External electric and gas meter boxes in single skin walls

[Moonshine]

I am looking at potential locations of recessed meter boxes, and the best place for them to be would be in a single skin wall located between external and the garage at entrence level, as per the red cloud below.

 

The problem is that the meter boxes are typically ~210mm deep, (150mm into the wall https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Technical/DataSheets/Mitras/MBEB1_Datasheet.pdf) so with 100mm block and 20mm render, these would be sticking out into the garage by 30mm.

 

 

Would this 30mm overlay be o.k and the back of the box visible, or would it need stud work to cover it in the garage? and also a exit path for the cables to the consumer unit.

 

If so the single skin of block work could move 50mm to the right to allow for a stud batten to be fixed to the block and plasterboard over, thus keeping the same line as the internal wall of the garage.

 

same issue with the gas meter box

 

[joe90]

Personally I don’t like the look of external meter boxes which is why mine is mounted on the back of an detached garage not my oldy worldy cottage. My electric meter is in a single skin block wall and pokes through a little. Can’t you mount it to the left of the garage door so it not by the front door?

[Moonshine]

5 minutes ago, joe90 said:

Can’t you mount it to the left of the garage door so it not by the front door?

 

unfortunately not as that space will have 'stuff' in front of it.

[PeterW]

Why not put both the gas and electric meter under the stairs ..??

 

Gas can be in a ground meter box like this one if they really insist. 

[Moonshine]

4 minutes ago, PeterW said:

Why not put both the gas and electric meter under the stairs ..??

 

They could do, but they will be taking up space under there, which would be better served for general storage.

 

I probably need to have a bit of a think if they could go internally, and maybe better suited internally in the garage at high level, with just the consumer unit under the stairs (or in the garage).

[PeterW]

Electric Meter with CU in the garage would be ok but remember the CU now needs to be at 1400mm or so and you can’t hide them at high level. 

[joe90]

My electric meter is in my detached garage but CU is in the house in a plant room!

[Mr Punter]

Build the wall in 140mm blocks.  They are better if you need to cut deep chases as well.

[joth]

6 hours ago, PeterW said:

Why not put both the gas and electric meter under the stairs ..??

 

Gas can be in a ground meter box like this one if they really insist. 

 

UKPN refused to allow a new supply head to go internally when I was getting quotes. They moved our meter to the garage in the end, as it was relocating an existing supply it could remain indoors, but if we'd gone for a new 3ph supply they said they'd only allow that to be fitted externally. (Probably would have gone down the GRP kiosk route)

[Jeremy Harris]

We had the same, SSE refused to allow a new supply head and meter inside the house.  One of the issues I had was how to avoid the thermal bridge that putting a ~150mm deep cabinet in an external wall would create.  For us it would have meant about a 40% reduction in insulation where the cabinet was, had we set it into the house wall.  This, more than anything else, drove the decision to use an external meter cabinet, located in a fence, and run a thick cable from there into the house.

[ProDave]

19 minutes ago, Jeremy Harris said:

We had the same, SSE refused to allow a new supply head and meter inside the house. 

The new build I am wiring at the moment, SSE fitted the supply head and meter inside the house under the stairs just before Christmas.

 

How strange that you were refused.

[Jeremy Harris]

21 minutes ago, ProDave said:

The new build I am wiring at the moment, SSE fitted the supply head and meter inside the house under the stairs just before Christmas.

 

How strange that you were refused.

 

 

One thing that seems consistent is that utility companies are rarely consistent! 

 

They sent me a pamphlet when I first enquired about getting a supply, listing all their requirements.  As well as their insistence that the meter box be in an external wall, they also insisted that their underground cables had to be laid in 150mm diameter black Rigiduct.  Luckily, their local chap turned up on site before we'd bought the duct and declared that he'd rather just give us a big wooden reel of Wavecon 95 and have us bury it directly in the trench, with no ducting. . .

[Big Jimbo]

I think the reason for external only, is because they have by law ( i believe) responsibility for the supply up to the meter, so they don't want it burried under your house. In parts of London a few years ago they came along, and moved all the gas meters to outside the house. As far as i know, in England, you have not been able to have a gas meter internally for years

[Gone West]

16 hours ago, joth said:

UKPN refused to allow a new supply head to go internally when I was getting quotes.

When we started our build in 2010 we had an oversailing cable and some poles moved by EDF who later morphed into UKPN. We also had an agreement that because we were building a PH we could have an internal supply. When we eventually had the cable pulled through the ducting, installed by me, UKPN honoured the agreement first set up with EDF, even though they would have preferred I had an outside box.

[Temp]

Are you allowed to hide external meter boxes? If so how about leaving it single and cladding the outside with something to cover the meters with and provide an access door? 

 

I'm thinking modern style oak cladding. 

 

http://www.orlestonetimber.co.uk/Cladding/Machined-Cladding-/?wizid=istn3jg7o8dkr3irknfuacdfr6

 

 

Edited February 22, 2020 by Temp

[ragg987]

20 hours ago, joth said:

UKPN refused to allow a new supply head to go internally when I was getting quotes

We had the same, expect I appealed this and they allowed it to happen. Our mains cable comes in underground via the basement and the main fusebox and other bits sit inside our utility room.