Replacing/updating a fuse box

noclaf

My house has a very old fuse box, it's the original item so likely dates back to late 70's/early 80's. I am concerned it's both unsafe and not compliant with current safety regs such as safety cut-off. It's literally a flimsy white plastic cover helped on with a screw and a couple of rectangular fuse holders inside.

Any idea of costs for replacement and labour and if there is guidance as to what is the minimum standard/requirements?

Thanks

CSI_Yorkshire

There are many consumer units older than yours still around and working fine.  Are you having problems with it?

Very few people have a CU compliant with all of the current regulations, because they change quite often and there's nothing saying that you have to change in most circumstances.

The current standard is BS7671:2018+A2:2022 - "The Wiring Regs"

noclaf

CSI_Yorkshire said:

There are many consumer units older than yours still around and working fine.  Are you having problems with it?

Very few people have a CU compliant with all of the current regulations, because they change quite often and there's nothing saying that you have to change in most circumstances.

The current standard is BS7671:2018+A2:2022 - "The Wiring Regs"

Thanks for the quick response. It was actually a friend (in the trades) who looked at it (needed DC for some recent work) and said it might be a safety hazard and should get it updated soon, mentioned that even in rentals these days you wouldn't have something as old as this etc.

So no problems as such but the house is due to have some work done next year (ground floor ext) so an wondering if this 'needs' or is worthwhile updating? I would rather not spend the money but safety is important esp with a family.

Section62

noclaf said:

CSI_Yorkshire said:

There are many consumer units older than yours still around and working fine.  Are you having problems with it?

Very few people have a CU compliant with all of the current regulations, because they change quite often and there's nothing saying that you have to change in most circumstances.

The current standard is BS7671:2018+A2:2022 - "The Wiring Regs"

Thanks for the quick response. It was actually a friend (in the trades) who looked at it (needed DC for some recent work) and said it might be a safety hazard and should get it updated soon, mentioned that even in rentals these days you wouldn't have something as old as this etc.

So no problems as such but the house is due to have some work done next year (ground floor ext) so an wondering if this 'needs' or is worthwhile updating? I would rather not spend the money but safety is important esp with a family.

Unless the CU is damaged it is likely your friend's assessment of a 'safety hazard' is correct.

Older CU's don't provide the same level of protection as modern ones, but that doesn't make the older ones intrinsically unsafe, provided they are in good condition and have been installed correctly.

The comparison with rental properties also doesn't make sense.  Anyone renting a property out needs to get an EICR done, and would be wise to follow the almost inevitable recommendations to upgrade their installation to the latest standards, in particular having a consumer unit with RCD/RCBO protection.  You are more likely to find older/no longer compliant work in non-rental properties.

Upgrading to a modern consumer unit is probably a good idea (in part for convenience) and may be necessary if you are extending the property.  But don't feel compelled to do so on the basis what you currently have is "unsafe" without having at least an EICR carried out by a professional electrician.

It is likely to make more sense to have the CU changed when the other building work is being done, as if the CU only has a couple of fuses in it you may be looking at a full rewire of the property to get circuits separated out.

FreeBear

noclaf said:

My house has a very old fuse box, it's the original item so likely dates back to late 70's/early 80's. I am concerned it's both unsafe and not compliant with current safety regs such as safety cut-off. It's literally a flimsy white plastic cover helped on with a screw and a couple of rectangular fuse holders inside.

Any idea of costs for replacement and labour and if there is guidance as to what is the minimum standard/requirements?

A photo of the consumer unit (fuse box) will help.

A modern CU will be fitted with RCD devices along with MCBs or RCBOs and surge protection - Combined, all will reduce the chance of an electric shock should you happen to touch a bare live wire or spill water on an appliance/plug/extension lead. If your current CU is an old Wylex type unit with just four rewireable fuses, I would say it is definitely time for an upgrade - Those things are nasty and all too easy to use the wrong wire if a "fuse" should blow. Also a pain in the butt to rewire, unlike an MCB/RCBO that you can just flick a switch.

Downside to replacing the CU is there may be other parts of the wiring that need upgrading/replacing, so what starts out as a £600-800 job turns in to a £5,000 rewire. If you do go for a new CU, get an isolation switch installed between the meter & new consumer unit.

daveyjp

Old Wylex are only dangerous because lack of knoweldge of what they are and how they work and the temptation to bodge a repair.

I remember the days of having a card of various fuse wires on top of the fuse box so a new piece could be inserted when the fuse blew.  I have also seen photos of wires being replaced with nails and screws where no wire has been available!  

As a half way house you can replace old Wylex fuse wire cartridges with a more modern RCD type fuse.

TELLIT01

Using terminology such as 'even in rental properties' shows a lack of understanding.  Requirements for rental properties are stricter than in owner occupied properties.

It is about 10 years since we had our old consumer unit replaced as part of the work when we had a conservatory built.  The company hadn't bothered to check if our old consumer unit was suitable so that may have affected the charge, but we only paid about £200 for supply and installation of the new consumer unit.  Prices obviously have moved on.

noclaf

Thanks all for the very helpful info. I had a ballpark figure in my head that £1k might be the rough costs for having the CU updated but good point regarding additional work that needs to be done....will be costly but I think makes sense when putting in a rear extension.

I've attached a picture of CU with cover removed.

knightstyle

If that was mine I would get it replaced ASAP.  It does not have an RCD and relies on old fuses so although not dangerous does not give the protection modern units give and could be dangerous if using outside leads etc.
Cost will depend on other factors and I would have a thorough inspection on the whole house.
To replace just the consumer unit would be about £400, maybe a bit more in London.
Also is there only 1 fuse for all the sockets?  If so the circuit may need splitting into more circuits but you need a trustworthy electrician to look. Make sure they are registered, https://ipf-electrical.co.uk/how-can-i-check-an-electrician-is-qualified/

rach_k

We had a similar situation of 70/80s fuse box.  When we got a new kitchen, we opted to just add a separate, new RCD for the kitchen circuit (the electrician wasn't happy to wire in the kitchen to the existing box, but said that would be fine).  We were advised that when we wanted to replace the whole thing, it should just be a straight swap but that newer boxes are more sensitive so it could potentially reveal wiring problems elsewhere in the house and, worst case scenario, require a full rewire.  

We did swap the whole box when we did a loft conversion as there was already a lot of mess going on!  It was something like £700 (a few years ago but London rates), but could have resulted in a several thousand pound rewire.  We were lucky that it didn't, but we knew we needed to have the money just in case, plus the mental preparation for a rewire.  

Our electrician was happy to talk us through the pros and cons of different options.  He's somebody we trust and is always busy so he doesn't say things need doing when they don't.  I'd recommend finding somebody like that to have a look.  To my untrained eye, our old fuse box was horrendous (I especially felt this the first time I had to rewire a fuse in the dark!) but he was happy that it was safe and we were able to wait until everything else aligned to replace it.  

BreakingGlass

For reference, here's a photo of my old Wylex consumer unit with plug-in MCBs replacing the older plug in fuses that you have.  My understanding is that these (fuses or MCBs) will protect the 'circuit' but not protect the individual when you get an electric shock.  Your cover will probably not fit if you add MCBs - I left mine uncovered because it was high up on a wall in the garage.

My house was rented out for 8 years with this consumer unit, but that was before the requirement for an EICR was introduced, Although not intrinsically unsafe, I doubt that this consumer unit would meet the new requirements.