Outdoor & Weatherproof Sockets and Switches Buying Guide

An IP (Ingress Protection) rating is two digits that describe how well an enclosure keeps things out. The first digit is protection against solid objects and dust, on a scale up to 6, where 6 means dust-tight. The second digit is protection against water, where 5 means protection against low-pressure water jets from any direction and 6 means protection against powerful, high-pressure water jets. So an IP65 enclosure is dust-tight and resists water jets, while an IP66 enclosure is dust-tight and resists more powerful water jets — useful where rain is driven hard against a wall or where surfaces are hosed down. Both are suitable for outdoor use; the higher second digit simply gives a greater margin against heavy, wind-driven rain. BG weatherproof ranges such as Nexus Storm are commonly rated IP66.

Yes. BS 7671, the UK wiring regulations, requires 30mA RCD protection for socket-outlets that may reasonably be expected to supply equipment outdoors — for example a socket on an outside wall or in a garage used for mowers, power tools or pressure washers. An RCD (residual current device) disconnects the supply very quickly if it detects current leaking to earth, such as through a damaged lead or a person, which is the main shock risk outdoors. This protection is provided by the circuit rather than by the socket itself: it comes from an RCD or RCBO in the consumer unit, or an RCD-protected spur. The weatherproof socket keeps water out; the RCD protects against the electric-shock risk that water and outdoor use create. A qualified electrician will confirm and provide the correct RCD protection.

A weatherproof socket or switch is built into a sealed enclosure with a hinged, spring-loaded cover and a gasket. The cover closes over the accessory — and over the plug top when a lead is connected — so the live parts and connections stay shielded from rain. The gasket between the lid and the body, together with sealed cable entries, is what maintains the stated IP rating, so the cover must be able to shut fully. Outdoor double sockets often have a deeper lid to clear a connected plug. Switches and fused connection units use the same sealed-lid approach. Because the IP rating depends on every seal being intact and the cover being closed, choose an enclosure sized for the plugs you will use, and keep the lid shut when the socket is not in use. BG Nexus Storm enclosures are designed around this sealed, hinged-cover principle.

The BG weatherproof range covers the common wiring accessories you would use indoors, but in sealed outdoor enclosures. You can specify single and double 13A weatherproof socket-outlets for general garden, garage and outbuilding power; weatherproof switches, including options for lighting and isolation; and weatherproof fused connection units (FCUs or spurs) for fixed equipment such as an outside light, pond pump or heater, where a fused spur gives a permanent, switched supply rather than a plug. For occasional outdoor power from an indoor circuit, a weatherproof socket on an RCD-protected supply is usually the simplest approach. Match the number of gangs and the type of accessory to the load, and keep heavy or special loads — EV charging and hot tubs — on their own dedicated circuits and dedicated products designed for them.

Typical uses are everyday outdoor power and control: a socket by the back door or on a garden wall for mowers, hedge trimmers, pressure washers and seasonal lighting; sockets and switches in garages and workshops for tools and benches; and supplies in sheds, summerhouses and outbuildings. Weatherproof FCUs commonly feed fixed outdoor lighting, pond and water-feature pumps, and small heaters. Where an outbuilding has its own supply, the whole installation should be designed to BS 7671 with appropriate RCD protection. For higher-demand or specialist supplies near a property — an EV charge point, or a hot-tub circuit — the work is a dedicated circuit job for a qualified electrician, not a general-purpose outdoor socket. If in doubt about the load or the route, ask your electrician before specifying the accessory.

Outdoor wiring accessories are surface-mounted onto a wall or a fixed surface, rather than recessed like indoor flush accessories. Cable enters the enclosure through sealed cable glands or weatherproof knockouts, normally from the bottom or the rear so water cannot track in along the cable. The supply is usually run in steel wire armoured (SWA) cable or in cable suitably protected against mechanical damage and UV, sized for the load and the run length by the circuit designer. Good practice is to keep entries sealed, support and clip the cable properly, and avoid drilling the weatherproof faces in ways that compromise the seal. Earthing and bonding must follow BS 7671. Because outdoor circuits combine water, mechanical risk and the RCD requirement, this installation work should be carried out by a qualified electrician, who will also test and certify it.