Bathroom Cabinet

[paulnumbers]

Hi All,

Please forgive my idiotic questions, I have almost no common sense when it comes to this sort of thing.

When I moved into my house, the previous person took the bathroom cabinet (by agreement). I've now got to deal with the issue.

https://i.imgur.com/Rjnhvxa.jpg

I can just about cope with a bit of painting, and probably fitting the cabinet, but what do I do about the electrical connection? I'm have no great desire to have a light in my cabinet (but wouldn't object either), and presumably any random cabinet I bought would not have a space for the (what I presume) is the junction box seen.

So can I remove the junction box, and cover the end of the wire in insulation, and then fit a standard cabinet over the top of the loose wire? Or would a cabinet not have any gap behind it, and then not go flush against the wall?

What would you do?

Thanks,
Paul

[richlist]

if it were me I'd choose one of the following options.
1. Buy a cabinet that has a light in it......connect it. Or
2. Buy a cabinet without a light and screw/stick the junction box to the top of it. Or
3. Drill a hole in the back of the cabinet feed the wires through and refit the junction box inside the cabinet.

If you are not sure about the electrics get someone to help you who knows what they are doing.

[sg31]

if it were me I'd choose one of the following options.
1. Buy a cabinet that has a light in it......connect it. Or
2. Buy a cabinet without a light and screw/stick the junction box to the top of it. Or
3. Drill a hole in the back of the cabinet feed the wires through and refit the junction box inside the cabinet.

If you are not sure about the electrics get someone to help you who knows what they are doing.

That seems to cover most of the options. I'm not up to date on current regulations but I think wiring inside a bathroom may need to be carried out by a qualified electrician. Part of the building regs I think rather than the wiring regs.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, now I'm retired I can't be bothered to keep up to date.

[paulnumbers]

if it were me I'd choose one of the following options.
1. Buy a cabinet that has a light in it......connect it. Or
2. Buy a cabinet without a light and screw/stick the junction box to the top of it. Or
3. Drill a hole in the back of the cabinet feed the wires through and refit the junction box inside the cabinet.

If you are not sure about the electrics get someone to help you who knows what they are doing.

Thanks. Yes I suppose option 1 makes the most sense.

[pochisoldi]

If it were my bathroom...

Chase a hole in the wall to fit a standard single way backbox.
Make sure the backbox is recessed by a couple of mm. Screw the backbox to the wall, and plaster/make good.
Cut the live and neutral back to a suitable length for insertion into a terminal block (aka "chocbloc"), but leave the earth wire intact.
Bend the earth wire so that it is the same length. Terminate the wires in the terminal block, then put a sleeve on the exposed earth wire and terminate the earth wire on the terminal in the backbox.

Optional: Get a backbox sized piece of metal, drill two holes and secure over the backbox (use the standard mains socket type screws)
Good practice: Mark the backbox lid with words to the effect of "Live Feed from upstairs lighting circuit"

Install cabinet

In ten years time when wife/partner/significant other gets fed up with the cabinet, wants lights around the mirror or wants somewhere to plug in a rechargeable toothbrush, remove the cabinet, and install new cabinet connecting it to the existing supply.

As far as Part P is concerned, anywhere exposed within 0.6m of a handbasin is Zone 2.
Putting the junction box in the wall, and making inaccessible without use of a tool takes it "Outside Zones"

IMHO the junction box shown is only suitable if you can permanently mount it inaccessible, it won't get splashed, bearing in mind the conundrum of wanting it out of sight for aesthetic reasons, but wanting it visible for electrical safety so that it doesn't get accidentally splashed...


Another alternative is to find the other end of the cable (usually the bathroom ceiling rose), and disconnect it.
Then either use the wire to pull through a string and leave the holes "as is", or pull/cut the wire back and write on the wall "DEAD: Disconnected at bathroom ceiling rose", and label the other end "DO NOT RECONNECT: Feeds bathroom cabinet (disconnected)".

PochiSoldi

[Dod101]

The other option is to buy a cabinet that your wife would like (with or without lights; I recommend with lights) and then get an electrician in to fit the cabinet and do the wiring. Especially as the OP has said that he has almost no common sense when it comes to this sort of thing. I am in the same boat and that is what I would do.

I would probably have insisted that the cabinet be left in place as it is really a fixture I would have thought, but it is too late for that now.

Dod

[UncleEbenezer]

I believe there is indeed a requirement that someone fitting electrics be electrically qualified. Indeed, I discussed the matter today with a plumber who came to quote for some bathroom work: it would not be legal for him to deal with the electrics of my prospective whirlpool bath.

When I moved house in 2005, I bought an electric cooker and wired it in (to an existing cooker point) myself: a job no more complex than changing a plug, and to the best of my knowledge entirely OK for me to do (unlike a gas cooker). When I moved out of that place in 2013, my removal men told me they couldn't detach it, nor was it technically legal for me to do - so best if I do it while they weren't watching. Someone may have been misinformed, but I suspect the law actually changed sometime between those dates.

[bionichamster]

When I moved out of that place in 2013, my removal men told me they couldn't detach it, nor was it technically legal for me to do - so best if I do it while they weren't watching. Someone may have been misinformed, but I suspect the law actually changed sometime between those dates.

I suspect your removal men where just covering their own backs. The disconnection and reinstallation of a cooker is not notifiable under part P.:

https://www.planningportal.co.uk/info/200135/approved_documents/82/part_p_-_electrical_safety

From the removal guys point of view it’s maybe seen as extra hassle, plus minor risk, perhaps not so much to their safety but of getting the blame for some later problem. Far easier to say “would if I could but I can’t”...

Going back to the original OP, capping the circuit with a safe termination is unlikely to be notifiable either, but could check the regs.

Bh

[swill453]

Going back to the original OP, capping the circuit with a safe termination is unlikely to be notifiable either, but could check the regs.

Out of interest, what would you use as a safe termination? Would screwing the wires into a chocolate block and wrapping in insulation tape be enough?

Scott.

[sg31]

Out of interest, what would you use as a safe termination? Would screwing the wires into a chocolate block and wrapping in insulation tape be enough?

Scott.

I've been using these instead of connector strips...

https://www.screwfix.com/p/3-way-lever- ... f-50/76776

They are very easy to use. I've no idea if they would be ok for terminations in a bathroom.

[swill453]

I've been using these instead of connector strips...

https://www.screwfix.com/p/3-way-lever- ... f-50/76776

They are very easy to use. I've no idea if they would be ok for terminations in a bathroom.

Good for connecting wires, but not for terminating them I think. You'd need one per wire. Can you get 1-way ones?

Scott.

[sg31]

Good for connecting wires, but not for terminating them I think. You'd need one per wire. Can you get 1-way ones?

Scott.

I've got 2 way ones, 3 way and 5 way. I think the advantage is they are easy to use and can't work loose like screw blocks.

[pochisoldi]

... and can't work loose like screw blocks.

In a fixed installation (where the wires can't be moved by an outside force), the only wires which "work loose" were never tightened up properly in the first place.

If you can't properly terminate a single wire going into a terminal block, something's seriously wrong.

[staffordian]

... and can't work loose like screw blocks.

In a fixed installation (where the wires can't be moved by an outside force), the only wires which "work loose" were never tightened up properly in the first place.

If you can't properly terminate a single wire going into a terminal block, something's seriously wrong.

I thought copper had a tendency to creep, meaning a once tight connection could effectively loosen over time, hence the need to use connections which are not screwed in inaccessible areas?

[bionichamster]

Out of interest, what would you use as a safe termination? Would screwing the wires into a chocolate block and wrapping in insulation tape be enough?

Scott.

I've been using these instead of connector strips...

https://www.screwfix.com/p/3-way-lever- ... f-50/76776

They are very easy to use. I've no idea if they would be ok for terminations in a bathroom.

In the old days I might have opted for one of those circular junction boxes, which going by the pic are currently fitted,

these days I’d use the Wago lever connectors, but you’d still want them in a as someone else suggested ( back box in wall with flush plate fitted and cable capped with lever connectors). That’s what I’d do, I think the lever connectors are preferable to the old screw blocks and insulating tape. Don’t know if you can buy them singly or in pairs I just bought o box of two level and a box of three lever ones.

Bh