The consumer unit is the electrical enclosure that houses all the control equipment for your electrical installation. It is responsible for splitting the incoming power into smaller circuits and feeding the power around your home. It is the brains of the homes electrical system and plays a large part in ensuring that no one is hurt or injured by the electrical supply.
The consumer unit can protect you against electric shock, can protect against electrical fire to an extent, can protect your cables, protect your equipment and appliances. It actually performs quite a few functions really and yet many people will leave this box to decay on the wall for decades without a second thought.
Back to top1) How long do they last?
Not forever is the honest answer. Although, it does depend. Some consumer units are still going after 50 or 60 years but are in a terrible state. Even those of this age in good condition will not be providing electric shock protection sufficiently to satisfy an electrical inspection. Modern consumer units should last a long time in fairness. What is more likely to become an issue before the consumer unit completely fails is the technology will become obsolete, the manufacturer will likely change the equipment style and make spares impossible to come by and the regulations will change meaning that updates to the electrical installation will require a new consumer unit before they can be carried out. An electrical inspection every ten years is recommended and extremely beneficial. This will highlight any issues, deficiencies and lack of compliance with the latest wiring regulations.
Back to top2) Are trip switches better than fuse wire?
Yes, they are. They react quicker and disconnect the circuit faster than fuse wire would and can be reset once the issue has been resolved without having to fiddle with a piece of wire. Some of ours customers complain that they don’t seem reliable as circuit breakers break or RCD devices fail. The issue here is that quite commonly when there is a fault on a circuit, instead of blowing a fuse wire the consumer unit will have a switch that trips. Now instead of having the issue investigated, the customer will simply keep turning the switch back on which will eventually fail! Fuse wire made it rather difficult to keep resetting the fuse 😊
Back to top3) What is the best consumer unit?
The best consumer unit is that which complies fully with the most recent wiring regulations. This is debatable amongst electricians as occasionally the wiring regulations will leave little grey areas open for debate. It is however widely accepted amongst industry professionals that in order to achieve full compliance with the wiring regulations, an RCBO consumer unit with Surge Protection Device fulfils this criteria. Dual RCD consumer units now are questionable in their ability to comply fully with the regulations. That is not to say they are dangerous, unsafe or require changing immediately but rather, we should strongly consider their compliance before installing them.
Back to top4) What consumer unit is in the photograph?
The consumer unit in the photograph is an RCBO consumer unit. This means that there is individual overload protection for each electrical circuit and also individual electric shock protection for each circuit. In the event of a fault it is likely that only ONE circuit will be affected and turn off. This is the benefit of RCBO devices over the earlier consumer units that did not have them.
Back to top5) Do I need to have a metal consumer unit?
Please bear in mind that wiring regulations change so, at the time or writing, there is no need to swap your plastic consumer unit for a metal one. Just because your consumer unit is plastic does not make it inherently dangerous. If your consumer unit is plastic, showing signs of thermal damage, melting or in poor condition then it is wise to have it checked by an electrician without delay. If you are having a new consumer unit installed however then it will need to be made of a non-combustible material. This is metal.
Back to top6) Do I need a new consumer unit?
You can check our help sheet page for information on this.
I tend to find that when I am asked this question the answer is generally yes! People rarely ask this questions unless they already know the consumer unit in question is a trillion years old, hanging apart and slightly burnt at the same time. Its like asking the question in the hope of some kind hope will be injected into the situation by a professional leaving his stamp of approval. 😊 Sorry everyone. If YOU think it looks really old, broken and generally in a poor condition then it likely is absolutely shot!
There is a way to tell for sure.
Have an electrical inspection carried out. We can do this for you.
An electrical inspection will be able to tell you what is wrong with the consumer unit and why it may need changing. Will highlight any issues in the wiring in your home and will bring to light any defects, serious or otherwise along with any non-compliances with the most recent wiring regulations. We will also recommend the BEST CONSUMER UNIT for your home following the inspection.
Back to top7) What happens after the inspection?
After the inspection has been carried out, we will produce a report for you to keep. The report will outline any issues that are present and need attention. The report is a valuable document and once satisfactory can be used as proof that you have made attempts to maintain your electrical system. It can also be used as a selling point for your home to prove that the installation is in satisfactory condition. For more information about electrical inspections and the report itself, check out our help sheet page.
This is a useful help sheet that we have written to explain the process and what happens.
If you are considering changing your consumer unit then get in touch using our contact form or give us a call. We can offer expert advice and should you require a quote then we are happy to do this for you too.
