sr71

Since when is that a requirement in the UK? And how exactly are Kiwi electrics rubbish?

Wellington Will

SR71 said, "Since when is that a requirement in the UK? And how exactly are Kiwi electrics rubbish?"

There's been a requirement for landlords to provide an electrical safety certificate i.e. to have a paid inspection of the property by qualified electricians since as long as I've been renting out a house in the Uk (about 15 years).

There is no such requirement in NZ.

As a consequence, electrical safety and electrical maintenance, at least in Kiwi rental properties, is low on the priority for landlords. I've not seen figures on this or a report, but by my own experience of half a dozen rental properties in NZ, none was up to the standard a UK rental property must attain.

Add to this that most Kiwi plugs are not fused (except at the circuit board), and you can understand why I think Kiwi electrics are rubbish (though I have to admit it's an emotive word plucked from the air after a couple of beers.)

As an interesting additional note given topics on the boards recently, UK houses now also have to have an ECO certificate to show their energy efficiency. I think that would be an excellent thing to have in NZ to make landlords insulate and draught-proof their properties.

Will

Wooly_Cow

Now there's a good idea! I was thinking last night when there was a news item about $1500 for insulation from the government..."I wonder how long it'll take to filter down to improved rental properties".

If they were to add on an 'Eco rating' to the rental details of a house it could make a difference and encourage landlords to use the grant and insulate!

love30stm

yeah we have our fridge/freezer from the uk for drinks...lol

and we bought a new one for the kitchen

sr71

I never knew about that as a tenant, knew there had to be a gas one but not and electric one.

As for NZ electric quality, I'm not an electrician but would have thought Aus/NZ are pretty good when it comes to electrics - I mean Europe, the US, Asia etc don't even have a ground component in their plugs (rarely used anyway). And I'm not sure what difference the fuse makes if the appliance is fused or there is a circuit breaker.

lardyl

you really need to understand a little more about the subject before pontificating on it........

on the (home) electrical front some things are good others are bad.

NZ "plugs", multi-boxes ("extension leads" to us Pomms) and quite a lot of their circuit protection is worse than the UK. Just look at the amount of material involved in making the NZ/Aus plugs vs. UK ones. This is why the experts urge people to be very careful with them and why they cause so many fires, also explains why many NZ outlets become "crunchy"....

And before you ask, I spend my professional life checking the quality of these things once they have gone wrong then perhaps you could defer to "experience" and "training".

Please don't anyone out there assume that an appliance is safe if it is not "grounded", unless it is double insulated and designed to operate without an earth (ground). Look for the symbol with two squares, one inside the other - that means it is designed to work without an earth (ground). Otherwise make sure you earth things and don't use 2-pin travel adapters for toasters, etc......please as you could get killed! There are other threads on this subject.

As far as circuit protective devices and the comment on re-wireable fuses vs circuit breakers go then there are significant differences and I for one welcome regulations to add RCD protection! That will make our lives safer.

SR71 - what do you think about the use of socket outlets and ordinary light switches in most NZ bathrooms, etc? Is that a good idea?

I'd also take issue with equating Whirlpool to BOSCH, etc. Done work for both companies on their appliances and safety and I know which I'd rather have in my kitchen and wash room.

sr71

I see no pontificating whatsoever.

I don't know about bathrooms, as I said I;m not an electrician, but the lightswitches look the same as the ones in the UK to me, the socket outlets were different though.

So what do you think of the Chinese made Bosch machines that are being sold these days? Most retailers I spoke with don't have a great opinion of them unless you are paying a lot more for the German made ones which seem to be disappearing.

lardyl

Well you just see someone suggest that NZ may be "inferior" to UK and on come the blinkers. Just re-read your posts.......they are pretty instructive, well when it comes to intent rather than, in the case of this thread, content.

In bathrooms in the UK the old zoning rules meant that there were pull cords rather than "normal" light switches - this was there as a precaution to isolate you physically from the power when you are wet and depended on the dimensions of the room. In those days there was little protection other than re-wireable fuses that are slower to respond to certain types of fault than the more modern devices. That has been changed more recently but there are other protective measures there to suppliment newer more "lax" zoning, such as the requirements for RCDs.

Never seen a pull cord bathroom light switch in NZ and I've been into plenty of bathrooms, seen the odd ones to automate lights in pantrys not bathrooms though. Neither are there pull-cords for most appliances in bathrooms either, such as heaters, etc. This is an indication that the regs are more "lax" (as others have suggested). More worringly there are socket outlets present in many bathrooms here or around water and in many cases right next to the basin. Just plug your hair dryer in and leave it on the vanity unit whilst you wash your hands then........

Also the guts of the light switches are made of different materials here and they are certainly less resistant to fire.

There are lots of plants making lots of appliances out there. Not seen many recent "NZ-new" appliances that were made in Europe but I made sure our appliances were made in Germany, not Spain (as the cheaper ranges had started a few years back). Suggesting that someone can get a cheap appliance such as a clothes dryer, etc out here and its OK doesn't really add up - as you say many of these are chinese in manufacture and although they (mainly) meet the basic requirements for safety I have seen some shockers in the way they are put together. No BEAB approvals there..........on the space heaters.......

At least admit that you were making some half-baked comment on electrical safety and that you don't really know what "grounding" is about and we'll forget the pontification........or you can just "ignore" and "jibe"........you choose

sr71

I'm freely admitting I don't know what I'm talking about, all I'm saying is that compared to the the majority of the worlds 'electrics', NZ isn't crap. If we were in the same state as India, China, Thailand, Indonesia etc then I would agree, but we aren't.

We may as well say that the UK system is dangerous because it uses 240V rather than 110V.

lardyl

Where did anyone suggest that NZ electrics are third world? Some one used the term "rubbish" when talking about plugs and they are right, compared to the UK at least, as it is better to have plug top fuses at correct ratings for the cords than it is to rely on the circuit breaker or fuse at the board.

Plus NZ/Aus plugs are flimsy and cause far more problems such as the ones I alluded to. It's pretty simple stuff.

As far as fixed wiring, I've come accross similar problems with installations that caused fires and was "compliant" with the NZ/Aus regulations, mainly in the area of over-rated fusing and poor choice of circuits.

As far as 110V versus 220V goes then there are advantages and disadvantages and these make a choice for that to be a little more complex than the plug type and wiring code "issues" I have mentioned here.

blackburn lass

Anyway......back to the original question........I am not taking anything - white goods or furniture. £4000 for shipping, I don't have £4000 worth of furniture. I would rather take the money and buy new. But will box some personal items, photos, small stereo, cd's, of course nintendo Wii, and TNT or DHL them over.

Dawn X

Am Loolah

Ummm, no. An electrical safety certificate was a legal requirement in the UK for workplaces and houses that were of multiple occupancy - for example bedsits/hostels etc. A Landlord's Gas Safety Certificate was and still is an annual requisite for rented properties.

The electrical safety certificate may be law now - but it was not 2 years ago.

If you let property in England & Wales you must ensure that electrical equipment and system is safe.
The electrical safety regulations are enforced by the Health & Safety Executive.
There is currently no statutory requirement to have annual safety checks on electrical equipment as there is with gas, but it advisable to do so.
You should ensure that tenants are given copies of operating and safety instructions for ALL equipment in the premises.

lardyl

Caroline, not all the enforcement is done by the HSE, some is down to the local authority inspectors, even in some workplaces - did a fire once in a "massage parlour" where the shortcomings in the electrical installation were dealt with by the local authority inspectors, as were general matters of OH&S.
It is worth drawing the distinction between electrical apppliances and electrical installations. Very few electrical appliances, certainly in domestic situations (and in light commercial use) would require annual checks, other than perhaps a visual inspection of the most vulnerable parts.

There is no requirement to have annual inspections on most electrical installations in most situations, unless there is an enhanced risk. This depends on usage and the environment.

But most workplaces require periodic inspections of fixed wiring every 5 years AFAI recall - the Electricity at Work Act tied up this requirement.

Domestic properties were 10 year intervals for PIs. I think that the Wiring Regs recommended that PI was carrried out every time that the occupancy changed. I suppose that although there is no statutory requirement for PIs on domestic properties, were an incident to occur, then failure to take reasonable precautions to reduce risk (such as a PI) could be considered closely by Insurers and any Third Parties. Suppose there is less chance of that in NZ as there are no such personal injury (another "PI" abbreviation! LOL) claims.

lardyl

best of luck, hope you don't live to regret it.
We are glad we brought it all over and that we bought two new appliances before we left so we could leave some for our tenants and take the best over. That money was well spent, as the bargains from the UK outlets at the time outstrip those here even if you haggle.

Am Loolah

The point I was making is that Wellington Will is incorrect in stating that it is a legal requirement to have an annual electrical inspection in a domestic, residential rental property. It is not.

I believe that will change; as will certain rental legislation here.

Back on topic - we bought all our white goods and now have the requisite drinks fridge in the garage, along with 2 dishwashers and a tumble dryer still in their packing!