New sockets and switches?

Author
Discussion

IceBoy

Original Poster:

2,443 posts

220 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
Hi All,

I've started to get quotes in for the extension and refurb and need to let the builder know what sockets and switches I would go for?

Now I think most of our house is going to be modern/contemporary and will have white/grey walls.....so I was thinking to have white switches and white downlights. I believe these will look better than brushed or chrome but Mrs Ice thinks white looks a bit cheap?

The builder has suggested white MK branded sockets and switches.....what should I do?

IceBoy

Foliage

3,861 posts

121 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
IceBoy said:
Hi All,

I've started to get quotes in for the extension and refurb and need to let the builder know what sockets and switches I would go for?

Now I think most of our house is going to be modern/contemporary and will have white/grey walls.....so I was thinking to have white switches and white downlights. I believe these will look better than brushed or chrome but Mrs Ice thinks white looks a bit cheap?

The builder has suggested white MK branded sockets and switches.....what should I do?

IceBoy
Listen to your Mrs

You can also get wood and granite fronted now and a few other options. http://www.screwfix.com/c/electrical-lighting/swit...

Edwin Strohacker

3,879 posts

85 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
I renewed all of the switches & sockets at ours with graphite shiny affairs & I think it's a better overall look than white but these things are always personal choices.

A friend of mine had a new kitchen & did his in white plastic cheapies & I asked him why he didn't go more modern along with his shiny new kitchen & he said they were a bit too 'now'.

I thought now is when we live.

Risotto

3,926 posts

211 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
White can look a bit cheap...because it is, which means you can fit white, see how it looks, and change to a metal finish if you want to later. It won't cost you a lot more, particularly if you're happy to change them yourself.

Fastchas

2,640 posts

120 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
I think brass and silver have had their time and reverted all mine back to plastic. I particularly liked the profile on the MK range
http://www.screwfix.com/p/mk-13a-2-gang-dp-switche...

IceBoy

Original Poster:

2,443 posts

220 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
Fastchas,

That is what my builder has said about blending more in to the wall. He said the MK brand is pretty good and robust...I might find a couple of sockets with the USB ports, so the kids can plug directly.

IceBoy

ps. I think white plastic might be the way forward.

skilly1

2,700 posts

194 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
This is the latest London trend. Metal white. They are very nice (just fitted some) but expensive. I have only used them where they are at eye level, kitchen sockets above worktop and light switches.

http://www.cef.co.uk/catalogue/categories/painted-...

I personally think metal / brushed metal is a bit old hat now.

I have fitted MK white everywhere else.


DocJock

8,341 posts

239 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
My missus wanted all chrome.

We are constantly having to wipe off fingermarks. At least you can see the marks to clean them I suppose...

Simpo Two

85,148 posts

264 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
White may be boring and predictable but it never goes out of fashion. Faceplates are cheap and relatively easy to change if you want to in future. Buy quality fittings with a good feel to them, because you'll be feeling them a lot.

Dave_ST220

10,288 posts

204 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
The down lights I selected came with 5 different bezels so you can change them easily. In the kitchen we have brushed steel, in the bathrooms polished chrome and everywhere else white. It works well IMO. For sockets I think I'd have white everywhere apart from the kitchen...

louiebaby

10,651 posts

190 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
Surely you get the ones best suited to the location, but with built in USB transformer?


dazwalsh

6,095 posts

140 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
I think the shiny chrome ship has sailed, brushed steel everywhere in my house but i think even those are starting to look dated now.

friend of mine has glass fronted sockets in his kitchen, look very smart. il try dig out a photo

Alucidnation

16,810 posts

169 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
Fit what you think will be in keeping with the design etc.

No point in asking people on the internet who have never seen your house.


Having said, that, ALL finishes are still common, from white all the way through to the latest refurb i'm doing where the home owner has specifically asked for sage green wiring accessories in the kitchen.


Therefore, there is no accounting for taste.



hyphen

26,262 posts

89 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
IceBoy said:
Hi All,

Now I think most of our house is going to be modern/contemporary and will have white/grey walls.....

IceBoy
Paintable ones? http://www.forbesandlomax.com/the-painted-socket-r...




Edited by hyphen on Monday 27th February 12:07

kingston12

5,473 posts

156 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
Everyone that I know who has done a reasonably 'high end' refurb recently has gone for plain white plastic.

It looked a bit naff to me at first because it reminded me of the 40 year old ones that are now sitting yellowed in unmodernised 1970s houses.

It didn't take me long to get used to it, and I think it is the way I would go now when I do a refurb.

Strange how quickly things change as I remember spending a day swapping the 'free' white ones for metal when I had a rewire a few years ago.

GnuBee

1,272 posts

214 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
Plain white if you not trying to make a "feature" of them. If you want something different then per earlier response Forbes and Lomax have some decent options. We've used Buster and Punch on a few recent projects (bronze/brass) - good quality parts and LED compatible dimmers on the light switches.

We completed a custom socket project for an industrial themed kitchen where they wanted to see and not see them. Standard MK module with removable machined cap than remains in-situ with the appliance plugged in

IceBoy

Original Poster:

2,443 posts

220 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
kingston12 said:
Everyone that I know who has done a reasonably 'high end' refurb recently has gone for plain white plastic.

It looked a bit naff to me at first because it reminded me of the 40 year old ones that are now sitting yellowed in unmodernised 1970s houses.

It didn't take me long to get used to it, and I think it is the way I would go now when I do a refurb.

Strange how quickly things change as I remember spending a day swapping the 'free' white ones for metal when I had a rewire a few years ago.
I think, this is what I agree with, I love the machined thingys but ultimately white plastic or even white metal looks soooo right to me!

IceBoy

Hayek

8,969 posts

207 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
I use the MK white switches and sockets as they seem better quality than the cheap ones but are discreet. Why would you want to make a feature out of light switches and sockets?

I quite like the idea of the paint-able ones above for the same reasons.

Edit: Dieter Rams: ten commandments for good design

Specifically:

5. is unobtrusive – Products fulfilling a purpose are like tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user's self-expression.

7. is long-lasting – It avoids being fashionable and therefore never appears antiquated. Unlike fashionable design, it lasts many years – even in today's throwaway society.

10. is as little design as possible – Less, but better – because it concentrates on the essential aspects, and the products are not burdened with non-essentials. Back to purity, back to simplicity.

Edited by Hayek on Monday 27th February 14:57

Harry Flashman

19,283 posts

241 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
So I think it depends entirely on the room. We have chosen chrome for the kitchen as I liked the look there - brushed steel just looked a bit industrial, especially with the brushed steel fridge, extractor and handles. Chrome just looked a bit more luxurious!

Living room is to be a dark blue with metallic accents (copper lampshade etc), so will look at other finishes, even an old fashioned brass finish. The light switches are white - they are LightwaveRF, so look pretty techy in metal finish, which is not really the look of the house. The white steel surrounds on them could easily be painted the colour of the wall they are on if keyed first and painted with a metal/wood paint, or painted emulsion and then matt lacquered.

Here's a pic of a chrome/white double USB socket on the island post, next to white ones. Here, the white works pretty well as it is against a white background, so I'll probably change it back again. However on some painted surfaces, the smarter chrome works quite well.

I quite like the paintable ones actually - will investigate further. We had the electrician fit plain white everywhere - we'll change as we see fit over time.




Edited by Harry Flashman on Monday 27th February 16:18


Edited by Harry Flashman on Monday 27th February 18:01

Cloudy22

27 posts

100 months

Monday 27th February 2017
quotequote all
What's the reason for the RJ45 socket being upside down?