Extending wires.

[Ollie78]

Hi

I have an issue with wires coming from the consumer unit and going upstairs being too short to effectively put into trunking or anything.
The consumer unit is under our stairs and the wires go into the ceiling/floor cavity at the top of the stairs.
We had a new consumer unit put in and re wired all the downstairs sockets when we moved in and did a bunch of work but now I want to build a nice under stairs cupboard and the wires are just not long enough to tidy up nicely, I put them in a temporary trunking as far as I can but there is a good bit dangling at the top. These wires were inside a sort of void above the original under stairs cupboard.

I realise that ideally these should be re-wired "properly" but I do not want to take all the floor up etc.
Can I use wago junction boxes and 221 connectors to extend these wires ? I am thinking of a junction box just above the consumer unit and another at the top where they currently go through the ceiling, new wire between them.
I was impressed with the wagos when I re did all our upstairs lights to leds.

Ollie

 

[ProDave]

Post a picture to make it clearer?

Junction box at top of the cupboard but then new wires go straight into consumer unit, no need for a junction box above the consumer unit. If you are not competent to make connections inside the consumer unit, get an electrician, it is a simple job so should not cost much.

 

[Ollie78]

Thanks @ProDave. I had thought of doing it straight to the consumer unit as you suggest but was not sure I am legally allowed to hence my double junction box plan.
Here is the offending area.

 

[Andy™]

50x50 trunking, crimp in a new piece between end of cable an DB. no point having 2 joins

 

[apprentice87]

Thanks @ProDave. I had thought of doing it straight to the consumer unit as you suggest but was not sure I am legally allowed to hence my double junction box plan.
Here is the offending area.

View attachment 16471

You are "legally" allowed to do whatever you like.. Whether this is a good idea, is another matter entirely.

john.

 

[binky]

Cables look long enough to be rerouted in corner by window and into that side if the CU. Blank off original cable entry.

 

[Ollie78]

Cables look long enough to be rerouted in corner by window and into that side if the CU. Blank off original cable entry.

Might be worth a go, but I think when I put the temporary conduit in there it was too short for anything sensible at all, that's why I bodged it like that ! Just to get them out of the way.

I think I will do one junction box near the ceiling and new wires into the consumer unit.

Ollie

 

[binky]

Might be worth a go, but I think when I put the temporary conduit in there it was too short for anything sensible at all, that's why I bodged it like that ! Just to get them out of the way.

I think I will do one junction box near the ceiling and new wires into the consumer unit.

Ollie

if you want to save rewiring the CU, get larger trunking and add lengths to cables in that ( it would probably work in what you have, but looks a bit tight). That would mean adding 2 joins in each cable, but it's quicker and easier. NB, wagos have 2 ratings 26A and a higher rated unit which I think is 40 Amps, personally I would use crimps, but I have a big box of those that need using

 

[Ollie78]

if you want to save rewiring the CU, get larger trunking and add lengths to cables in that ( it would probably work in what you have, but looks a bit tight). That would mean adding 2 joins in each cable, but it's quicker and easier. NB, wagos have 2 ratings 26A and a higher rated unit which I think is 40 Amps, personally I would use crimps, but I have a big box of those that need using

I am the opposite I have a bunch of wagos left but no crimps. They are the clear 221 type.
I did not really want to open the consumer unit if not necessary, I had not thought about just using inline connectors inside the trunking which may indeed be simpler.