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[robinantill]

Hi,

I have just had a new fitted kitchen put in and there is a built in fridge and a built in freezer. The house has just been re-wired.

The fitters have put the socket for the fridge and freezer behind them which means that they have to be connected and then pushed into place.

There is no way to turn the power off for defrosting or in an emergency which I feel it very unsatifactory at best and dangerous at worse.

Does this meet the latest electrical standards?

Thank you.
Robin

[ericmark]

537.5 Functional switching (control)
537.5.1 General
537.5.1.1 A functional switching device shall be provided for each part of a circuit which may require to be controlled independently of other parts of the installation.
This is latest but not yet in force people at the moment can still use old one and I don't have a copy any more sorry.

[kbrownie]

Hi,
Part P of build regs, says that the requirment for under work-surface aplliances being supplied by socket-outlets, that the socket-outlet should be accessible when the appliance is pulled out.
and integrated appliances should be connect by socket-outlet or fused connection unit that are readily accessible when the appliance is in place and in normal use or supplied from a socket-outlet or other connecting device controlled by a accesible double pole switch or switched fused connection unit.
So depending on how your appliances have been installed the above requirments should be put in place, but I would tend to encourage that you would install a switch spur above worktop height regardless of how they had been fitted
Regards
KB

[ericmark]

Although I have given you the regulation I am not sure if it covers what you want and even if it does who would be responsible? If when the electrician is asked to rewire he was not asked to fit remote isolators to the sockets and the kitchen is not in then he would not fit them as he would not know where they needed fitting and if free standing or built in units would be used. The kitchen fitters since Part P in the main no longer get involved with electrics so would not fit isolators. And built in units should have controls including fuses and on/off switches. So only if as one job one firm was re-wiring and fitting a kitchen as would happen as with a new house. Anyone other then the person ordering the work has good reason for not fitting the isolators which means it all may fall onto your shoulders for not ordering the work at the onset. As a post event it becomes a problem because of the position where cable is allowed to run when buried in a wall. If the socket is hidden by the appliance, then 522.6.6 (v) may not apply. In which case the cable will need to be in conduit or similar i.e. 522.6.6 (i) to (iv) basically what it says if the cable goes to a switch or socket you can see where the cable is likely to be because of the position of the socket. But if you hide the socket then that will no longer apply. In which case it needs extra protection. The regulations are as you requested the latest which can be used but don’t have to be used until June. The old regulations are not as strict.