When asked to assist Mark from MANElectrical on an upcoming project it was with excitement and intrigue that the building to be rewired was a windmill.
Not having been in a windmill, that I can recall, it would be a first time being in one, and will likely be the last time I will ever get to rewire one.
Norfolk is not short of its windmills, and whilst this particular windmill has lost its blades and has, for some time now been a private residence, the fact it was once a windmill doesn't detract from the fact that a windmill rewire brings with it a unique set of challenges.
The building has been suffering from some damp walls. The moisture in the walls has meant that the wiring, currently twin and earth ran in the fabric of the building has been compromised and the steel boxes that house the socket outlets and the switches throughout the building have become corroded and now no longer fit for purpose.
The decision to install surface wiring was an obvious choice for the owners. Easy to install, maintain, and offer a commercial look to this building once used for producing grain, its the logical choice for the new electrical system.
The windmill was occupied when we began, and remained so whilst we made our way from the top down, installing the pipe for power and lighting, wiring into the central trunk, and eventually finishing on the ground floor where the consumer unit would be positioned.
The buildings shape
Unlike other buildings that follow the square box shape, this building is not only round, but it reduces in size as the building progresses up its 11m height to the top floor where there is a small loft area. The building has a cone shape as you can see, this meant that pipework ran on the inside would need to follow the contour of the walls around. Using plastic containment meant that there was enough flex in the pipe to run around the perimeter of the room to supply the socket outlets with power.
The light switching
Conventional wiring for switches across the 4 floors on the spiral staircase posed a wiring problem. With the wiring being surface, and the need to connect the separate lights to the various switches on the various levels, we would need to run pipe between them and many more wires to ensure the multiple switch points operated the various lights on the stairwell.
With the advent of wireless switches, we have been able to do away with the regular wiring methods of switch lines, strappers and intermediate switching, and install a single pack that can pair up to 10 switches to them.
With this method be used, we have only needed to run our lighting supplies back to a pack, pair the respective switch to the light it switches, and then mount those switches around the building as needed by the user. This has saved enormous installation time and various more complicated wiring runs.
Modern protection
The windmill will benefit from RCBO circuit protection. This will mean that the electrical system will be protected against the three faults that we monitor for.
We have also installed Aico smoke detection in the circulation spaces with heat detection in the kitchen.
From the customer
The owners are happy with the work. The commercial look of the wiring system is ideal for this building and the speed and tidiness of the installation has been a big plus. From me as an electrician, this has been a fun little job which has been a pleasure to be a part of. Long may this windmill last