It does beg the question of why not just purchase floodlights with a decent length flex in the first place.
I'm not sure if you're 100% serious about this or whether you're playing devils advocate, I'm kinda hoping it's the latter.
Yes, you're saving money but I guess the issue is whether it's worth the cost.....You can buy a miniature in-line resin joint for R65.00 to extend the flex and an aluminium 90x36x30mm IP65 surface mount enclosure for R80.00 (probably half that price for a PVC or ABS enclosure). A couple of glands at maybe R2.00 each and 3 Wago connectors at R4.00 each so your total saving is about R160- minus whatever the cost is of you home made joint. If you'd bought a floodlight with a decent length flex in the first place your home made enclosure would have saved you less than a hundred bucks.
**EDIT** I just priced a plastic 100x100x50mm IP56 enclosure at R22.50 so that's under 40 bucks total with Wago's and glands.
Compliance problems I see are;
- That you're using items outside of the manufacturers specs and recommendations (see 6.3.7.1 below).
- You're jointing a flex cable with ferrules which isn't using 'cable couplers or manufacturers' jointing kits' (see 6.3.7.1 below).
- Light fittings fall under the fixed appliance regs apart from where they're specifically exempted and their input terminations require a 'suitable enclosure' (6.16.1.9 below) with a further reference to 6.6.4 which in turn says they must comply with distribution boards that form part of a fixed electrical installation and shall comply with SANS 1473-1.
Code:
6.3.7.1 Joints and terminations of cables, cores and conductors shall be
made in accordance with manufacturers' instructions or the appropriate
part of SANS 10198 (SABS 0198). Flexible cables shall only be joined
using cable couplers or manufacturers' jointing kits. All joints shall be
accessible, protected against strain, and protected in accordance with
5.1.1.
Code:
6.16.1.9 Unless part of the appliance or self contained in their own
enclosure, control components of fixed appliances that form part of the fixed
installation, including their input terminations and associated protective
switchgear that are not mounted in the distribution board, shall be
incorporated in a suitable enclosure(s) that comply with the requirements of
6.6.1 and 6.6.4. Enclosure(s) shall be
a) non-flammable,
b) located as near to the appliance(s) as is practicable,
c) permanently installed,
d) such that they cannot be opened without the use of a tool, and
e) readily accessible.
Code:
6.6.4 Distribution boards built or modified on site with a short-circuit
rating up to and including 10 kA
6.6.4.1 General
A distribution board shall comply with 6.6.1, 6.6.2, 6.6.4.2 and 6.6.4.3.
I get it that you want to save money and we could argue all day regarding grey areas in the regs and how maybe....possibly..... something could be compliant because there's no reg explicitly forbidding it. Yes the regs are flawed, yes the regs don't keep pace with the rapidly changing technologies, hell, they wouldn't be updating them every few months if they weren't but I prefer to look at the regs as an absolute minimum standard everyone should be working to, not as a gold standard we should be aspiring to. I think it's an easy trap to fall into where you get into the mindset of butting heads or fighting the regs because a method you've used, although unorthadox, could well be done safely and reliably in some scenarios or maybe you can convince yourself a regulation seems irrelevant to your particular job at hand. It's easy to become disillusioned and see the regs as the enemy with their lack of enforcement and when you're losing quotes to chancers who are undercutting you and doing sub-standard work with impunity.
Honestly, if I saw that joint and it was installed by a DIY'er in his own home I'd smile and quietly marvel at his ingenuity, I'd be happy that he did a half decent, reasonably safe job with the knowledge and materials he at hand. I'd probably tell him I appreciate his efforts but can't I just put a proper enclosure with some compliant connectors whilst I'm there. If I saw that joint and it had been installed by a professional electrician I'd be disappointed. I'd question why on earth he'd want to take such a chance to save a hundred bucks. I'd question his integrity and I'd probably be wondering if he actually was a qualified sparky or whether he was a chancer.
Common sense would say to me that ferruling a trailing cable to the supply wiring is a bad idea when obviously ferrules are a permanent joint that can't be easily disconnected for future testing.
Common sense would say to me it's not worth invalidating the warranty of the item you're installing by not following manufacturers instructions and recommendations.
Common sense would say to me it's not worth taking on the legal liablity if there's a failure in future no matter how slim the chance. At best you you might be forced to return to remedy the installation, at worse you could end up in a court of law.
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