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16amp leads
Posted: Sat Sep 19, 2020 8:09 am
by Biner
Was there ever a time that 1mm2 flex was suffice for a 16amp lead under the standards? Many older caravans tend to have them, and have had valid WOEF. Would the inspectors be checking for current capacity? or just polarity, continuity & a visual for damage ?
Re: 16amp leads
Posted: Sat Sep 19, 2020 12:38 pm
by AlecK
It doesn't matter whether there ever was a time when 1.0 mm2 would have been acceptable;
because while the WoEF checklist generally allows older units that complied with older requirement to get through, that's not an absolute.
What is absolute is that one of the criteria for issue of WoEF is that the CSA of the lead complies with Table 5.1 [C6.8(b)].
Under the Table; 1.0 mm2 is only acceptable for 10A leads.
All caravan leads are 16A; because the plug has to be min 16A [C6.7];
so 1.5 mm2 is the smallest acceptable lead CSA for a caravan (or any other CI).
It's unfortunately very common that Inspectors issue WoEFs without properly inspecting as per the requirements set out in the Appendix