Ugly meter box

6 years ago

Hi we have an issue with a very ugly big ish meter box in our kitchen! We can't get it removed as its too pricey and we don't really want to build a cupboard around it because it's in our kitchen just by the entry and will block the light by the entrance and mainly take precious space we need in the kitchen. Anyone have any idea?? Thanks!

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User

6 years ago

Firstly, as Rose says, it's not a meter a box. It's a consumer unit. You don't need any of the utility companies to move it, just a qualified electrician. Depending on the wall, you may be able to bury the cables in it, however, I suspect there is a reason why they are all wall mounted. It could possibly be moved down the wall and therefore, you could put a cupboard just at the bottom so that you wouldn't block the light at the top.

I think you need an electrician round to find out why the cables are wall mounted in the first instance.

I'm guessing it's an older house and that's a new upgrade, retro fitted box as part of a re-wire. I notice that you have pipes running along the bottom of the wall also, so that would have been when central heating was retro- fitted too.

You could move the box to the window wall and have units under the window, which then cover the box and the pipes.

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Comments (9)

Rose Williams
6 years ago
Oh my word!, they really did make a pigs ear of that installation! I would have it moved, putting the lower cables in the wall if possible (since looks like a stud wall, there is no excuse for that mess). It looks a lot nicer than the one I have here if thats any consolation. I'm having mine moved and replaced with a larger more modern one and that was quoted by my trusted electrician at £500 all in... £200 of it is the replacement consumer unit. Can it go on the other side of the wall? Can you get a simple cabinet and have the electrican do a better job of wiring it, place it closer to the corner, and mount it on a more appropriately sized white board?... Unless you cover it up where it sits, in the state it is... youre not going to avoid hiring an electrican.
Laura Thomas
6 years ago
What’s on the other side of the wall?

To avoid the cost of getting a meter relocated, I know 2 cases of people who cut a section of wall out, and spun it around and rebuilt the wall.
This wasn’t a consumer unit, but a gas or electricity meter that was under the stairs where they wanted to put a cloakroom, and it is now on the outside of the house.
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chloeloves
6 years ago
The only thing you can do if you can’t move it is disguise it by building some floor to ceiling shelving units that have a mixture of open shelves and cupboards, one of which will cleverly hide the meter. This would be a bespoke carpentry job I should imagine. Good luck!
temple274
6 years ago
I'd build a tall corner cupboard, floor to ceiling so it looked built in. Lots of room then for extra storage plus a section to hide the meter. Because it would be across the corner it wouldn't block the light.
Rose Williams
6 years ago
You must keep it accessible .... in a cupboard, fine... buried in the wall... no lol
Rose Williams
6 years ago
Its not a meter... its a consumer unit, fuse box, circuit breakers... whatever you want to call it... you need to be able to get at it, and if you want electrical upgrades eg power shower, outdoor power, new electric cooker wiring... you need to get at it... not to mention tripping the fuse back on on a power outage, turning off specific circuits to carry out any electrical like even changing a ceiling rose....
Laura Thomas
6 years ago
I wasn’t suggesting burying it in the wall, just that the room/hallway the other side of the wall maybe a more suitable location.

Ours is in a kitchen cupboard that houses the cooker hood, but we have our boiler and pipe work hidden in a tall cupboard like suggested above.

Whatever you do, make sure it is easy to access if the fuses ever trip.
PRO
MBH Carpentry and Joinery Ltd.
6 years ago
Was there something there originally to hide the consumer unit? It seems strange that this would have been positioned like this if it was going to be in full view. I agree with MATH and ROSE above.

Ugly meter box

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