The best CEE cable reels, compared.
Top pick: Brennenstuhl Garant 30 m 400 V CEE reel Best value: VonLux 10 m camping hook-up reel – About £33.90 with 4.4 from 21 UK reviews, four UK 13 A sockets on a 16 A inlet. 10 m of 1.5 mm², with IP44 in the bullets. Updated October 2026.
A CEE cable reel is a drum of flexible cable with industrial round connectors made to BS EN IEC 60309. UK buyers call those plugs CEE, CEEform or Commando. A domestic reel uses BS 1363 sockets and a fused 13 A plug. Yellow drums sit after a site transformer on the 110 V range, about 100–130 V. Blue drums serve single-phase supplies around 200–250 V in workshops and on campsite bollards. Red drums serve three-phase plant around 380–480 V. Colour and the keyway keep the wrong voltage from mating. A suitable reel shows a cable code you can read, an IP rating that means splash protection, and a thermal cut-out printed on the listing. H07RN-F is the usual industrial trailing cable. H05VV-F is ordinary PVC flexible cord. Sockets must match the plugs you already own: CEE outlets for CEE tools, or BS 1363 outlets on a 16 A inlet when you want UK plugs from a bollard. A continuous blue-to-blue caravan lead is a separate product. The order of those checks is on the [CEE cable reel buying guide](/hub/sockets-and-extension-leads/cee-cable-reel/sub/cee-cable-reel-buying-guide).
A CEE cable reel is a drum of flexible cable with industrial round connectors made to BS EN IEC 60309. UK buyers call those plugs CEE, CEEform or Commando. A domestic reel uses BS 1363 sockets and a fused 13 A plug.
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Personal buying guide
Question 1 of 2
Which plugs do the tools already use?
The Brennenstuhl Garant 1238020 is the 30 m drum at £162.86, with 5.0 from 9 amazon.co.uk ratings. You get H07RN-F 5G2.5, two 400 V 16 A CEE sockets, one 230 V 16 A CEE socket, a 3-pole cut-out and a reel brake. It weighs 12.2 kg. The reviews praise the build and complain about weight and winding. They are German, and one is an Amazon Vine note. The listing cites DGUV 203-006, which is a German site document, not a UK certificate. Choose it when the plant already has red plugs. A lawnmower or a tourer needs a different drum.
Pros
Cons
Best for: Three-phase plant that already uses 400 V 16 A CEE plugs.
Less suitable: A campsite bollard, a 110 V tool, or a UK 13 A appliance.
Specifications
Common questions
What sockets are on this 30 m reel?
The bullets say two CEE 400 V 16 A sockets and one CEE 230 V 16 A socket, on 30 m of H07RN-F 5G2.5. The sockets share one inlet.
Does the listing claim a cut-out and a brake?
Yes. The bullets name a 3-pole safety cut-out, overheating protection, and a reel brake that stops the cable unwinding in transport.
Is the drum blue or is the cable black?
The colour field says blue. The title says a black cable. Both are printed, and the listing does not say which part is which colour.
The Brennenstuhl Garant 1182760100 is the orange 25 m drum at £126.32, with 4.7 from 84 amazon.co.uk ratings. You get a 230 V 16 A CEE plug, two CEE sockets, H07RN-F 3G2.5 and a stated IP44 rating. The bullets do not print a thermal cut-out, while reviews describe one that failed its button and trips in strong sun. Those review texts are not from the United Kingdom. It is the top pick in this set because the review sample is the largest for a true 230 V CEE drum. A lab did not test it. You still need a mating lead for a caravan inlet.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A workshop or pitch that already uses 230 V 16 A CEE plugs.
Less suitable: A UK 13 A kettle, or a 110 V site tool.
Specifications
Common questions
Does this orange Brennenstuhl reel take a UK plug?
The bullets specify a 230 V 16 A CEE plug and two CEE sockets. A reviewer wanted an ordinary socket beside them and still needed a separate CEE lead for a caravan inlet.
Is a thermal cut-out listed?
The bullets do not name one. Reviews describe a thermal cut-out, including a reset button that broke after three test presses and a fuse that trips in strong sun.
Is the cable the full 25 m?
The title and bullets say 25 m of H07RN-F 3G2.5. One review says the cable is under 23 m.
The VonLux HAUSUKA774A is £33.90 with 4.4 from 21 UK reviews. You get 10 m, a 16 A hook-up plug and four 13 A UK sockets. Bullets say 1.5 mm² pure copper, IP44 and a thermal cut-out. The title says waterproof, which fights the IP44 line. A reviewer names H05VV-F and says it is for temporary use rather than a permanent outdoor install, and calls the winding handle fiddly. It is the best value here when you want UK plugs from a bollard. The 25 m, 2.5 mm² blue-to-blue caravan lead is a different product.
Pros
Cons
Best for: Lights, a kettle, or chargers from a 16 A campsite bollard.
Less suitable: The caravan’s own 25 m inlet lead, or a 110 V site tool.
Specifications
Common questions
Will this reel plug into a campsite bollard and then take a UK kettle?
The title says a 16 A plug and four 13 A UK sockets. A UK review identifies the inlet as an IEC 60309 connector with two pins plus earth. The listing itself does not print 230 V.
Is it waterproof?
The title says waterproof. The bullets say IP44 and damp conditions. A UK review says the plug is splashproof. Treat the claim as IP44 splash protection.
What load do the bullets allow when the cable is still on the drum?
The bullets do not print a watt figure. One UK review says about 1,000 W coiled and about 3,000 W uncoiled, and says the cable is H05VV-F 1.5 mm². That pair is a review, not a bullet.
The Brennenstuhl Garant CEE 2, model 1182760300, is the blue 25 m drum at £160.42, with 4.4 from 6 amazon.co.uk ratings. Bullets give you a 230 V 16 A CEE plug, two covered CEE sockets, H07RN-F 3G2.5, a single-pole cut-out and IP44. All six reviews are from Germany. They praise the cable and the Cablepilot handle, and they call the cut-out sensitive if the cable stays on the drum. The listing cites DGUV 203-006, a German site document. It is the fuller 230 V spec in this set, with a thin and non-UK review sample, so it sits below the orange reel.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A workshop that already has 230 V CEE plugs and wants the cut-out printed on the listing.
Less suitable: A buyer who needs UK 13 A sockets or a large set of UK reviews.
Specifications
Common questions
Can you leave this reel out in the rain?
The bullets say IP44 and permanent outdoor use. Reviews say a short shower was fine, and they still would not leave it in standing rain or a puddle. IP44 is splash protection.
Will it run UK garden tools?
The sockets are CEE, 230 V 16 A, with hinged covers. Reviews say a normal household or garden without CEE sockets is the wrong job.
Do you have to unwind it?
Reviews say the single-pole cut-out trips under a higher load unless the 25 m cable is fully unwound. The bullets do name that cut-out and overheating protection.
The Brennenstuhl 1169743140 is the black rubber drum at £32.72. The stored listing has no star line. You get a 110 V 16 A CEE plug, two 110 V CEE sockets, 14 m of H05VV-F 3G1.5 and a thermal cut-out. IP44 appears in the product type line, outside the five bullets. The bullets also say camping and caravan, which does not match a 110 V connector. Use it after a site transformer, on tools that already have yellow 110 V plugs. Keep it off a 230 V pitch.
Pros
Cons
Best for: 110 V site tools downstream of a centre-tapped transformer.
Less suitable: A 230 V campsite, a caravan inlet, or any UK 13 A plug.
Specifications
Common questions
Can you use this reel on a 230 V campsite bollard?
The bullets specify a 110 V 16 A CEE plug and two 110 V 16 A CEE sockets. The same bullets call it a camping and caravan reel, which conflicts with that voltage.
What cable is fitted?
The title says 14 m of H05VV-F 3G1.5. That is PVC flexible cord, not the H07RN-F rubber cable on the 230 V drums in this set.
Are there any amazon.co.uk reviews in the file?
The stored listing has no star line and no review texts, so praise and complaints are not available.
Five amazon.co.uk listings were scored for this page. Weights sum to 100. Prices, stars and review counts are the stored October 2026 shelf figures. A cut-out, an IP line and a cable code score only when the listing prints them. There was no lab test. A waterproof title beside IP44, camping wording on a 110 V reel, German-only review texts, and a missing star line are deductions.
Spec match
35%A printed voltage, CEE or UK sockets, cable code, IP line and a cut-out in the bullets score higher. A waterproof title beside IP44, or camping wording on a 110 V reel, is a deduction.
Amazon evidence
25%Stars and review count on amazon.co.uk. The 4.7 from 84 ratings leads this block. A 5.0 from 9 ratings cannot lead on stars alone. No star line scores zero here.
Review sentiment
25%A broken reset button, trips in strong sun, a short cable and German-only texts are deductions. Missing review texts cannot be praised. German text is not British buyer opinion.
Price for the job
15%GBP on amazon.co.uk against the job. About £33.90 for UK sockets on a bollard scores high on price. About £160.42 for a similar 25 m 230 V drum does not win on price. The best-value listing is a different ASIN from the top score.
The checks run in this order: voltage and colour, the sockets, the cable code, then length, IP and the cut-out. The table is the five stored listings. Nothing on this page was measured on a bench.
A CEE cable reel is a drum of flexible cable with industrial round connectors to BS EN IEC 60309. In the UK those connectors are still called CEE, CEEform or Commando. Colour and a keyway show the voltage. Yellow is about 100–130 V, the site range used after a 110 V transformer centre-tapped to earth, typically 55-0-55 V. Blue is about 200–250 V single-phase. Red is about 380–480 V three-phase. Forcing a plug past the keyway defeats that protection. Socket type is the next check.
A drum sold as outdoor can still have only industrial round sockets. If the appliances have UK 13 A plugs, you need BS 1363 outlets on a 16 A inlet, which is a different product from a CEE-to-CEE reel.
Club guidance for a caravan hook-up is about 25 m of 2.5 mm², give or take about 2 m, blue to blue. The 10 m reel with four UK sockets is for a kettle or chargers at the bollard. It does not meet that hook-up specification.
A DGUV 203-006 line is a German site document. It does not approve the drum for a UK site. IP44 is splash protection. Leave the cable unwound for a serious load, and stop if a cut-out trips with nothing plugged in.
Match the drum to plugs you already have. Yellow is about 100–130 V and belongs after a site transformer. Blue is about 200–250 V single-phase. Red is about 380–480 V three-phase. The keyway stops the wrong plug mating. In this set the orange Brennenstuhl and the blue Garant CEE 2 are 230 V, 16 A, with two CEE sockets. The 30 m Garant adds two 400 V 16 A sockets and one 230 V 16 A socket on five-core cable. The 14 m reel is 110 V CEE in and out.
H07RN-F is the usual industrial trailing cable. The orange 25 m reel, the blue 25 m reel and the 30 m reel print H07RN-F, the last of them as 5G2.5. H05VV-F is ordinary PVC flexible cord. The 14 m reel prints H05VV-F 3G1.5. The VonLux bullets say 1.5 mm². A reviewer names H05VV-F and about 1,000 W wound and 3,000 W unwound. That pair is a review, not a bullet. IP44 is splash protection. The VonLux title says waterproof beside an IP44 line.
Three typical situations, each with a recommendation from this comparison.
The tools already have 230 V 16 A CEE plugs. The Brennenstuhl Garant 25 m orange reel is the top pick at about £126.32, with 4.7 from 84 ratings, two CEE sockets and H07RN-F 3G2.5. The bullets do not print a cut-out, and the review texts are not British. A caravan inlet still needs a mating lead.
You want a kettle, lamps or chargers from a 16 A campsite bollard. The VonLux 10 m reel is the best value at about £33.90, with 4.4 from 21 UK reviews and four 13 A sockets. The title says waterproof. The bullets say IP44. It is 1.5 mm² over 10 m, so it is a different product from the 25 m caravan lead.
The plant already uses red 400 V 16 A CEE plugs. The Brennenstuhl Garant 30 m reel is about £162.86, with H07RN-F 5G2.5, two 400 V sockets, one 230 V CEE socket, a brake and a 3-pole cut-out. It weighs 12.2 kg. The nine ratings are German, and one is Vine. A lawnmower or a tourer needs a different drum.
The top pick is the Brennenstuhl Garant 25 m orange CEE reel at about £126.32, with 4.7 from 84 amazon.co.uk ratings. It leads because that review sample is the largest for a true 230 V CEE drum. A lab did not test it. The bullets do not print a cut-out, and the review texts are not British. The best value is the VonLux 10 m camping hook-up reel at about £33.90, with 4.4 from 21 UK reviews, four 13 A sockets and a 16 A inlet. It is a 10 m, 1.5 mm² bollard reel. The 25 m caravan lead is a different product. The 14 m 110 V drum is cheaper and has no star line, so it does not take the value award.
VonLux 10 m camping hook-up reel
About £33.90 with 4.4 from 21 UK reviews, four UK 13 A sockets on a 16 A inlet. 10 m of 1.5 mm², with IP44 in the bullets.
Editorial
Peter F. is the editor for DIY & tools at productscompared.co.uk. Comparisons in this category are checked against amazon.co.uk listings, review evidence and public UK sources.
Guides on what to look for, how to use a product, and common mistakes.
Sources taken from the research digest. Listings were scored in October 2026. This page did not run a lab test.
This article contains affiliate links. If you buy through these links we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Prices, stars and review counts come from stored amazon.co.uk listings. We did not run a lab test.
