Consumer unit upgrades
Fuse Board
Replacement
Durham
Wire fuses and no RCD protection out, a protective device on every circuit and surge protection in, with everything tested and labelled before the cover goes back.
What a modern board actually buys you
The headline difference is what happens when something goes wrong. On an old board with rewireable fuses and one RCD, or often no RCD at all, a single faulty kettle takes out half the house and leaves you fumbling for a torch. On a board with an individual device per circuit, that same kettle trips the kitchen sockets and nothing else. The lights stay on, the freezer keeps running, and finding the culprit takes minutes.
The second difference is shock protection. RCDs disconnect fast enough to matter when somebody puts a drill through a cable or a garden tool cuts its own lead. Plenty of installations around Durham still have none at all, which is the single strongest argument for changing a board.
Why we test before we quote
A new board bolted on top of tired circuits does not fix tired circuits. It just means the new protective devices start doing their job and tripping on faults the old fuses were quietly tolerating. People then conclude the new board is faulty when what has actually happened is that pre-existing problems have become visible.
So we test the existing installation first. Sometimes that turns up nothing and the change is simple. Sometimes it turns up circuits that need attention first, and occasionally it turns up an installation where a board change is not the sensible first move at all. We would rather tell you that up front than halfway through the day.
The older Durham installations
Colliery-village housing and pre-war terraces across the county throw up a recognisable set of things. Rubber or fabric-covered cable still buried in the fabric. Lighting circuits with no earth at the switch. Henley blocks and a tangle of additions round the meter position. Earthing arrangements that predate anything current.
None of it is a disaster and none of it means an automatic rewire. It does mean the job takes longer than a new-build board swap and that pricing it blind over the phone helps nobody. We look, we test, we tell you what we found.
What a board change includes
- Testing the existing installation before quoting
- Isolation arranged with the supply cut out
- Metal enclosure to current standards
- An individual protective device on every circuit
- Surge protection where it is worth fitting
- Arc fault detection on socket circuits where specified
- Every way labelled and the schedule completed
- Full test results and certification on handover
How it runs
What actually happens
Test first
We inspect and test what is already there. That establishes whether a board change is the right move and what else needs sorting alongside it.
Quote properly
A written figure based on what we actually found, including anything the testing turned up, so there are no discoveries halfway through.
Change over
Circuits come across one at a time, each identified and tested as it goes. Power comes off in stages rather than all day.
Certify
Everything tested, every way labelled, results recorded and the certificate issued. You are shown what is what before we pack up.
Recent projects
Work of this kind
Photographed on site as each one finished.
FAQs
Questions on this specifically
How do I know if mine needs changing?
Rewireable fuses with fuse wire in them, a wooden or plastic enclosure, or no RCD anywhere are all strong signs. So is a board that trips the whole house when one appliance fails. If you are unsure, a photograph of the board tells us most of what we need to know before anyone visits.
How long will I be without power?
Most of a working day, but not continuously. Circuits are transferred in stages, so the house comes back on in sections as we go rather than everything being dead from eight until five. If you work from home, say so and we will sequence it around your router and desk.
Will you find things that need fixing?
Sometimes, and that is the point of testing first rather than after. Anything found is priced separately and explained, and you decide what gets done. We are not going to hold the job hostage over a code that has been sat there harmlessly for twenty years.
Do I need surge protection?
It is required in more situations than it used to be, and it is cheap insurance where a property is full of electronics or on an overhead supply. We will tell you whether yours is a case where it is genuinely worth it rather than fitting one as a matter of course.
Is it worth doing before selling?
Often, yes. An old board with no RCD protection is the kind of thing that surfaces on a buyer's survey and gets used to knock money off. A current board with a recent certificate removes that conversation entirely and usually costs less than the reduction it prevents.
Also worth a look
Other things we do
Get in touch
Get a price for this
Phone if it is urgent. Otherwise fill this in with as much detail as you can and we will come back with a figure or a date.
Call the team0191 934 0118- CoveringDurham City and the county around it — Chester-le-Street, Consett, Stanley, Lanchester, Bowburn, Coxhoe, Peterlee, Easington, Seaham and the villages between.
- HomesCity terraces, colliery-village housing, inter-war semis and rural property. Nothing too small, nothing too big.
- Student letsEICRs, HMO certification and remedial work, scheduled around term dates and changeover weeks.
- UrgentUse the phone for anything that cannot wait. We can set off and talk you through isolating it at the same time.
Send the details
The more you put here, the tighter the figure we can come back with.
Electrician Done Right
Board looking its age?
Send a photograph of it and we can tell you most of what you need to know before anybody visits.