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Electric Towel Rail - Above End of Bath?

Barney12
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Barney12 Advanced Member

Barney12

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Due to space constraints I want to put an electric towel rail on the wall at the end of the bath. Obviously that's going to be Zone 1. An IPX4 electric rail doesn't seem to hard to find but is it acceptable to use a flex outlet plate sealed with silicone to achieve the required protection? I can't seem to find an internal IPX4 rated flex plate? 

 

Thoughts? 

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Jeremy Harris Advanced Member

Jeremy Harris

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AFAIK, there are no approved IPX4 flex outlets readily available (at least I've not seen any) and you cannot legally make a non-IPX4 outlet into one by just adding sealant - it has to be tested and approved as complying with the ingress protection rating.

 

So, the answer is to run the cable outside zone 1, to a point where you can then fit a standard outlet.  With a bit of ingenuity you should be able to run the cable neatly, whilst retaining the ability to replace it.  Buried conduit in the wall, that slopes down to the bath end, with the outlet plate fitted above the lowest point, would seem to be OK.  You could run the conduit and cable into the rear of the plate to make a neater job.

 

Replacing the cable would be easy enough, as heat-resistant flex is quite stiff so should poke up a bit of conduit easily enough.  Looking at the regs I can't see any obvious gotchas with such an arrangement.

Edited by JSHarris
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PeterW Advanced Member

PeterW

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14 minutes ago, Barney12 said:

As it's mounted on a stud wall can I simply run the cable through the wall to a flex plate on the other side of the wall thus outside all zones? 

 

Yep thats my other towel rail..!!

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Jeremy Harris Advanced Member

Jeremy Harris

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22 minutes ago, Barney12 said:

As it's mounted on a stud wall can I simply run the cable through the wall to a flex plate on the other side of the wall thus outside all zones? 

 

Yes, this is what I've done with one of ours, it runs through the stud wall, via a short bit of conduit, to a time switch mounted on the wall on the landing.  Just make sure that there is a slope such that water cannot run along the cable to the termination point

Edited by JSHarris
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Nickfromwales Advanced Member

Nickfromwales

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@lizzie

Its not my bathroom ;). I'm just a guy that fits these wonderful things :) The pics I post are from clients houses as I'm a self employed tradesmen who, one day, may get to join the lucky home builders here. 

That one came from a reseller, ( bathroom showroom ), but you can purchase one from somewhere like This directly. Not cheap, but it is a nice unit. 

 

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lizzie Advanced Member

lizzie

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1 hour ago, Nickfromwales said:

@lizzie

Its not my bathroom ;). I'm just a guy that fits these wonderful things :) The pics I post are from clients houses as I'm a self employed tradesmen who, one day, may get to join the lucky home builders here. 

That one came from a reseller, ( bathroom showroom ), but you can purchase one from somewhere like This directly. Not cheap, but it is a nice unit. 

 

Thanks Nick I will explore.I am Welsh love your felinfoel dragon logo?

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Jeremy Harris Advanced Member

Jeremy Harris

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5 hours ago, Nickfromwales said:

Tastes better than it looks :D

 

I remain unconvinced.  I must have consumed many gallons of the stuff in the Copper Beech at Abercraf over the years, and I rather think it deserved it's alternative name, "Feeling Foul"................

Edited by JSHarris
typo - used English spelling by mistake...............
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Nickfromwales Advanced Member

Nickfromwales

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2 minutes ago, JSHarris said:

 

I remain unconvinced.  I must have consumed many gallons of the stuff in the Copper Beech at Abercrave over the years, and I rather think it deserved it's alternative name, "Feeling Foul"................

"Many gallons" means you kept going back for more ??

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Jeremy Harris Advanced Member

Jeremy Harris

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15 minutes ago, Nickfromwales said:

"Many gallons" means you kept going back for more ??

 

 

Not really.  Caving club members from Penwyllt were banned from the other pubs in the valley, particularly the Ancient Briton, so we either went down to Abercraf to drink in the Copper Beech or we didn't drink at all...................

 

 

Edited by JSHarris
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ToughButterCup Advanced Member

ToughButterCup

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31 minutes ago, JSHarris said:

[...]

Caving club members from Penwyllt were banned from the other pubs in the valley, 

[...]

 

Frankly, I'm not surprised.  It's the only place -in the world-  where, showering after a lengthy saunter underground with the club members, that the blokes  were (still are perhaps?) joined by the girls in the showers (1973).

Nobody even flickered the tiniest reaction. I kept my back to the wall. And my eyes to the ground. I lathered up as much as I could.

Reprobates all. 

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Jeremy Harris Advanced Member

Jeremy Harris

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13 minutes ago, recoveringacademic said:

 

Frankly, I'm not surprised.  It's the only place -in the world-  where, showering after a lengthy saunter underground with the club members, that the blokes  were (still are perhaps?) joined by the girls in the showers (1973).

Nobody even flickered the tiniest reaction. I kept my back to the wall. And my eyes to the ground. I lathered up as much as I could.

Reprobates all. 

 

Things did change when the ladies showers and dormitories were added to the cottages at Penwyllt in the late 70's, and the committee seemed to get a bit sanctimonious about mixed showers and mixed bunk rooms after that, to the point of creating a "married" bunk room, and almost asking to see a marriage certificate before allowing couples to sleep there.  This was in contrast to some of the Northern clubs.  I remember taking my then new girlfriend (now my wife) for her first ever caving trip, up to Red Rose Cave and Pothole Club, at Easter 1986.  There the bunk rooms were Alpine style (one very long mattress with boys and girls all snuggled up together) and mixed showers.  I well remember coming back from a group trip down Lancaster Pot and then back out through Wretched Rabbit to the beck, when we all went for a shower, where we were all chatting away animatedly.  After a few minutes I realised that the "bloke" next to me had bumps on her chest..........

Edited by JSHarris
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SteamyTea Advanced Member

SteamyTea

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3 hours ago, Nickfromwales said:

That's why it's better to eat one when your pissed

One of my dares is to eat one sober, at lunch, with a knife and fork, and in public.

I get strange looks. :D

 

Think I will try some 'Doomsday' on the next one (see youtube for this years chilli challenge).

Edited by SteamyTea
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Jeremy Harris Advanced Member

Jeremy Harris

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With reference to this anecdote: 
http://forum.buildhub.org.uk/ipb/topic/3478-electric-towel-rail-above-end-of-bath/?do=findComment&comment=54532

 I've just found a copy of an archived SWCC Newsletter from 1986 referring to this trip up North: http://www.swcc.org.uk/aboutswcc/newslett/archive/Newsletter_101_1986.pdf

 

There's even a photo of a very much younger me, and a very brief report of our trip down Lancaster Pot, that I've just snipped out:

59a2c363ce21b_SWCCNewsletterphoto.jpg.461b42b6d767d9e431b3a061cd309660.jpg

That's me standing right at the back in the doorway to the club house, with John Lister (who was to be my best man a while later) kneeling down in the front.  All the others are also visiting SWCC members who went on that trip through Ease Gill, although I can't recall all of the names. 

 

 

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Jeremy Harris Advanced Member

Jeremy Harris

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I've just found a guy that's made a video of the trip from Lancaster and out through Wretched Rabbit, that same 5 or 6 hour trip we did back in Easter 1986:

 

 

 

What's missing is the spectacular bell-shaped chamber that the initial abseil down Lancaster brings you out into.  You enter that tight little pothole shown at the start of the video, then it opens out to this (you can just see the base of the narrow entrance pot from the surface at the very top centre):

 

31459248812_6247b94964_c.jpg

 

One of the best entrances to a cave system I've ever seen, really dramatic as you leave the narrow bit and then swing out into that big cavern below.  I will admit to yelling "geronimo!" on the free fall bit.............

 

 

Edited by JSHarris
typo
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Russell griffiths Advanced Member

Russell griffiths

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Getting away from kebabs and potholeing

can somebody explain a bit more about the ipx4 rating on the towel rail. 

 

I have just taken an old towel rail down as I didn't like it being close to the new shower I put in, but to be honest we really miss it so a safe version would be really welcome. 

The power supply was always on the other side of a stud wall in the airing cupboard so that is ok, the old one just looked so crap it had to go. 

Cheers off out to get a kebab now it's made me feel hungry. 

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