ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade Non-US Electrical Systems & Trades some silly electrician

Do you really mean "ring" MCB, or is it just a 32A MCB feeding both the fryer and the domestic cooker on radial circuits?

I still don't like even the latter. Maybe the chances of the domestic cooker being in use at the same time as the fryer are small, but each should really have its own dedicated circuit nevertheless.

sorry, yes it is just an MCB feeding both the cooker and the range. this could be changed but at difficulty, is it still safe to put them both on a 50A MCB?

No way!!
Two appliances like that would need to be protected individually.

Do you know the power rating of the fryer?

no sorry i dont, and it wont be untill next week that i can find out as i am on holiday at the moment.

I don't know how it's normally done in the UK, but over here you should have:

A dedicated radial circuit for the range and the fryer rated appropriately and connected to its own MCB.

There should be an isolating switch, usually a large red rotary type that's very easy to turn, identify and reach located far enough from the fryer / range to allow someone to isolate the power without being burned should there be a fire.
(these need to be clearly labled!)

Lighting should be on its own 6A or 10A radial.

And, if it were here anyway, socket outlets would be on another radial (or number of radials) protected by 16 or 20A MCB + RCD.

In an area like a chip shop, it would also be quite important that the electrical equipment should be capable of surving mechanical damage e.g. being hit with something heavy.

So, any surface mounted cable should be in steel conduit and any fittings should be metal clad or of industrial quality plastic and definitely not the normal white brittle switches and sockets you find in residential and office installations.

There should be no fittings / fixtures or wiring anywhere behind or near the fryer and precautions should be taken to ensure that no cabling / fittings are likely to be heat damaged / fire damaged or exposed to a lot of steam / condensation or splashes...
(Common sense applies!)

If the fryers / ranges / ovens are designed to be moved for cleaning, they would usually be connected using CEEform industrial plugs (rated appropriately)

[This message has been edited by djk (edited 07-31-2005).]

That's pretty much the same as here, except the socket circuits could be on 20A radials or a 32A ring.

The rotary isolating switches are often seen in commercial premises here, although other types could be employed. CEEform would also be used for movable fryers etc.