Garages, sheds and garden offices
Garden buildings have gone from housing a lawnmower to housing somebody's job, and the electrical requirement has changed with them. A garden office needs a proper supply, not a lead out of the kitchen window.
What a proper supply involves
- Steel wire armoured cable, sized for the load and the distance — voltage drop over a long run is a real consideration
- Buried at the correct depth with warning tape above it, so the next person with a spade finds tape rather than cable
- A small consumer unit in the building, so a fault out there doesn't take out the house
- Its own RCD protection, and earthing arranged correctly for an outbuilding
- Enough capacity for what's actually going in — heating is what catches people out
The commonest mistake is undersizing. A garden office with a heater, a computer and a kettle draws considerably more than people expect, and upgrading a buried cable afterwards means digging the trench twice.
Hot tubs
Hot tubs need their own dedicated, correctly protected supply. A great many are plugged into an outdoor socket that was never intended for a continuous load of that size, which is how you end up with heat damage at the plug.
We install a dedicated circuit with appropriate RCD protection and an isolator within reach of the tub. If you are having the tub delivered, get the supply sorted first — it is far easier before it is in position than after.
Garden lighting and sockets
Retrofitting through an established garden is fiddly, mucky work. It is also some of the most satisfying, because the difference at night is dramatic.
- Patio and path lighting, with cable routed around planting rather than through it
- Weatherproof sockets where you actually use tools, so the mower lead doesn't cross the lawn
- Lighting to sheds, gates and side returns
- Switching and timers so it isn't all on one switch by the back door
Outdoor circuits are also the single most common source of the intermittent RCD trips we get called to — moisture gets into a joint and the whole house goes off when it rains. Done properly, that does not happen.
Common questions
How deep does the cable have to be buried?
Deep enough to be out of the way of normal gardening, with warning tape above it. The exact depth depends on where it runs and what's above it — we'll set it out on site.
Can I run it in ordinary cable inside a pipe?
No. A buried supply should be steel wire armoured. Ordinary cable in a plastic duct is a common DIY approach and it's one of the things that fails an inspection.
Does my garden office need its own fuse board?
For anything beyond a light and a socket, yes. It means a fault out there doesn't take out the house, and it makes future work far simpler.
Can you dig the trench?
We can, or you can dig it yourself to save money — plenty of customers do. Agree the route with us before you start digging.
How long does a garden supply take?
Usually one to two days including the trench, depending on the distance and what the ground is like.
Why does my outdoor circuit trip when it rains?
Moisture in a joint, a fitting or a damaged cable. It's the most common intermittent fault we're called to, and it's fixable — see fault finding.
