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Getting the right power supply for your marquee wedding or event is crucial. Caterers need power, heating needs power and, of course, lighting needs power. Whilst a blackout in the middle of your wedding reception might not ruin your special day, it certainly has the ability to put a dark cloud on the horizon!
As well as ensuring you have enough power you need to satisfy yourself that your marquee supplier will install the supplies and equipment safely to make sure that you and your guests enjoy the party without incident. The information below should help you come to an informed decision when discussing power supplies, if you have a question relating to this article then please do feel free to contact us on 01189 699 553 and we'll do our best to help with free advice even if we re not providing the marquee. This guide is not meant to be exhaustive but it might help!
There are three main ways in which a marquee wedding or event is supplied with power. The and most common (especially for smaller events) is by plugging extension leads into your domestic plug sockets (known as 13 Amp supplies); the second is by connecting directly into the fuse board in your house and the third is using a generator or multiple generators. Each has its advantages and disadvantages and some of these are outlined below.
13 Amp Supplies
This uses your domestic plug sockets to power the equipment and lighting in the marquee. It is best for small events because each socket can only power a certain amount of equipment and if large amounts of equipment is being used then lots of different cables need to be run and if installed incorrectly this could damage the electric circuits in your home.
It is vital that each extension cable is protected by a Residiual Current Device (RCD) which are sometimes known as Circuit Breakers (pictures of RCDs). These protect against earth faults which can occurr when water penetrates the electrics or when some live wiring touches other metal (such as a marquee!) and makes the whole structure live. If your marquee supplier does not install RCDs you should insist on them doing so before they leave site even if it means them making a trip to B & Q to buy some!
It is extremely important that each extension lead is connected to only one socket in the house. There is a very bad practice that some companies engage in whereby they connect two sockets together to "create" a supply which can handle a bigger load. This Y-Splitting device is known as a "Widow Maker" the name should be enough! The danger comes when one plug is disconnected but the other is still plugged in; the disconnected plug would be live and can deliver a nasty shock especially in the home where children may come accross it.
Connecting Directly to the Fuse Board
This method is good for medium sized events perhaps where you have three sets of sockets for the caterers, two for the band and some lighting / heating. A suitably qualified electrician should always carry out this work and they will usually install a 32A Socket with an inbuilt RCD. The marquee company can then connect to this socket and run a single 32A cable out to the marquee from where they will use a 32A Distribution board or box to split the supplies out as needed.
This has an advantage over 13A supplies because only one cable is run from the house to the marquee and this makes fault finding an awful lot easier! This method can only be used if you have adequate spare capacity in the house already. The person doing the site visit for the marquee company should be able to tell you about this (if they can't then they should be advising you about power!).
Do ensure that an electrician with a "Part P" qualification does the work. This is not needed for most marquee electrics but is a legal requirement for anybody carrying our work on your house's electrics.
Generators
Generators are often the most expensive method of powering a marquee but there can sometimes not be any other choice. For instance the house and electricity supplies may be a long way away or not sufficient for the needs of the wedding or event. Some marquee companies will not become involved in generators at all and may leave you to make your own arrangements. At Cascade Events we have our own 20KVa Road Tow generators for hire even if you have another marquee supplier. If you are booking the generator yourself from somebody else then ensure you make it clear to them what you will want to power from it (e.g. 400W of lights, 2 x heaters and a 3Kw hot cupboard) and how long you want to power those things for.
When you do get a quote for a generator from a company ensure that you look at:
- Whether the quote includes fuel (many companies will expect you to provide your own fuel or will charge you horrendous amounts up to £2 for them to do it)
- Whether the quote includes enough running hours (some companies will assume you will only be using the generator for about 8 hours and will charge you for more)
- Whether the quote includes delivery, often this can be MORE than the generator hire iteself.
- Whether the quote includes insurance. Some companies will insist you arrange this yourself at high cost.
If you hire a generator from Cascade Events then our quotation includes delivery, insurance and running time and fuel for 20 hours use.
Using a generator does mean that you are protected if there is a power cut in the domestic supply but like any mechanical device they can be unpredictable and fail sometimes. To protect yourself from this you may wish to hire a back up generator with an auto switch over unit which would take over if the main generator fails but there is, as ever, an extra cost associated with this. If you do only have one generator ask to be told the service history of it as a well serviced generator is less likely to fail.
Common Problems
- Marquee companies sometimes leave all power arrangements to the client and this can be quite bewildering. If you are concerned about arranging power then ensure you make it clear when marquee companies visit you that you need them to take responsibility for those arrangements.
- Widow Makers! See the 13A Power Supplies section for more information
- Lots of "Multi Gang" extension leads plugged in to each other. This is dangerous as it is hard to work out how much power is being drawn from each supply.
- No RCDs protecting the installation.
- Non waterproof sockets being supplied for use outside.
- Badly wired chandeliers.
- Improper earthing of generators or other supplies
Legislation
If you do want more information then the most relevant legislation comes in the form of BS 7909: 2008 Code of practice for temporary electrical systems for entertainment and related purposes along with the latest edition of the wiring regulations.
N.B. The advice given on this page is for information only and neither Cascade Events Ltd nor the author accepts any liability for it's accuracy.
Commments on this article:
You got to push it-this essential info that is!
Zariel - 8/23/2011 7:14:50 AM
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