Висота встановлення вимикачів і розеток

When replacing the wiring, you must decide how high the outlets will be from the floor. That’s right – decide, because there are no strict regulations and standards.

At what height can be

Norms and standards regulating the location of sockets and switches in rooms and premises for general purposes are not. There are only restrictions on the maximum height for outlets – no higher than 1 meter from the floor, as well as regulations that relate to wiring in rooms with difficult operating conditions. In houses and apartments – these are bathrooms.

So still, at what height to install sockets? There are two options:

Where to place the switch

With switches it is easier to decide. They should be placed in such a way that most family members can use them comfortably. It is comfortable to turn on/off the light with your hand down. You lower your hand, mark the level of your palm. This is where the keys can be located. This arrangement is optimal for children. They can reach this level as early as 3-4 years old. That is, adults will not need to go to turn on the child’s light if he wants to play or go to the toilet, for example.

But this is far from the only option. In the bedroom, for example, you can install pass-through switches. They allow you to control the light from several points. In this case, one switch is placed near the door and one or two near the bed. So you can turn off the light without getting up. Very convenient. The height of installation of such a switch – somewhere at the level of the mattress on the side of the bed.

Choosing a place for outlets in the rooms

Choosing a place to install outlets is more difficult. They can be located even at floor level. By the way, there are floor models that are wired in a special plinth with a cable channel. From the point of view of design, such installation is the most inconspicuous – they do not throw in the gas. But from the point of view of operation – far from ideal. To insert/remove the plug, you have to bend down very low or squat. For young people it is inconvenient but not problematic, but for people of age such an arrangement can be a problem. If the family has non-young people, it is desirable that the height of sockets from the floor was at least 30-40 cm. In this case you will have to bend down, but this bend is not in any comparison with the previous method of placement. This is a compromise option – it is quite convenient and not very conspicuous.

But not all power points in the rooms need to be installed in this way. For example, if near the desk the height of outlets from the floor 40 cm or so, every time diving under the table will be very inconvenient. In such a place it is better to put them 10-15 cm above the level of the tabletop. This is really convenient.

Installation and connection of Internet outlets is described here.

Height of outlets in the kitchen

Wiring in the kitchen is a whole system. First, for each powerful appliance there is a separate power line with an automatic circuit breaker and RCD installed on it. Such devices can be up to 10 pieces (dishwasher, oven, electric stove, washing machine, electric water heater, built-in appliances of high power). These outlets should be brought to the place where you plan to put the appliances.

Dedicated lines for powerful appliances

A dedicated line is needed for the refrigerator. But the reason for this is not increased power consumption, but voltage spikes that the refrigerator motor creates when turning on and off. It is better that other appliances feel them at a minimum, and it is possible with a separate line. The outlet for the refrigerator can be made at any height – at least 5 cm from the floor, or at the level of the elbow (110-120 cm).

Dedicated power supply line with RCD and automatic machine is mandatory for a gas heating boiler. It requires a stable voltage, and a separate line is simply necessary. Locate this socket should take into account the fact that it will be necessary to install a voltage stabilizer (if it is not installed for the whole apartment or house). The best option is on the side of the boiler. Right or left – it is as circumstances allow.

Choose the height depending on the equipment to be connected

For built-in household appliances, the height of sockets from the floor is 10 cm (this is from the floor to the center of the socket, and from the bottom of its edge – about 5 cm). They are placed on the wall behind the appliances. The location is such that it is possible to reach through the plinth. At the same level put the power point for the washing machine. It can also be made higher, if the sink cabinet without a back wall.

For illumination and extraction sockets are made above the cabinets. Their lower edge is 5-10 cm above the cabinets. The backlight switch is led to the working wall, placing it immediately under the upper cabinets.

The rest of the small appliances are usually placed on the desktop, respectively, it is convenient to connect them almost immediately above the countertop. The height of sockets from the floor in this case – 110-120 cm. This will be about 15-20 cm above the worktop. Just the way we need it. If you order a kitchen set of non-standard height, adjust the position of the sockets accordingly.

Sockets for small kitchen appliances are grouped three or four side by side. This is convenient for operation and more acceptable for installation. Determine what appliances where it will be convenient to work, count the number of units that will need to be turned on simultaneously, add one or two “just in case”. This will be the required number of outlets. Their height is the same 15-20 cm above the countertop, that is, relative to the floor will be 100-120 cm.

In the bathroom

The second problematic room for electrics is the bathroom. But the problems here are of a different nature – it is high humidity and the possibility of water ingress. To understand where to put sockets in the bathroom, you need to know where you can place household appliances. The bathroom is divided into zones (see photo).

Zone 0 – this is the highest probability of water ingress. These are the areas directly adjacent to the bathtub, shower, sink. In this zone, you can only put outlets for 12 V. But this voltage is rarely supplied in private homes. Simply do not put sockets here at all.

Water heaters are allowed in zone 1. In zone 2, you can put fans and lights in addition to boilers. Sockets should be placed in zone 3 – at a distance of at least 60 cm from the water source. It is necessary to install special sockets and switches, the degree of protection of which allows their use in wet rooms. Also a prerequisite – the presence of grounding, automatic circuit breaker and RCD with a leakage current of 10 mA.

The height of sockets from the floor is again not regulated, but it makes sense to put them higher: to minimize the possibility of water ingress. Even if you put special sockets with covers, it’s better to be safe.

Rules for wiring

When laying wiring to outlets and switches, certain rules must be observed:

Why such strictness? So that in any conditions it is possible to understand where and how the wiring runs. If you lay it arbitrarily – obliquely, along the shortest path, etc., in a few years, no one will remember where and how the wires and hanging, for example, a new shelf, you can easily get into the wiring. Adhering to these simple rules, you will always be able to visually determine where the wires run – above the socket or switch, regardless of how high they are from the floor.