My fusebox is hot!

1) Help My fusebox is hot!!! Oh Dear. That is never normally a good sign at all. 

If your fusebox is hot then it is normally a sign that there are problems within the fusebox. The first thing you should do if your fusebox is hot is turn all the switches off that you can. This will stop the electricity supply to all the parts of your house and allow things to cool down. Then you must call an electrician. Do not attempt to investigate the electrical supply or wiring yourself.

2) Fusebox is hot, why?

There are a number of reasons why a fusebox could be hot and it depends on what we each perceive as hot. For instance, a bell transformer can produce heat and they can run quite warm at times but I would not personally describe this as hot although somebody else may feel that it is excessively warm and be worried about this. 
The reasons why a fusebox is hot are below and are not limited to these alone:

•    Loose connections inside causing high temperatures
•    Burning inside the fusebox causing melting and heat
•    Components that are overloaded causing excessive heat
•    Fusebox situated to close to heating devices within the home and becoming hot

These are some of the most common reasons why a fusebox may appear hot. 

3) What can an electrician do? 

•    If you are having issues with your wiring and your fusebox feels too warm or you are concerned then please call us. 
•    We will come make your electrical installation safe. 
•    We will check all the connections in your consumer unit / fusebox are correctly tightened to the manufacturers recommended torque. 
•    We will visually inspect the components and the wiring to look for signs of overheating, melting or burning
•    We can test for overloaded circuits
•    We can remove components and examine them for signs of heat damage, and most importantly….
•    We can give you some peace of mind.

4) What if my fusebox is melted, what happens then?

There are different scales and levels of damage that we consider to be safe to repair or not safe to repair. These can vary by job to job and we look at everything as a whole. If components are damaged then we will check to see if there are replacements available and if so how quickly these can be obtained. We do carry spare components on the van for such occasions however, we cannot carry every current and obsolete brand of equipment and some equipment can prove impossible to obtain especially if it is now no longer manufactured. 

Small heat damage problems can normally be repaired, items replaced, wiring stripped back / extended / repaired and issues resolved. 
Damage where the consumer unit itself has been affected considerably will normally always require a consumer unit replacement. This can sometimes be carried out immediately where agreed and required as we have good stock levels on the vehicle and in our lock up. Damage where some wiring has been affected can normally be repaired. 

5) How much will it cost to fix this problem?

Where damage is contained to a wire or two costs can normally be included in the first hours callout plus parts typically £120-£150.
Where damage has extended to the consumer unit and a component requires replacing then we also have to carry out some testing. Costs can be around £150-180.
If the damage is extensive and a couple of components and some wiring requires repair and replacement then typical costs can be around £300.

Where a consumer unit requires replacement then the works can take anywhere from 5 to 10 hours. Not only does the consumer unit require replacing but all circuits that are connected require testing and the new consumer unit requires testing. The work has to be certified as safe and suitable to use by means of an Electrical Installation Certificate and a Building Control Compliance certificate (in the case of domestic works). This kind of work can range from £650 for a smaller consumer unit to £1300 for much larger properties with more circuits and bigger consumer units. 

6) When can you do the work?

We can normally begin emergency works straight away if they are minor. If the work involved is major work then this can take a little more time. Our majority of work is last minute emergency work for private clients and large insurers. Due to this, we often have availability at short notice for minor works and small jobs. We have on occasion worked until past midnight restoring the power to properties that have suffered fire damage to the electrical installation or consumer unit failure. There is sometimes a slightly higher rate for these works that are “out of hours”. Every situation is different though so it is best to ask us for a quote or estimate for your situation. Don’t worry, we are friendly and helpful. 

7) Can I do anything to avoid this situation?

YES. Early prevention is the best cure! If you notice that your fusebox is hot DO NOT WAIT! The earlier you can call us to come and investigate the sooner we can fix the problem and the cheaper it is likely to be. Leaving a fusebox that is very warm, hot or smells of burning can be very expensive and not to mention…. Dangerous!!!  Act quickly!

8) My fusebox looks very old, can it be repaired?

In some cases older equipment can be repaired if spares are available and the damage is not too extensive. It very much depends on the extent of the damage, the manufacturer of the equipment and whether or not we have spares available or can get them. It may be for instance that the unit can be repaired but items will take several days to arrive and there is no power to the property until that happens. We can install a temporary power supply to keep things running for you in a very limited capacity (think two sockets and a light bulb) or we can replace the entire unit there and then in a lot of cases with a brand new different manufacturers unit. 

There is also the repair itself to take into account, spending money repairing an old consumer unit or its components may be better put towards the cost of a completely new unit! 

If you have any electrical problems or any electrical work that you need carried out no matter how small you think it may be then please contact us and we will be happy to assist.  From changing a light switch or two to a new consumer unit or even a rewire if needed.