Electrical advice for a complete noob.

Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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Kent
I want to replace a 3pin wall socket that's ancient and horrible looking with a nice shiny metal one and i'd appreciate some advice before I do it.

To be clear, i'm a total noob and this is genuinely the most ambitious electrical job i've ever undertaken. I am clever enough to turn the power off before doing any thing though :)

Anyhoo, below are two pictures of my old socket, they aren't the greatest because the wires dont come out any further.

https://i.imgur.com/XrLWIA0.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/ITLd86E.jpeg

I was only expecting to see one of each cable rather than two so i'm not sure if that means I need a specific type of replacement socket. The chap in Screwfix couldn't offer any advice in case I electrocute myself.

This is the replacement socket I bought and below is a picture of the back side of it.

https://i.imgur.com/cHcK0PN.jpeg

If anyone could tell me if this is the correct type or offer any other advice i'd be most grateful.

Thanks
 
Soldato
Joined
21 Jan 2003
Posts
5,594
Just wire it into the new socket as follows:

black = neutral or N
red = line or L
green/yellow = ⏚

Make sure the conductors from each wire are securely fastened, give it a tug with your fingers to make sure none are loose.

When reattaching the socket make sure no wires get pinched by the screw going into the thread.

Ps. You should really invest in a voltage tester pen before working on any electrics to doubly ensure they are dead.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
18 Oct 2002
Posts
4,706
Location
Kent
Just wire it into the new socket as follows:

black = neutral or N
red = line or L
green/yellow = ⏚

Make sure the conductors from each wire are securely fastened, give it a tug with your fingers to make sure none are loose.

When reattaching the socket make sure no wires get pinched by the screw going into the thread.

Ps. You should really invest in a voltage tester pen before working on any electrics to doubly ensure they are dead.

Thanks for that.

Can I just ask though, what do you mean by "dead"? Do you mean to test the wires to make sure electricity is definitely off?
 
Associate
Joined
19 Dec 2002
Posts
2,002
Just wire it into the new socket as follows:

black = neutral or N
red = line or L
green/yellow = ⏚

Make sure the conductors from each wire are securely fastened, give it a tug with your fingers to make sure none are loose.

When reattaching the socket make sure no wires get pinched by the screw going into the thread.

Ps. You should really invest in a voltage tester pen before working on any electrics to doubly ensure they are dead.

was going to say dont trust the power to be off have been stung a few times get a tester to check then take one pair at a time as above..fairly straightforward.
 
Soldato
Joined
3 May 2012
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8,524
Location
Wetherspoons
Thanks. Will a cheap one do, like this, or do you have to buy a more premium one?
Buy a multimeter over one of those, cost the same if not cheaper.

You can do much more with it including finding out if there is a current going through the wires.

I paid literally about £2.50 for mine and use it for vehicle work testing electrics etc, my mate who's an electrical engineer mocks me saying it wouldn't be any good for proper electrical component work eg testing out resistances and stuff with any accuracy.

But to see the voltage coming out of a 12v battery etc it's fine.
 
Soldato
Joined
5 Mar 2010
Posts
12,306
I want to replace a 3pin wall socket that's ancient and horrible looking with a nice shiny metal one and i'd appreciate some advice before I do it.

To be clear, i'm a total noob and this is genuinely the most ambitious electrical job i've ever undertaken. I am clever enough to turn the power off before doing any thing though :)

Anyhoo, below are two pictures of my old socket, they aren't the greatest because the wires dont come out any further.

https://i.imgur.com/XrLWIA0.jpeg
https://i.imgur.com/ITLd86E.jpeg

I was only expecting to see one of each cable rather than two so i'm not sure if that means I need a specific type of replacement socket. The chap in Screwfix couldn't offer any advice in case I electrocute myself.

This is the replacement socket I bought and below is a picture of the back side of it.

https://i.imgur.com/cHcK0PN.jpeg

If anyone could tell me if this is the correct type or offer any other advice i'd be most grateful.

Thanks

It'll have two because it's part of a ring, it's not a single direct wire from the consumer unit.

Swapping a plug socket is about one of the most easiest things to do, so don't fear too much.

As others have said though, either trip the main breaker for the entire house or get a voltage tester. Unless you're absolutely 100% certain that the circuit you've switched off is for the socket you're changing.
 
Soldato
OP
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Thanks for the replies.

Someone on reddit has said my wires might be stranded and if they are they might be difficult to get in the terminals of a modern socket which is a bit of a worry.
 
Soldato
Joined
10 Sep 2003
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4,942
Location
Midlands
I always plug a portable light in before disconnecting the electrics, just to make 100% sure. That being said I got zapped by a lighting circuit a couple of years ago, turned on the electrics to drill a hole, forgot to turn them back off again, touched wire, ouch. Man never again :eek:
 
Associate
Joined
11 Mar 2005
Posts
1,126
Either buy some 2.5mm earth cable - but might be a tad expensive for a little job. Or strip down some 2.5mm pvc/pvc/cpc (twin and earth) and put some sleeving on the conductor. The metal face plate will have an earth terminal on it - just connect that to the earth lug on the back box.

also - make sure you’ve got a sufficient Seth back box.. don’t be jamming the conductors in.
 
Last edited:
Associate
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?????
I would suggest that you probably already have an earthed back box looking at the wires, you can see two different sized green wires I would suggest the larger of the two green wires is actually just a bit of green sleeving over the normally bare double earth conductor and the smaller green wire is a link to the metal back box but when you remove the face plate full you should be able to see that in the back of the box.
 
Soldato
OP
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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Thanks again for the advice guys.

With these dual earth sockets am i meant to put an earth wire in to two separate earth terminals? In my old socket it looks like the two earth wires are in the same terminal.
 
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