Do we need a rewire?

FTB333

Hi,


I am currently in the process of purchasing a 3 bed semi detached house, very close to exchange. The surveyor recommended we get an electrician in as the house was built in 1965 and has got no electrical reports/looks pretty old and nothing has been touched electrical wise since built. The electrician who carried out a EICR today gave us the below feedback which are all rated at C2:


- Main bonding to water mains not found
- Some cables showing signs of green goo (plastisizer migration) reaction of insulation with copper
- Both lighting circuits have no CPC's (earth) wired in 2 core throughout
- No RCD protection to any circuits
- No earth bonding to bathroom found

Obviously the electrician has advised that we get the above sorted. The house is in fantastic condition so obviously a bit concerned about getting it rewired due to the mess it will cause/extra money spent on making good if it really isn't needed...


If anyone can give feedback it would be much appreciated. We are getting quoted £1300 to fix just the above points and then £3500 for a total rewire. We just don't know whether a) it really needs to be done , b) should we just go for it and get the full rewire.

Gloomendoom

On its own, the presence of green goo isn't a reason to replace the wiring.

tacpot12

The green goo is plasticizer leaching from the PVC insulation of the cables. This would not normally be expected to affect the insulation resistance of the cable if the cable is not disturbed but this cannot be guaranteed. The Electrician would have carried out an insulation resistance test, and had the test failed, he would have had to confirm this in his report. So, currently, the installation is safe, but without the original plasticizer, the PVC insulation will be more brittle and prone to breaking down when changes are made to the electrical installation.

I'm inclined to think that this issue should require periodic inspections of the installation to take place more frequently than normal.

The price for the rewire is about right if it also includes all the work included in the work that will be done for £1300. £1300 looks an ok price to remediate the other issues.

The lack of a CPC on the lighting circuits doesn't need to be fixed providing you are prepared to only be able to install Class 2 (Double Insulated, i.e. plastic) light fittings in your home. I would expect that not doing this work will save about £600.

If you are going to do any redecoration or changing the upstairs floor coverings, and can afford the cost of the full rewire, it is the best long term option, but it could be put off until you are prepared to redecorate throughout.

Ectophile

- Main bonding to water mains not found

Should be fixed, but doesn't need a rewire.

- Some cables showing signs of green goo (plastisizer migration) reaction of insulation with copper

See the answer by tacpot12. If you haven't got green slime running down the walls, like something out of a horror movie, you could choose to live with it.

- Both lighting circuits have no CPC's (earth) wired in 2 core throughout

Again, see the answer by tacpot12. That wiring probably dates from the early to mid 1960's. It doesn't meet current standards, but isn't actually dangerous provided you only use plastic light switches and insulated light fittings.

- No RCD protection to any circuits

Again, not up to modern standards, but there must still be millions of houses like this. Be careful when you drill into walls. Always use a plug-in RCD for power tools outdoors. It is possible to retro-fit RCDs.

- No earth bonding to bathroom found

Should be fixed, especially since there are no RCDs.

Slinky

How long do you intend living there?

We've bought a house of a similar age with some similar issues, except the green goo. We're renting it out for a while before moving there ourselves. Whilst it was empty and we had all the carpets up we had a fairly extensive partial rewire with a new consumer unit put in as we don't intend moving again so thought we'd get it out of the way and up to a better standard, so that hopefully it won't need doing again before we go out the door in a box.