- Thread starter RonHopeful
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Jan
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Another vote for armoured cable. Have you also considered the possibility of a suspended overhead cable run? My previous shed was 15 metres from the consumer unit, but only ran a 100 map stick welder or medium sized hobby air compressor and never struggled for voltage. My new workshop is under a metre from the house wall (total run 5 metres from the CU including routing) so an overhead line should be quite adequate to reach the new CU inside it.
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Another advantage of SWA is if it's installed correctly it can be fed from the non-RCD side of house CU (fusebox) so if you have a problem in garage/shed it doesn't knock out the house and annoy the rest of the family 
skotl
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+2 for SWA, but I'd go for 10mm rather than 10" unless you're powering the entire village
On a more serious note, I have 10mm SWA running to my garage, which is around 30m away, with a 32A socket for me welder. Runs great at its full 150A load.
RonHopeful
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Well, that's not happening. £700 
. I'll have to make do with what I've got.
. I'll have to make do with what I've got.
skotl
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Well, that's not happening. £700
Aye, to be fair, it was £900 for me including a new consumer unit in the garage and the 32A fittings.
I would guess you have breaker spaces in the CU, so doing the work yourself is viable. Fit the socket and run the cable yourself, as long as you properly isolate the CU the mains connection is straightforward, if you are not confident I would wholeheartedly agree to get a sparky to hook you up ;-) better safe than sorry. I put a 32a supply in for welding and its a whole world of difference, and I put in a 100a supply (which is basically hooking straight into the national grid) that's a phenomenon on its own, it drains every drop of power out of my house and dims the neighbors lights :-)
sorry, going off on a tangent. if you rent (may apply if you own, not sure of the law) you would need an inspection certificate before you can use any electrical changes that you make. What that means is that you do the work and get it inspected before you can make it live. don't let that frighten you, all it means is that you use the correctly rated cable/plugs/sockets, make sure they are fixed securely, routed and properly protected, and the breakers correctly fitted.
basically there are lots of online step by step guides you can follow, and as long as its inspected before going live you will be fine.
welcome to the astronomical power bills club :-)
sorry, going off on a tangent. if you rent (may apply if you own, not sure of the law) you would need an inspection certificate before you can use any electrical changes that you make. What that means is that you do the work and get it inspected before you can make it live. don't let that frighten you, all it means is that you use the correctly rated cable/plugs/sockets, make sure they are fixed securely, routed and properly protected, and the breakers correctly fitted.
basically there are lots of online step by step guides you can follow, and as long as its inspected before going live you will be fine.
welcome to the astronomical power bills club :-)
skotl
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Apologies for putting a dampener on your enthusiasm but, in England and Wales at least, there are stringent requirements regarding installation of a new circuit.
http://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/guides-and-advice/building-regulations/england/
Some choice quotes from that site;
"From April 2013 electrical work in a dwelling, or associated with its surroundings, is notifiable to a local building control body where the work includes:
• the installation of a new circuit, whether at low voltage (typically 230 V) or extra-low voltage);"
"If it is [notifiable] then you must either;
• employ an electrician who is registered with one of the Government-approved scheme providers; or tell (‘notify’) your local-authority building-control about the installation work before work begins.
From April 2014 you will also be able to employ a non-registered electrical installer who has appointed a registered third party certifier to carry out the required inspection and testing of the work both during and on completion."
Running a new line to a garage or outbuilding, or running a new 32A connection, both fall under the definition of "installation of a new circuit".
http://www.electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/guides-and-advice/building-regulations/england/
Some choice quotes from that site;
"From April 2013 electrical work in a dwelling, or associated with its surroundings, is notifiable to a local building control body where the work includes:
• the installation of a new circuit, whether at low voltage (typically 230 V) or extra-low voltage);"
"If it is [notifiable] then you must either;
• employ an electrician who is registered with one of the Government-approved scheme providers; or tell (‘notify’) your local-authority building-control about the installation work before work begins.
From April 2014 you will also be able to employ a non-registered electrical installer who has appointed a registered third party certifier to carry out the required inspection and testing of the work both during and on completion."
Running a new line to a garage or outbuilding, or running a new 32A connection, both fall under the definition of "installation of a new circuit".
