UTC+0100 2007
Comment: I think a lot of electrical contractors would like to know this - do we need to train our operatives to the 17th Edition (as we did from 15th to 16th Editions) An easy question, perhaps, but no one at this moment seems to know the answer. Comment 2: Why are we calling it the 17th Edition - it now has a BS Number and it's now known as BS7671?

Comment From: Andrew Bellion
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: Electrician
Date posted: Sun Apr 29 20:18:33 UTC+0100 2007
Comment: Does the implementation of the 17th Edition mean that anybody with the 16th Edition qualification will have to retrain?

Comment From: Steve Wagner
Company Type: Manufacturer
Job title: Home Improvement Sur
Date posted: Wed Mar 21 14:00:27 UTC 2007
Comment: I find another user's comments interesting - stating that the French system is better. Very strange given that they do not have a standard colour coding system between the north and the south of the country! Also, it seems that everyone is getting strung out about the new regulations - i.e. supplementary bonding. Let's not forget all the regulations, whether the 14th, 15th, 16th & 17th Editions, are about minimum requirements. I would always specify supplementary bonding regardless. You cannot be too safe, bearing in mind that domestic clients seem to have little regard for health and safety in the home, whereas many complain in the workplace!

Comment From: Stephen David Parr
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: Sole Trader
Date posted: Tue Mar 20 21:20:52 UTC 2007
Comment: The implications of no supplementary bonding in bathrooms goes further, as on all test sheets and certificates there are boxes to tick etc., if these are in place. Does this mean that I will have to put n/a, or change all my certificates? I suppose that's another couple of hundred quid for a 17th Edition course, and another £50 or so for a new set of regulation. Plus, I bet that all the guidance notes and on-site guides will be updated/replaced! So every spark out there working within the scope of part P will be looking to pay out in the region of £300-400. That should stop the cowboys - NOT!

Comment From: Stuart
Company Type: Electrical Contractor
Job title: Proprietor
Date posted: Thu Feb 22 19:59:36 UTC 2007
Comment: On a safety side, I feel they have done the correct thing with RCDs on all sockets, that's a bit of a no brainer. The same goes for getting rid of cross bonding if you have RCD protection instead in the bathroom. The number of customers that complain about bonding cables, whether it's that you have to lift the floor to hide it as they don't want to see it, or make a chase. This will make life easier. I do worry about RCD's tripping and knocking most of the power in the house out in one go. We currently split our boards for safety. I agree with another comment on this site and that would be to use RCBOs on all circuits, but the price must fall & quickly. Looks like some more exams next year!