Good Or Bad Advice (Re-Wire)?

macman

You have agreed a contract with him, should he choose to hold you to it.
It's not necessary to sign anything to make a binding contract.
Don't mess him around, ring him in the morning and say you are getting other quotes first.

aboard_epsilon

When you get quotes ..make sure its quotes for just consumer unit swap ..let them inspect and let them deside if re-wire required...dont even mention it to them.

also if you go with the rewire, find a sparky that can plaster .

all the best.markj

ach5

macman wrote: »

You have agreed a contract with him, should he choose to hold you to it.
It's not necessary to sign anything to make a binding contract.
Don't mess him around, ring him in the morning and say you are getting other quotes first.

You're right. I didnt set out to mess him around, but I dont want to offend him either. I will make contact tomorrow and tell him it's on a temporary hold.

aboard_epsilon wrote: »

When you get quotes ..make sure its quotes for just consumer unit swap ..let them inspect and let them deside if re-wire required...dont even mention it to them.

also if you go with the rewire, find a sparky that can plaster .

all the best.markj

I was debating whether to be honest and tell them what has happened and that I am trying to (safely) avoid a re-wire, or as you say whether to keep quiet. I'm not sure what will get me a more honest opinion! If I do the former, at least he'll know that I've been quoted and am having doubts - i.e. I'm not a complete soft-touch. He might be more honest in return... He might even say, yes it does need a re-wire but I'll beat the other guys quote...

Ben84

Sounds very suspect to me. It isn't resistance that trips circuit breakers or blows fuses, it's the amount of current flowing through them. Low resistance in your wiring is good. Conversely, if increased resistance in the circuit caused circuit breakers to blow, then how do we manage to use devices like electric resistance heaters successfully on these circuits? It's not like the breaker knows if the resistance is in the wiring or the appliance. All appliances are effectively resistors that only allow the correct amount of current to flow through them in normal use. Besides, the only thing breaker detect is current and blow when too much passes through them, because that indicates one of your appliances has failed or the wiring has become damaged, and ironically greater resistance decreases current so I don't see it encouraging this at all.

I'd start by just telephoning a couple of other electricians and ask them if they'd ever heard of resistance increasing in old wiring and causing circuit breakers to blow. My strong feeling is either that you've misunderstood the situation (it is your electrician's responsibility to make sure you're clear why this work is needed, not just that it is needed), or your electrician is up to no good. His just looking inside the fuse box and deciding the whole house needs rewiring isn't very reassuring either.

aboard_epsilon

and

the grey stuff 30 years ago ..was better made than the stuff today ..the outer grey layer insulation is thicker ...and seemed stiffer ..and more dense also.

weather the stuff today is made to loose more heat...or just cheapened, i don't know ..

all the best.markj

Ben84

macman wrote: »

You have agreed a contract with him, should he choose to hold you to it.
It's not necessary to sign anything to make a binding contract.
Don't mess him around, ring him in the morning and say you are getting other quotes first.

It seems the reasonable thing to do to let him know what's going on, but if there's no paperwork then he can't really do anything.

Jonesya

ach5 wrote: »

Problem is I dont want to have to keep paying for Periodic Inspection Reports - it seems that that's what they want to do - I cant get them to do a free test/quote - they just say I need the report and tell me their fee!!! It's a con!

A proper periodic inspection will require several hours of an electricians time and should involve detailed inspection and electrical testing of the installation. It is a lot more than a quick look-see in the consumer unit. You should get a report detailing any problems or defects with the installation, the decision on what work is required should be based on this report. An electrician won't do this for free because once you have the report there is no guarantee they will get the job for any remedial work as you're quite within your rights to get someone else.

At the moment, whether you need a rewire, and which circuits require rewiring, is unknown because you don't have any detailed information on the state of the current installation, other than the comments from one electrician based on a quick visual check.

I certainly wouldn't lose sleep over a rewire. Get a proper inspection done and take it from there. If the wiring was installed in the 1980s and done properly there's a good chance you won't need a rewire.

[EDIT] The height requirement for sockets/switches apply to new buildings, for rewires the requirement is that the position is no worse than the existing installation, hence shouldn't need to be relocated.

baldelectrician

he must be a better spark than me- I usually have to test to find out if something is that bad

(there is an exception- went to a house recently that had VIR [rubber] cables on the lights and some of the sockets).I still gave it a quick test with 1 of my meters and this confirmed my suspisions

I would suggest with wiring that old you would be fine with a new consumer unit, testing and possible upgrading of the bonding if required.

I may also suggest you have mains powered smoke detectors installed- better to do this now as you will be having other work done

ach5

Well, another electrician came around today - he didn't do any formal testing, but said that he saw no reason why a re-wire would be required and that he would fit me a new consumer unit and do the other bits and bobs that I need doing - all for £400.

He saw that the wires are PVC coated and of a good standard, and as there are no problems known to me they should be fine. Also he saw that there are earth cables to the water and gas pipes etc. He said the wires that I have have a "life expectancy" of 30-50 years.

I assume i'll get a certificate of some form once he's done the CU?

I have another electrician coming tomorrow, and I have cancelled the first guy - he was fine with it.

DVardysShadow

ach5 wrote: »

yes it's an old fuse box with "cartridge" style fuses that you pull in and out - each fuse has two pins like the brass ones on plugs.

ach5 wrote: »

Definitely cartridge and not rewireable?

I dont know!!! How do I tell?

Pull one out and inspect. The reason I ask is because you mention brass pins - which makes me expect a rewireable fuse. This has a wire between the pins held down by screws. The cartridge fuse is a ceramic fuselink with 2 metal end caps, like a plug fuse only fatter.