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Read moreYou do not need an electrician to plug it in
The specification these devices are approved against is written for products "intended for installation and operation by ordinary persons". A one component device arrives with its inverter built in and its direct current connections already made. A two component kit has you join the panel to the inverter. Neither of those counts as electrical work on your house.
When you do need one
The same specification is clear about the other side of the line. Testing or altering the fixed wiring of your house is work for a qualified electrician. So is anything that changes the final circuit, including replacing the overcurrent protection device where your circuit needs it. You are also told to have any socket you are unsure about inspected before you use it.
People who responded to the government consultation flagged older homes and older wiring as the real fire risk. The South West has a lot of pre war and Victorian housing, so it is worth having the socket looked at.
Outdoors means IP55 or better
The inverter and the plug and socket can sit inside the house or outside it. Put them outside and the socket has to carry an IP55 rating or higher. That is the job we send to a local electrician: a weatherproof outdoor socket in the right place, on a circuit that can carry it.
Where the direct current cabling runs from outdoors into the house, the manufacturer has to supply the connectors and tell you how to route them. Check that a kit comes with both before you buy it.
What it must never be plugged into
The rule appears in the specification twice, once as a marking on the device and once in the instructions.
- No extension cables.
- No multi-way adaptors.
- No residual current device adaptors.
- No travel adaptors.
A panel in a garden is where people reach for an extension lead. We get the socket done properly first, and the panel goes in afterwards.
One device, one household
The product specification permits one device per final ring circuit and then points at the network rules. Engineering Recommendation G98 Issue 2 Amendment 1 holds it to one per household, and that is the tighter of the two.
Panels and output are two different numbers
A compliant device puts at most 800 VA into the mains and draws at most 3.5 amps. The panels feeding it may add up to 2000 watts. Above 960 watts of panel, the specification asks for a professional assessment of whether the installation suits the house. Look for both figures on a listing before you buy.
Tell your insurer
The instructions that come with a compliant device have to tell you to check whether the product affects your insurance. It is a short phone call, and it is worth making it before the device arrives.
Questions about fitting
Can I run it off an indoor socket through a window?
The device can sit outside with its plug and socket inside, and the manufacturer has to supply the connectors and the routing instructions for cable that comes in from outdoors. What you cannot do is bridge the gap with an extension lead, which the specification prohibits.
Who pays for the socket?
You do, and the electrician quotes you directly. We do not mark that work up and we take no commission on it.
How do I know a kit is approved?
Ask whether it is on the ENA Type Test Register. A manufacturer has to have the device type tested and registered, and hold confirmation that it was assessed as compliant, before it can be sold. If it is not on the register, it has not been assessed.
The other things we arrange
On this page
- You do not need an electrician to plug it in
- When you do need one
- Outdoors means IP55 or better
- What it must never be plugged into
- One device, one household
- Tell your insurer
- Questions about fitting
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