Rewiring houses - considerations?

girl_withno_name

fluffpot wrote: »

Who was it who suggested complete rewiring? If it was an electrician, I might try and find a new one...

The best way forward (and the approach I take with my customers) is to have all the existing wiring tested and that way you will know if it's on the way out or good for some time more. Even if some bits are bad, these can be replaced without doing the whole lot. I would always do a full test and inspect (also called EICR - Electrical Condition Installation Report) before a fuse board upgrade anyhow to make sure there are no underlying faults.

I also encourage clients to move out for at least a few days if the whole house is being rewired - this makes it quicker (and cheaper) and believe you me, you do not want to try and live in a house that's being rewired...unless you love the taste of dust!

Get a couple of quotes on the testing and come back to us with the findings...

Oh - just read your later posts - trust me a rewire will cost a lot more than fuse board upgrade and few extra sockets - and that's just the electrical side - there are also other costs to consider like re plastering, redecorating. Obv I don't know the property but rewires are generally done only when the existing wiring is coming to the end of it's life OR the electrics you want differ so much from what's there, that it's cheaper/easier to start again rather than add on.

Sounds like your sparky might be looking for work.... did he mention testing the existing stuff? I doubt you'll be in the house in 10-20 years time.... so leave the next rewire to someone else!

macman wrote: »

Then it's approaching 30 years old now...

Fairly old seemed to be suggested as pre-1977 in a previous post ...

He did mention getting it tested, but got the impression this was a suggestion in the "test, new board, extra sockets" bundle only, adding to those costs and bringing us closer to the re-wire costs?

Got a second electrician coming over this evening and waiting to hear back from another, so hopefully will have more comparisons soon!

Electrical Condition Tests seem to cost about £144-£168

fluffpot

I see plenty of houses with wiring that age that test out fine.... but others that don't. It all depends on how well cables were installed and how heavy the use. Getting the whole lot tested if defo the first action.

EICR prices do vary depending on the size of property, if it's vacant or occupied and where you live. I charge more than you've posted up - but I'm in London

girl_withno_name

fluffpot wrote: »

I see plenty of houses with wiring that age that test out fine.... but others that don't. It all depends on how well cables were installed and how heavy the use. Getting the whole lot tested if defo the first action.

EICR prices do vary depending on the size of property, if it's vacant or occupied and where you live. I charge more than you've posted up - but I'm in London

It's 4 bed, occupied and South Wales...

Sorry if I'm being dumb, I really am new to all this... best course of action would be:
- Get EICR
- Results will indicate whether a fuse board upgrade is required and whether there are other faults in the current system
- This shold give an idea if a full rewire, spot repairs or just the work we want should be carried out

The electrician did seem to assume that we'd be in the house for a long time yet, and have kids there, etc... I'm guessing because we're mid-20s and bought a 4 bed, but things might change - jobs and friends might move, we may even find we need to downsize at some point, so I've no idea yet whether we'll be here in 10-20 years' time!

fluffpot

No problem - always best to ask!
Your course of action listed is now spot on - investing a few hundred pounds in getting the EICR will save you money in the long run.

In terms of the length of time you'll be there - of course we none of us really know, but if it tests out OK then why bother? I know when I bought my first home I was really short of cash to start with and you'll of course redecorate (and maybe do other work) within 10-20 years, so you could do a rewire (if it was needed) later on down the line

I think your first electrician has somewhat mislead you - I'd be interested to see if the others mention need to be rewired unless prompted by you.

Good luck in your new home

Fluff

girl_withno_name

We've had a second guy around to quote and he didn't mention anything about a rewire, in fact he thinks there may be an alternative solution to getting a new board (something about putting a trip between the outside supply and the board inside)

fluffpot

Hmm, I thought as much about the rewire- BUT think his suggestion might be too far penny pinching the other way!

The problem with putting all your circuits on 1 RCD (trip) is that if this goes you loose ALL power and lights. Not very good if you are away on hols (freezer) or it's the middle of the night. It's widely recognised as bad practice. A new fuse board will allow the splitting of your circuits across several RCDs so you don't loose everything at once

Is it possible for you to post up a pic of your fuse board - then we can see if there are other options....

girl_withno_name

It seems to look something like this (With 3x2 grey/white on the left, and 3x2 red on the right):
http://www.reid-electrics.co.uk/wp-content/gallery/my-work/fuseboard-old.jpg

fluffpot

You really need a new fuse board.....I would strongly advise against what your second sparks suggested of putting an RCD in front of the whole board for the reasons outlined above.

Is he registered?

girl_withno_name

Their website says their industry accredited and staff are fully trained to BS7671 17th Edition regulations, but I can't see the NICEIC logo there and can't find them in their database either (they must be from the first batch of electricians I contacted, before I'd even heard of NICEIC)

fluffpot

Definitely worth checking with them, then. There are other registered bodies such as NAPIT. I'm NICEIC registered, but don't always show up in their database as they have added in extra dots to my business name!

They will need to be registered in order to certify work under part P of the building regs for anything major (eg fuse board change) or any work in bathroom and kitchen

Welcome to the wonderful world of home ownership!
Fluff