i very much enjoyed the earlier topic about diy electrics so i thought i’d throw myself to the lions, or maybe, if there are any hanging around, the sparkies:

in my bathroom there is a shitty old fan heater which doesnt work. i want rid, but i dont mind the fused socket (no fuse in at present!) it is attached to. can i make the cables safe inside this socket box just by removing the fan heater and its cables and leaving the other cables just sitting there screwed into what they are screwed into at the moment. here, for your delight, are pictures:


i thought i could just remove the painted blue cable going to the heater and its earth, live, neutral, screw the socket back up and bobs your uncle?

also i want to get rid of the shaving light and put in a new one, having looked inside it just looks like a case of unscrewing and rewiring at the connection, is that all there is to it (barring making sure everything is isolated)

Yep and yep as far as I can see.

Just make sure the electric is off in the mains fusebox before you do anything ok.

Remove the heater and wiring and screw back into plug and maybe add a cover to the hole or use a blanking plate prevent moisture getting in.

Pretty much what you said but check you know the colour codes and be safe. I’m sure you do.

Can’t see the problem with removing the load wiring.
And again the swap should be ok.

Again I only sell the stuff, even the sparkies that come in each morning struggle to keep updated.
Is that shaverlight in your bathroom?

You might want to question having the flex outlet open with someone qualified.
You could buy an unswitched spur for a couple of quid

you need to check which is the live cable 1st, esyest way to do this is to stand on a wet floor in your bare feet then firmly press a metal rod to each connection, when you feel a tingling in your arm thats the live.

Check the consumer unit. If it is a new type one there may be a seperate way for the fan (it think the new regs require this).
In that case disconnect the heater, as mentioned above and leave the CB off (and put caution tape on it)

PS – get a better painter in next time – they have painted over the spur

consumer unit is a fuse box, bathroom heater has its own 15A fuse – easiest thing to do is just to take the fuse wire out right? that effectively means i could do what i want with the wires for the heater because it is no longer connected to the mains, but i wont, cause you shouldn’t assume anything.

oldgit
Is that shaverlight in your bathroom?

yes, i assume you mean because of regulations meaning it would need to be checked by an electrician

Expat
you need to check which is the live cable 1st, esyest way to do this is to stand on a wet floor in your bare feet then firmly press a metal rod to each connection, when you feel a tingling in your arm thats the live.

i did this before i even asked any questions, ive found the live one and there is still a tingling in the tip of my furthest extremity

PS – get a better painter in next time – they have painted over the spur

flooding insurance job, no chance of getting a better painter in, thats my job this week.

No, just handy that you already have an earth there.

bit of overkill but my dad got really bad burns when i was kid because something was live at work that wasn’t suppposed to be – i’d turn all the power off just in case it isn’t in circuit you think it is especially if that old it has a fuse box – anything could have been wired into anything

not an electrician so not sure what regs are but i’d buy a blank plate for the fused spare – stick the cables inside in a block (the thing used to connect cables) – so wires can’t touch each other then tape it over and put the blank plate on will look neater than just a dead spur box