What we do when we come out
The visit, start to finish.
Read moreRated IP55 or better
Where the plug and socket sit outside the house, the specification these devices are approved against requires an IP55 rating or better. That covers a socket fixed to the house wall and one mounted nearer a ground frame in the garden.
The inverter itself can sit indoors or outdoors. Where the direct current cable runs in from outside, the manufacturer has to supply the connectors and the routing instructions, and we check both are in the box before we fit anything.
The circuit behind it
A one component device arrives with its inverter built in, and the specification is written for products anyone can plug in themselves. Testing or altering the fixed wiring of the house is different, and that is electrician's work, including replacing the overcurrent protection device where the circuit needs it.
People who responded to the government's own consultation raised older wiring as the practical fire risk with these devices, and a good share of the housing across Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton and the Black Country pre-dates the wiring regulations by decades. We look at the socket and the circuit behind it before anything is switched on.
Four things that never go near it
The specification spells this out twice over, printed as a marking on the device itself and repeated again in its paperwork, which tells you how seriously it is taken.
- An extension lead.
- A multi-way adaptor.
- A residual current device adaptor.
- A travel adaptor.
Reaching for one of these is the obvious fix when a panel sits further from the house than the plug can stretch. Putting the socket in the correct spot to begin with removes the temptation.
One device, one household
Read the product rules alone and a house with two final ring circuits could carry two devices. The network side overrides that: Engineering Recommendation G98 Issue 2 Amendment 1 caps every household at one, full stop, and that is the number that decides it.
Watch for two figures, not one
A listing quoting only its panel wattage is telling half the story. What lands on the mains side is capped separately, 800 VA and 3.5 amps at most, however many watts of panel feed it, up to a ceiling of 2000. Cross 960 watts of panel and the rules call for someone to check the installation suits the house before it goes ahead.
Tell your insurer
The instructions supplied with a compliant device are required to tell the owner to check whether it affects their insurance. It is one phone call, worth making before the kit arrives rather than after.
Questions about the socket
Can the socket go indoors instead?
Yes, if the run to the panel allows it, and an indoor BS 1363 socket does not need the IP55 rating. What it still needs is a checked circuit and no extension lead bridging the gap to outside.
Who pays for the electrical work?
You do, and we quote the socket and circuit work as its own line, separate from any kit. We take no commission on it.
What if I do not own the house?
You will need agreement from the landlord or freeholder before any of this starts. The government's own response to its consultation records this as a real limit on take-up that the rules have not solved.
More on the fitting
On this page
- Rated IP55 or better
- The circuit behind it
- Four things that never go near it
- One device, one household
- Tell your insurer
- Questions about the socket
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