In need of a solution for a common problem encountered by electricians, Kev Young of Chichester Electricians turned to the MAINSLINK device from RF Solutions.
What attracted you to the product in the first place?
It’s read about the MAINSLINK in a previous issue of PE and it seemed like an ideal solution to switched live cabling.
What were your first impressions of the unit?
It’s a very well-made product, IP rated and blends in with any other IP rated equipment. It came supplied with three stuffing glands, clearly labelled PCBs (Rx and Tx) and an instruction leaflet – so everything you need to get you started.
What type of application was the product used for?
I needed the ability to control some garden lights from a switch in another location. Power to the garden lights was taken from an internal garage down the side of the property and there was no easy way of running cabling from the lounge to the garden light feed. The MAINSLINK suited this particular task down to the ground and saved a lot of messing around with trying to get cables through.
Was the product easy to use?
I found it really easy to connect and operate and the supply to the transmitter was taken from an existing wall lamp switch and fed through the wall to where the unit was mounted. The range of the unit is around 500m with a clear line of sight outdoors (100m indoors), so it coped very easily with communication from the external lounge wall to the garage – a distance of around 35m through a number of walls.
Are there any improvements you’d suggest?
It would be nice to be able to remove the PCB from the transmitter and hide it in a drywall/steel box so the operating switch could’ve been mounted on top. You need to buy a specific unit for that purpose which does require a bit more planning.
Would you recommend the product to other professionals?
Yes I’d certainly give it the thumbs up and found it to be a very innovative piece of kit. It’s so useful for those occasions where a cable run is particularly awkward or expensive to achieve and I’m sure that many electricians would find that it is able to save them time, hassle and money.
