Old Fusebox in Warrington

1) My fuse box in Warrington looks old, do I need a new one?

If your consumer unit / fuse box looks this old then you should definitely be looking at having a new one installed. These boxes are now several decades old and have no doubt provided years of service to your home but there are better, newer and safer products out there that are doing a better job of protecting you and your family against electric shock, electrical dangers and also protecting the electrical wiring system in your home much better. 

There are lots of old fusebox in Warrington still in use and they are not necessarily dangerous. If you have not had your fuse box checked by an electrician properly in the last 10 years then you should definitely have this done. 

2) What does an electrician do when they check the fuse box?

The electrician checking your fuse box is performing several important tests which include making sure the earthing to each of the circuits is in place. Earthing is there to ensure that in the event of an electrical fault that the electricity has a path away to safety. If there was no earth, in the event of a fault, the electrical equipment, light fittings or sockets that were faulty would simply remain live and deadly for someone to touch. The person touching these items would then receive a shock or worse. 

The electrician checks to make sure of the following:

• Earthing is present, correct, of the right size.
• Earthing test results are sufficient for the type of system that you have in your home.
• The condition of the electrical insulation on the cabling in your home.
• The polarity of the circuits is correct.
• That there are no hidden breaks on the circuit cables.
• Visual inspection of electrical items to check for damage and correct installation.
• Check the consumer unit / fuse box to ensure cables are the correct size.
• Check that the Electric shock protection in your home is present and adequate

These are just some of the things that an electrician will check for on an inspection along with a thorough inspection of your fuse box. These checks take time to do properly and typically average sized homes can take half a day to inspect and test. 

3) What does a new fuse box cost?

Assuming that your electrical installation can take a new fuse box / consumer unit the costs are dictated by the size of the property that requires testing to be carried out and the size of the consumer unit. We would normally carry out testing on an electrical system prior to installing a new consumer unit to ensure that once the work is carried out that the new consumer unit will turn on and stay on without problems. There can be may hidden faults in an older existing electrical installation and as such a modern sophisticated consumer unit may pick up on these where an older a cruder fuse box did not previously detect them.  

To get an idea of costs you can check our website help sheet on “How much is it?” The link is HERE for you. Or alternatively you can contact us for an idea of cost. We can chat with you on WhatsApp as well and if you can send photographs of your existing consumer unit, we can normally advise you of costs to swap it and costs for any testing that needs to be carried out. 

The important thing is this, if you have an old fusebox in Warrington or anywhere else in surrounding areas then give us a call and we will do our best to help you. 

4) My fuse box is not old but it is plastic is that dangerous?

No. Just because a consumer unit / fuse box is plastic does not make it dangerous. If there are signs that it has become damaged due to mechanical forces, excessive heat or other factors then there might be danger present however simply because the unit is of plastic construction does not make it dangerous. 

If plastic was a dangerous material to construct electrical items from then we would all have a lot of problems. Ceiling roses, lighting pendants and electrical sockets and accessories are all made from plastic. This would mean that every home in the UK was suddenly in danger due to the construction material used in their electrical installations. 

5) I have been told that I need a rewire is it true?

There are occasionally circumstances that would mean you could not have a new fuse box / consumer unit and a rewire would be needed in order to install one. This depends on a case-by-case basis. There are installations where the cabling is simply so old that we know a new consumer unit would not hold up correctly or may even make the installation worse by installing it. In these circumstances we would advise rewiring the property. Normally however, it is difficult to tell whether an installation requires rewiring simply by looking at the age of the consumer unit or fuse box and it is necessary to have electrical testing carried out to assess the condition of the installation before advising further works or rewiring. If you have an old fusebox in Warrington then give us a call and we will offer free advice. We can often offer assistance if you send us photographs rather than making a special visit. We are of course always happy to visit you but understand that many of you have busy lives and it may be more convenient to carry out conversations in email or WhatsApp.

6) Do you work weekends?

We can often carry out work on the weekends as we understand that many of our customers work during the week and can struggle to find time to be at home so work can be carried out. If you would prefer us to visit or carry out work during a weekend then just let us know and we will be happy to fit you in. 

The important thing to remember is not to worry. We are here to help and if you have concerns then please don’t leave things any longer, get in touch now. We are very responsive and are able to advise you. 

If you have any more questions or are worried about an older fusebox, give us a call today.