The National Electrical Code (NEC) now requires at least two dedicated circuits for each bathroom, including a 20-amp receptacle circuit for plug-in appliances and AFCI and GFCI-protected receptacles. Light fixtures and wall switches must be on separate circuits, while a separate circuit is required for a whirlpool tub or any other large fixture or appliance in the bathroom.
A well-thought-out plan and design are crucial before starting any electrical work. Assess your bathroom’s current electrical capacity and consult a professional electrician to determine its ability to handle extra power. Consider the electrical fixtures you’ll install, such as lighting fixtures, heated floors, and GFCI outlets. Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) outlets play a crucial role in ensuring the safety of your bathroom by preventing electric shock.
A new or remodeled bathroom generally requires at least two circuits—a 15-amp or 20-amp general lighting circuit and a 20-amp GFCI circuit. The Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) is a necessary model code governing plumbing system installation and inspection. Compliance with plumbing and electrical codes is essential beyond tile and paint choices.
A 20-amp circuit is the necessary amount of energy required to fully utilize the lighting and electrical components of a bathroom. Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) outlets are required in bathrooms to protect against electrical shock, especially in wet areas. Both light switches and power points must be located in zones 2 and 3, and residual current devices (RCDs) must be used for all fixtures.
In summary, a 20-amp circuit is best equipped for most bathrooms due to their electrical components and lighting. Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCI) are essential for protecting against electrical shock, especially in wet areas. To ensure proper electrical work, consider adding several electrical appliances and ensuring that both light switches and power points are located in zones 2 and 3.
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What type of electrical outlet is required in bathrooms?
The National Electric Code mandates that every bathroom should have one GFCI-protected outlet, with two or three recommended for each. The number of outlets can be achieved through a GFCI circuit breaker or installing GFCI outlets. If using a single GFCI outlet, it must be wired for “multiple location” protection to protect all downstream outlets on the same circuit. Local regulations regarding GFCIs should be checked, as some codes may differ from NEC rules.
Do bathrooms need a dedicated circuit?
The National Electrical Code (NEC) 210. In accordance with 11(C), a dedicated 20A circuit is required for bathroom receptacles, while other receptacles in other rooms are excluded from this regulation. National Electrical Code (NEC) 210. Subsection 52(D) delineates the installation specifications for bathroom receptacles, stipulating that they must be situated within a distance of 3ft from the edge of the basin.
What circuit is required for bathroom lighting?
The National Electrical Code (NEC) mandates a 20-amp receptacle circuit for plug-in appliances, with all receptacles being AFCI and GFCI-protected. Light fixtures and wall switches must be on a separate circuit, with a minimum of 15-amp circuits, often 20-amp circuits, especially for heat lamps. A separate circuit is required for large fixtures or appliances in bathrooms. The NEC suggests that bathrooms circuits should be dedicated to the bathroom, but local jurisdictions may allow it. At least one permanently mounted light fixture in a bathroom is required, including a ceiling light, combination vent fan/light fixture unit, or vanity area light.
Is 15 amps enough for a bathroom?
The National Electrical Code (NEC) has established several important bathroom regulations. These include the requirement of a general lighting/fan circuit, at least one ceiling-mounted light fixture, at least one GFCI-protected outlet, and a 20-amp outlet circuit for power items like curling irons, razors, and hairdryers. The NEC also mandates that all outlets serving living spaces in a home, including the bathroom, have AFCI protection since 2014.
The NEC requires wall switches to be grounded, connected to system grounding wires, and kept outside tub and shower areas. Older wall switches often omitted the green grounding screw, but the NEC now requires them to be connected to system grounding wires. Wall switches must be kept outside tub or shower areas to discourage users from touching them while in contact with water.
A vent fan may be required if the space does not have a window that can be opened for ventilation. Some local codes may require a vent fan even if the room does have a window, and it is generally a good idea to include one. The vent fan is often included as part of an overhead light/heat lamp combination and is often placed over the toilet area. The NEC does not require that the vent fan have GFCI protection.
In conclusion, the NEC provides general guidelines for safe wiring in a bathroom, but local codes always supersede the national code. Local requirements may be more lenient or stringent depending on the community, and the NEC offers general guidelines for safe wiring in a bathroom. It is essential to consider local requirements when designing and installing new or remodeled bathrooms.
Do bathrooms require a 20 amp circuit?
A 20-amp circuit is the minimum required power for a bathroom’s lighting and electrical components, allowing for safe operation of overhead lights, exhaust fans, and other common bathroom devices. Electrical components and light switches should be kept outside the shower and tub areas, reducing safety hazards when electricity meets water. Grounding outlets should be used in all bathroom outlets, connecting them to system grounding wires to remove risks from areas with moisture exposure.
This ensures that the power is sufficient for the necessary devices and prevents potential hazards. Considering these factors when designing a new bathroom can help ensure a safe and functional space.
Do bathrooms require a 20-amp circuit?
A 20-amp circuit is the minimum required power for a bathroom’s lighting and electrical components, allowing for safe operation of overhead lights, exhaust fans, and other common bathroom devices. Electrical components and light switches should be kept outside the shower and tub areas, reducing safety hazards when electricity meets water. Grounding outlets should be used in all bathroom outlets, connecting them to system grounding wires to remove risks from areas with moisture exposure.
This ensures that the power is sufficient for the necessary devices and prevents potential hazards. Considering these factors when designing a new bathroom can help ensure a safe and functional space.
What are the electrical circuit requirements for a bathroom?
Bathrooms are required to have a minimum of one 120-volt receptacle situated within a distance of three feet from each sink basin. In the case of double bowl sinks, a single receptacle is permitted to serve both sinks. It is imperative that all receptacles are equipped with GFCI protection and are supplied by a 20-amp circuit. It is permissible for bathroom outlet receptacles to be served by a single 20-ampere circuit. However, vent fans with built-in heaters must be supplied with an individual 20-ampere branch circuit.
Can an entire bathroom be on one circuit?
In order to install bathroom circuits, it is necessary to have 1-20 amp circuits per National Electrical Code (NEC). It is permitted to have one circuit for all bath outlets. Furthermore, general lighting can be integrated into existing systems.
Can bathroom outlets and lights be on the same circuit?
It is possible to wire bathrooms, lights, and fans on a different circuit, but only a dedicated 20-ampere outlet is required. It would be beneficial to ascertain whether it is possible for a single bathroom to be supplied with electricity via a dedicated circuit, which could then be used to power multiple bathrooms. In the event that there are one and a half bathrooms located on the ground floor and one bathroom on the upper floor, it is possible for them to share the same circuit. However, it is not feasible for the circuit of the bathroom outlet to feed multiple bathrooms.
Do bathroom lights need RCD?
It is recommended that new bathroom fixtures be protected by an RCD, given that the upstairs lighting circuit supplies the lighting. It is recommended that the work be notifiable as a bathroom, although alternative products may prove to be more cost-effective. The more economical option is to select a mains-powered alternative.
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This part P is something I am having major issues with. I am a fully qualified apprentice trained electrician ( recently retired) Over the years I have had multiple qualifications including 14th, 15th, 16th and 17th wiring regulations, been the authorised person for 11kV switching at 2 UK factories, hold multiple other qualifications. But…. when my stepson decided to move into property development he decided that a little electrical knowledge would be to his benefit So he paid (quite a lot) for a 3 week course that makes him not only entitled to carry out installations (I did install a new consumer unit and an armoured cable feed into the garage of his first project because he had little confidence in his ability), but to certify my work. I find it massively distressing that someone like me, fully trained, qualified and with 50 years of experience within the trade cannot add an additional ring main in my own home without getting it certified from someone who has done a 3 week course
My experience is that when it comes down to it, nobody really cares about the notification side of things. Even when selling a house, say you don’t have an install cert etc for a new circuit, an EICR to check it’s safe is almost always fine. Generally speaking, dodgy work looks dodgy even to a layman. The main thing is like anything: is the work done properly, and is it safe.
It’s wrong to say that you can’t do work that is subject to Building Regs approval. It’s just that if you do it yourself you will have to pay the local building control department the appropriate fees and have it approved and inspected by them (they may contract inspection out to an electrician). For some types of work the cost of the building control fees can outweight the savings of not paying an electrician to do the work.
I’ve always done my own electrics, be it changing a socket or a switch to adding new circuits. Last one was putting a proper electric connection to the garage and adding sockets and lighting in the garage. Also from there I’ve put it through to our summerhouse (which is build of the side of the garage) each with it’s own consumer unit and it has all been checked by a qualified electrician and 100% approved. And before anyone asks, no, I am not an electrician, in fact I only learned for two things and that was bricklaying and welding & construction.
Went to move into new house 22 years ago. BIL was the contractor liason. He touched the dishwasher and got an electric shock. We noticed the lights were also dim. Sparkies who put in the electrics were contacted. After a 2 hour drive to get here, they spent 30 seconds, looked at the main switchboard, found nothing wrong and left. We refused to sign the handover till the problem was fixed. Builder called a local sparkie who found a dislocated neutral wire on the main box, and fixed the wire. Years later I remove a light switch assembly from the wall to paint, and a hot wire broke. Screw must have been tightened with a pile driver, and the movement of the switch from the wall caused the wire to break. When I wire a switch or plug, I test the wire by tugging on the wire a few times with a reasonable force to see if the wire screw is tight. Something our sparkies did not do, they just tightened the shit out of all the wires. SMH.
For many years I have followed, read, spoken/read countless sources of information pertaining to electrical work, installations, the law, part P and so on. It is beyond me how something so potentially dangerous has SO MUCH ambiguity surrounding it! You could literally get 10 qualified sparks in a room and you could ask them the same question and get 10 different answers. The posts on here are proof of that. I had intended to ask a long standing question of my own but the fact that I can guarantee I will either not get a straight answer, a dozen different answers or the usual – “If you are not qualified don’t touch anything” OR my favourite “Read part P”
This is one of the best educational articles I have ever seen. I am a qualified electrician, and the majority of our work is in domestic properties. The advice Given in this article is 100% accurate and delivered in a way that can be understand by all. When I attempt to explain these principles to my customers, I soon see that vacant look in their eyes as they just understand what I’m trying to explain. Thanks to Proper DIY, I’ll never have this problem again – I’ll just show them this article. I’m thinking this guy is a qualified electrician.?
The rules were put in place primarily to stop dodgy electricians I.e those operating as a business who’s work was very poor from doing work. At that time most (there are always a few exceptions) people that did DIY electrics, were people that took time to study what they needed to do and took care in doing it. The number of people killed due to electrocution from their own DIY per year minimal and I don’t believe that’s really changed since. The biggest problem with the rules is as many people who own a house but cannot afford for an electrician to re wire a house will not have that house rewired. The general dumbing down of diy, has created a whole generation who are too scared to even remove a socket. They also don’t realise that the terminal screws of sockets, can work themselves loose over time (depending on what’s plugged in) and should really be checked every few years.
Meanwhile in the Netherlands, fuseboards are plastic, electric meters are indoor, DIY is completely legal. I did completely a complete overhaul of my consumer unit preparing it for 3 phase, I was even required to pull the main fuse to replace the main isolator switch. My colleague got solar panels last year and he had to replace his consumer unit, you can buy fully assembled ones online.
One thing that I think you should have included is reference to the wiring regulations – that’s not the same as Part P. This is important since, while homeowners can carry out the work you described, it still has to be in accordance with the wiring regulations. One minor correction is around a fused spur (you mentioned on the article an isolator) which isn’t a new circuit and you can install a fused spur as a homeowner. You would need to do so if, for example, you were to install some lighting from the ring-main. The lights would have to be fused down to 3 or 5 amps. You’re spot on about the consumer unit though and it’s worth adding if you have a second panel in a garage, it applies to new circuits there too.
The Lewden box is a switch-fused isolator. it is there because your consumer unit is more than the maximum permitted distance of 3 meters for unprotected meter tails which is why it goes out in an armoured cable. You’ll probably find that although the incoming fuse is rated at 100A, the switch fuse is down-rated to something like 60 or 80A.
The actual voltage that comes into a UK home will normally be around 240V. The EU standard didn’t actually change anything in the distribution system in the UK, the standard was just widened to include those countries with generally higher voltages (like the UK at around 240V) and a lot that used 220V in Europe. Really it is a specification of the manufacturers of electrical equipment. It’s easy enough to check, and a lot of plug-in power meters will show what the actual voltage is at any point in time. nb. for anybody who is having their CU swapped out, I would recommend to them to spend the extra and have RCBOs fitted rather than those RCD split boards with MCBs. That way, you get fewer nuisance trips, much better fault isolation and diagnosis and if something does trip sue to excess residual current, then it doesn’t knock out half the circuits in the house.
Thé général message is correct….. that electrical installations should be installed and modified only by a competent installer. However, to say that it is illegal to do this work as a DIYer is incorrect. In the IEE guidance, competency is not based on a professional status and can be exercised simply as someone who follows the IEE guidance and standard installation recommendations. This means that as long as notification is given to the local building authority, anyone who is competent can carry out the electrical works so that correct procedure and if necessary, building controls can be undertaken. If it was illegal to install or modify and electrical installation, the materials would be restricted to only professional and certified installers/professionals………… but of course, this is not the case.
Interesting although as an electronic s engineer trained in low voltage and high. I submitted to building control the electrical lay out plans detailing cable size and mcb, rcds ratings etc. This was installed by my self including armoured cable because my consumer unit was greater than 3m away from source. This was periodically over viewed by a qualified electrician and also carried out part p testing of the entire installation. Final installation signed off after I completed minor ommissions and submitted to the local BR department. So I believe that your presentation clear and concise was a general statement which overlooked the options available. Best Regards Peter
People often say extension cables are bad. I agree, over 1KW. For led floor lamps, TV, just a trip hazard. Extension cables aren’t anything to do with regulations? Apparently they are for fixed installs.”Installing fixed electrical equipment is within the scope of Part P, even if the final connection is by a standard 13A plug and socket, but is notifiable only if it involves work set out in regulation 12(6A).” So using a TV bracket needs BS 7671?
The point on testing is really important, one I made on another article the other day. I’m a confident diyer with a dad who is a spark and I’ve done a few jobs with him including full rewires but while most diyers would be capable of changing sockets or lights etc, most, I would proffer, don’t do any testing to confirm the safety and integrity of any new work and probably just go on the “it’s working, it’s fine” mantra.
My perspective from France (NF C 15-100 regulation), where anybody “qualified” (title 6 #610.1.5) or with the appropriate “knowledge” (title 1 #117) can pretty much do everything themselves, because it will be inspected before electricity is even connected to your house: 1) Our electric panels have 1 to 4 rows of DIN rails, 1 being like for a 1-room studio, and they are usually 13 “modules” wide, because you can’t really have “lots” with a limited “split the incoming supply into lots of different individual circuits” with just one row already taken up with a main switch and RCDs (called “differential switches” over here) that are 2 or 3 “modules” wide each; 2) Each row starts with a RCD on the left and the circuit breakers right next to them, so you can easily link all RCCBs with a vertical metallic “comb”, and the RCCB with its dependent circuit breakers with an horizontal comb, no wiring involved except for the first RCCB; 3) Your electric panel is full to the brim, we must leave 20% free space minimum per regulation for future expansions; 4) Each RCD can protect only up to 8 circuit breakers and circuits, so 16 on a 2-row panel, compared to your 10 RCD-protected circuits (and 1 unprotected?); 5) This fancy 6 A circuit breaker does not exist here, we have 10, 16, 20 and 32 A for all wiring, and also 2 A for internal electric panel modules or relays, such as the night/day “contacter”; 6) Your example of 12 outlets on the same circuit would be the maximum allowed, and with a 20 A circuit breaker and 2.
Hi my house was rewired in the late seventy’s and has a old consumer unit, which would comply with the IEE regs at the time, but not with the new ones. The IEE regs were made by a committee made up of representatives from manufacturing company’s, so don’t you think that if they changed the regulations, so say you had to use more earth wire, would that not be in the manufacturers interest as that would increase there profits. and not for safety reasons. I worked in the back office of a installation company, this is what I heard.
I learned my electrics in the Army and industry. I rewired my house 27 years ago and it still functions. However, I had it inspected and certified but a qualified ‘domestic’ electrician without fear or favour once this was completed. What I have learned is that the RCD ages and needs replacing every few years. As I live in a rural area I can suffer from being at the end of a line which means that the 230v can dip. As a matter of interest from your personal experience how many older properties actually have any form of electrical certificate relative to their original installation?
As a retired electrician I still think there needs to be an independent check for safety IF work is done by a DIYer. Case in point, in my previous house the garage the radial for sockets was a mix of 2.5 & 1.5 T&E behind drylining boards and mostly hidden in rockwool insulation. I took the easy option and put a 6A MCB on the circuit. there was also a lighting circuit taken from aj unction box on a 32A ringmain. That soon got a 6A fused connector as well. there was also a rat’s nest of exposed wiring (which turned out to be misplaced Earthing) round a junction box in the loft. And the earth cable in the downstairs lighting circuit never found it’s way back to the consumer unit. Just as well I did an EICR on the property.
It is a shame you did not mention a minor works certificate is usually required at the end of a very useful article. Reference to bs7671, is not even mentioned, but as long as common sense, best practice and engineering judgement are considered, that will possibly suffice as not everything comes from bs 7671 anyway……
So just for confirmation, I have changed a single gang plug which is for my dishwasher into a double gang socket which then has the dishwasher on one side and a plug in RCD going to an outdoor double gang socket. I wired it like that to make sure I can isolate it from the inside and also have RCD protection without purchasing an RCD outdoor plug socket. As the original plug is located in the kitchen, I haven’t broken any rules?
I am happy that in Belgium you can carry out absolutely everything as a DIY, the regulations and requirements are openly available for everyone. But anything that gets added or changed from a existing installation needs a inspection carried out by a independent approved company, this also needs to happen when a professional electrician carries out the work. This will also require a single line drawing and situation sketch where all power points, lights, switches,… are indicated.
So the government document says this “Connecting an electric gate or garage door to an existing isolator switch is not notifiable work, but installing a new circuit from the consumer unit to the isolator is notifiable.” So, that is specifying that it would be considered a new circuit if it were connected back to the consumer unit. 1. Does an electric garage door require a dedicated circuit back to the consumer unit, or could you just spur off a ring main? 2. What if you break into a ring main and add an extra socket as part of the ring main; not a spur? Is that permitted?
At 9:02 you talk about not being able to carry out any work in a bathroom. However, P2.7 says “All other electrical installation work is not notifiable – namely additions and alterations to existing installations outside special locations, and replacements, repairs and maintenance anywhere.” I read this to mean that you can carry out “replacements, repairs and maintenance anywhere”, i.e. including in special locations. Am I reading it wrongly?
By law in Australia I as a homeowner cannot do anything except low voltage (read as 12v or below) garden lighting and I cannot remove the cover of my meter box or circuit breaker panel and I absolutely 100% cannot do anything to the meter tails or the incoming service connections. So basically everything is off limits to me. About the only thing I can legally do is run my own Ethernet cables but even that is a grey area with the prevalence of POE.
Great article. 25 years ago, I was engineering high-power switch-mode telecom battery chargers and were already designing them for 230v nominal input which the UK was moving to. Unfortunately, even now in 2023, it seems that most of the network is still 240v. Indeed, my own supply has drifted from 235V to 248V over the last 24 hours and from talking to others this still seems broadly the norm across the network. Would be interested to know if this varies by region and whether any parts of the UK are actually delivering 230v nominal.
I think you are incorrect on this. Yes everything on the supply side before the output from the meter cannot be touched. It is not “illegal” for a homeowner to touch anything else and they will not get fined. The £5,000 fine is only for an unqualified electrician doing paid work (to stamp out the cowboys). You will not get fined if you or your family do unpaid work on your house. Some work may require building regulations certification. There is little chance of any comeback from building regs and they only have 12 months to take action. They could demand that any works is certified. A new house needs certified works as part of the final sign off and this would be difficult to sell or mortgage without this and probably would be something the local council would enforce. DIY jobs on your house are very unlikely to be checked. If you sell your house it could be an issue if you have done a big refurb with no certification, but at worst you can buy indemnity insurance that would cost less than the certification. Lastly, I would question it making your home insurance invalid. Any home over 30 years old will have what is now considered dangerous wiring, that is still covered.
I’ve been an electrician for 20 years (apprentice/NVQ/AM2/2391/Regs etc) and from experience, houses with evidence of DIY are often at best a mess and at worst, a danger to occupants. There’s a reason it takes 4 years in an apprenticeship plus dozens of practical & theory exams to be deemed qualified and competent.
– metal fuse box survives longer when circuit is overloaded and/or improperly screwed in. Plastic melts and can cause a fire – in general appliances w/o a factory plug (7kW electric range, induction oven, high power water heater, garage door etc.) need a certified electrician to install and sign the warranty. Highly recommended, specially in case of induction stuff… expensive and can break if installed improperly or just due to the amount of electronics inside – outside socket/ lights/ automatic fence should be on a separate rcbo, if moisture gets in and/or socket gets damaged it will only trip it’s own circuit and not cut power to half of the house (or whole if you only got 1 rcd)
I was prevented by Part P from wiring my own kitchen so I had to get a so called Sparky to do it for me. 2 things: I told him to put the cable THROUGH the joists for the lighting circuit – he put them under and secondarily I had to complain about him to get him to send me the paperwork to say he’d done it! And then, of course, I did the job myself the way it shoude have been done in the first place by drilling through the joists as I’d asked… Ah well yeah and I should have had it rechecked and there were reasons about….. No, the bloke just wanted my money because I HAD TO USE A SPARKY – this was on an extension…. If you clip wiring underneath the ceiling joists, although you can (with difficulty) pinch the cable between the underside of the joists and the plasterboard for the ceiling, you leave a shock hazard for the guy coming in 20 years’ time putting up Christmas tree decorations for his children !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! £200 to do the job properly myself for a poxy piece of paper!!! – Part P?!?!?!? The easy way to deal with this is to say that when your house is sold, IT MUST HAVE an electrical safety certificate. If you want to do electrics FOR SOMEONE ELSE you should be qualified to do so – DON’T stop ME from doing something that I understand and am competent to do FOR ME
My dad had a water leak in his upstairs shower tray 5 or 6 years ago which leaked downstairs running into a twin socket on a 32amp ring circuit. When the insurance inspector came out to look what damage had been caused they refused his insurance as he had put a spur onto a 32amp ring circuit. So be careful doing anything even if it isn’t mentioned in part P as your insurance company won’t pay out even if the cause wasn’t the work you did and my dad is a retired electrical engineer
In Australia, unless you’re a fully qualified and licensed electrician, you cannot do a thing. It’s the law. I’d suggest the Author post a disclaimer to remind people to check their local laws. And if you can’t find an answer, do your own electrical work, burn your house down and see what your insurance company has to say…..
From June, 2022 AFDDs arc fault detection devices were mandatory in flats with 6 floors and higher, care homes, etc, on any circuit with one or more sockets on it. This detects arcs which can cause fires. An AFDD can replace a micro circuit breaker in the fuse box, in the same slot. It has four functions: 1) Over-current protection; 2) Fault detection; 4) Earth leakage dectection (RCD); 5) Arc fault detection. AFDDs are recommended on all new installations and circuits.
18th edition wiring regs or any other previous version are not statutory law in the UK. The only law that is statutory is the electricity at work act 1989. In effect if you carried out notifiable work without the latest certification (a old experienced electrician) there isn’t really a problem. (No electrician Police will arrive 😁). If your work was substandard however and injured someone. You would be prosecuted using the 1989 law and wiring regs as evidence. So to the super experienced chap who doesn’t have the latest quals. Keep doing good work and consider upgrading your certs later 👍🏻
The electrical regulations are a guide it is the electricity at work act that is the law, in theory if you carried out work in your own home and there was only you in it then you can do what you like the law is there to protect risk to others, there are electricians out there who are as bad as some of the diy ers . In my experience as you rightly point out it’s the testing and the understanding of the principles and safety aspects that separates the diy world from well trained sparks and that’s what you pay for .
Interesting. I live in Ohio. In most places in the US, a homeowner can do any electrical work in his home, but is required to have the more involved work inspected by the local building inspector. It seems like a good compromise. It costs perhaps $50 or so. I do think this is often ignored. Could it be because the 120 is less hazardous? I don’t know. It could be the American distrust of government.
Just to say, you can do your own domestic electrical work ie in your own home even if the work requires a Building Notice to the local Building Control. You are not breaking any laws. When the work is done, Building Control will have the work tested. If all is ok, you will get a notice from them passing the work. You will have to pay the testing fee when you submit the Building Notice. The conundrum is, you need to have it tested before you can switch on and use. As long as you are competent though you can do the work. You cannot do it for profit, just in your own home. Electricans get the ache when asked to test an installation they have not put in. Protective of their work, but lots of folks find it hard to find an electrician to do any work for them. Same as gas engineers. They like to pick and choose.
Essentially youre allowed to do anything that you own on your property if the electical box is owned by the power company u cant if its urs u can simple. same with everything else. thats how its in europe at least. altho if u do shabby work and bad wiring u may be getting issues from the electric company or rather government basically for making a hazard but u can just do what u want really if its done correctly and safe, bla bla u have to tell everything to everyone no you dont no one will usually care if its dont correctly on issue is with selling or such.
I’m sorry, but I have to disagree with the statements made in this article. I’m really hoping someone agrees with me. Part P says nothing about who is ‘allowed’ to do what work. It’s says what is notifiable and what is not. Section 3 of Part P literally outlines 3 scenarios for certification, inspection and testing: 1) by a self certified registered competent person 2) a registered third party 3) by building control Option 3 permits any individual to carry out notifiable work* and get it certified by building control (note: option 2 seems not possible in practice). My late father (not registered, but extremely knowledgeable in electrics) did exactly this. *note Part P also states that ALL work, notifiable or not, needs to be carried out in accordance with BS7671. TL:DR – part P is only about certification of notifiable work, not who can do it. DIYers are ‘allowed’ to do whatever they want….the means of getting it certified is the challenge
I’ve viewed electrician movies where weatherproof sockets connect into outlet ring main through a brick wall. Outdoor electrical supplies need a dedicated fuse website. I’ve a trailing sockets/cables out to sheds via 13A fused plugs, connected to internal shed electrical system. I can draw 2.9kW maximum, here. A fan heater draws 1kW, in addition to servicing equipment, scopes and similar, no more than 200W. Extension cable is well overrated. In this event, my shed, in entirety becomes an appliance. If an electrical engineer inspection was forced upon us, I’d simply pull out the plug from inside the house, completely isolating the sheds electrics. That is a way around the issue of me not being a certified registered electrician. I’ve met a few professional electrical installers who appear to have less knowledge than do I. Faulty electricals can kill and DIY electricians need to be aware of these issues.
I have huge issues with Part P. In terms of the trade, its the very bottom rung of the ladder…..people go an do a 3 week Part P course and then go out and about calling themselves an electrician. It makes a mockery of those of us that did our apprenticeships and pay a fortune every year for our NIC, ECA etc memberships, not to mention the hundreds of pounds every few years for a refresher course.
Had to wait quite a bit to get to the bit about what I am allowed to do in my own home! But great explanation, odd that working on existing old circuits that you have little knowledge about is allowed but say installing a brand new ring is a no no? Interestingly two property sales I’ve been involved with had a £25 charge for a “disclaimer” type certificate that says the electrics are working fine at time of sale but anything after isn’t my problem! I’m what I would call competent but not qualified in any way except many moons ago part of my CSE Biology exam… yes human biology, I had to physically show I could wire a 13 amp 3 pin UK plug! Out of a potential 9 points I got 9, many got 1 point for just shoving the cable in and doing the cable tensioner up tight 🤪 I do hate the nanny state and wonder how making these “Laws” protects idiots from killing themselves and just making some jobs for competent people expensive and not policed.
Amendment 2 of the 18th Edition wiring regulations just about mandates fitting surge protection devices in the fuse box (SPDs), unless a risk assessment is undertaken to conclude you don’t, which is above what an average professional electrician can do. The wording excludes single residential units where the total value of the installation and equipment does not justify SPD protection. A valued decision.
Anything you want to!!! By anyone you want to and same applies to gas work…. ONLY proviso is that it is not rewarded work etc any form of payment inc expenses cannot be made in any form inc money or even a cup of tea. ANY form of payment requires that work MUST be performed by a qualified person….
Kudos to Stuart for allowing an open comments section on a contentious issue. We may not all agree but constructive debate is healthy and people have an opportunity to expand their knowledge. Unlike another DIY guy’s website who blocks all the comments that offer constructive criticism. Can definitly see why this website is so popular.
As a qualified electrician, I would recommend no DIYer irrelevant of how competent they feel they are should under take any electrical work in the home, I have visited a lot of properties where the DIYer has done work and the results are not good, fires are likely if joints not made off correctly and you need to be certain the circuit your working on is fit for it’s intended use, sorry but that’s the way it should be
I have seen some appalling work carried out by so called NIC EIC electricians. Thats why I wouldn’t let another near my place. I am fully qualified and carry out my own work, and stuff the local authority, they don’t have the labour to control the cumbersome and over bureaucratic system. I enquired 10 years ago and was told that to change my C/U I have to pay them (I think it was then) £135 even though I hold all the relevant electrical qualifications. I paid grudgingly and was told to contact the L/A once starting, I did twice, no reply, emailed twice. Then once completed I emailed them to that effect, still no reply. I did all the testing, used a copy from the wiring regs test sheet just in case somebody actually turned up but nothing. In the last 7 years to now I have done 2 extensions to my house, own electrics and the building inspector who knows my trade doesn’t seem worried. If I sell I’ll just get a test and inspection done as part of the sale. I wish I had saved my £135 years ago.
OK, so I served an electrical apprenticeship from 1978 to 1982. This covered all aspects of electrical installation and I have the paperwork to back this up. I’m retired now and haven’t worked ‘on the tools’ for thirty years. Am I still classed as qualified? My daughter has just bought a house (new build) and wants a security light installing covering the back garden. Easy to do but if I did it would it be legal? Done all my electrical modifications to my current house years ago before they tightened the rules. Anyone like to comment?
OMG I thought the UK was more a freedom place than this. You can customize cars to the extreme and get them on the road but you can’t add a circuit to your panel! Here in France you can do all your electric by yourself, including changing all the panel. Only thing forbidden for a DIYer is installing a car charger more than 3,7kW. And even if you did, you wouldn’t risk any fine, just lack of insurance coverage should a problem occur.
I’m thinking of replacing my old electric cooker with a decent gas range one. Obviously, if I did, I’d be left with the old cooker circuit. Could I ‘repurpose’ that circuit myself to provide power to an outbuilding in order to save having a spark out to wire into the consumer unit? Obviously that circuit is already there so I’m not touching the consumer unit in the house. It has a 45a rcd and the wiring in place, currently supplying the cooker, is all 10mm…. Which is all more than adequate given I only need 6 (but would probably up size to 10, both to satisfy my own ocd for continuity and to future proof) mm armoured cable for the short underground run I need. I’m confident in my ability to do the work but worried about the paperwork when I come to sell the house and whether building control would class this as notifiable or not. The outbuilding is not a swimming pool or sauna – currently storage/home gym but (what I want to be, hence the need for power) office space/workshop. For what the spark wanted to charge me just to put a supply in to the outbuilding, I can pretty much buy the range cooker….. there’s a gas supply there already and the wife’s been nagging for a gas range so it seems a bit of a no brainier to me to kill the 2 birds with one stone if you like. If it’s just a case that “you can’t piddle about inside the consumer unit” then re purposing an existing circuit that’s already wired in, rather than paying him to install a new feed for the outbuilding, and then either leaving the one for the cooker redundant or paying him again to remove the one for the cooker.
It’s interesting how each year the regulations are getting more and more similar between counties on how to do things. The big difference in the USA is you are allowed to do almost any work yourself on your own home. The city will come in and inspect all the work that you aren’t allowed to do yourself there. They do this inspection if you do the work yourself, or you hired someone to do the work. They don’t take anyone’s word it’s done right and require it to be checked/tested by the city.