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| Frequently Asked Questions |
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| Installing Cookers / ovens / hobs |
| Cookers and hobs may be gas or electric. If you have bought a new electric oven but you are using a gas hob, it's likely that your new oven can be run from your existing ring main circuits. Many ovens today are made so as to plug-in to an existing socket and will draw less than 13 amps in current. It is recommended though that ovens are not simply plugged into an existing socket but wired to a new fused spur which needs to be provided by an electrician.
If you check the paperwork which came with your new cooker, or look on the cooker itself for a metal plate (normally at the back) you will be able to tell what the current demand of your new appliance is. Power consumption is normally given in Watts or Kilowatts (1 Kilo watt = 1000 watts). If the total demand exceeds 3.3 Kilowatts (3300 watts) or 13 amps, then you will need a brand new circuit all the way from your main fuse board (consumer unit) in 6.00mm or 10.00 mm cable to an area close to the cooker. The circuit will need a new 30 amp or 45 amp fuse or circuit breaker in the consumer unit, and a 30 or 45 amp switch near the cooker itself. A new cooker circuit is quite expensive to install as the cable is larger and the circuit needs to be supplied from the fuse board to the cooker. Sometimes, this involves a long run and increases the installation cost in both materials and labour time.
Average guide figure for the installation of a new 30 or 45 amp cooker circuit (depending on length of run, ease of access, existing spare fuse ways at the consumer unit would be £380.00 pounds. |
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| Installing Electric Showers |
| Electric Showers often seem like an economical solution, especially where gas central heating systems are unable to accommodate a shower. However, although electrical shower units themselves are relatively cheap, you will invariably need the services of both a plumber and an electrician to have one installed. Electrical showers demand a large supply of electricity which means a shower circuit must be cabled with thicker diameter cable able to withstand 30 or 45 amps of current (depending on shower wattage rating).
A bathroom is the most hazardous area of a residential electrical installation with regard to electrical shock. Provisions for additional safety and protection against electric shock must be made by way of earth bonding arrangements in the bathroom, and by the provision of a device called a residual circuit breaker, to ensure the area is safe. This increases the cost of providing the electrical circuit for a shower.
Average guide figure for installing a new shower circuit and extra safety features (depending on length of run and existing protection configuration) would be £380.00 pounds.. |
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| Flickering Lights |
| If you notice all the lights downstairs or upstairs periodically dimming momentarily, or flickering, then it may be a sign of a fault building up on your electrical system. Often though, where people live in less urbanised areas - country regions, or outer city/town areas - they may arrive home from work at similar times and start to use appliances at the same time as many other people in the area. This can cause sudden voltage surges on the electricity supply to the area, which will give rise to sudden dimming of lights in the houses affected. This type of phenomena is not a genuine fault but a consequence of your local electricity supplier and the type and size of the supply cable installed to your property.
If you notice your lights dimming when you operate an electric shower or electric oven, then you may have a problem with the wiring arrangements at your fuse-board or possibly within the cabling of the light circuit itself. This should be investigated by an electrician.
If your lights flicker in any way not caused by one of the two reasons above, it is likely that you have a loose connection somewhere in the lighting circuit. This is quite serious as each instance of flickering lights is likely to produce a hot spark at the point where the wire is not electrically secured, resulting in burning and further breakdown of the electrical circuit. In extreme circumstances, a hot spark may be sufficient to ignite dust underneath the floor and cause a fire to start. You should therefore have your electrical system looked at by an electrician as quickly as possible and the fault cleared. |
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| Fuses blow |
| In a modern residential electrical installation, each circuit is protected against overloading by a device at the consumer unit (commonly called the fuse board). The protective device may be a rewirable fuse, a cartridge fuse, or a miniature circuit breaker. The idea of having the protective device is to ensure the cable, carrying electricity to sockets, lights, or other appliances, does not become hot due to it being put under demand to pass current greater than its design value. The fuse or Miniature Circuit Breaker will disconnect electricity to the circuit if demand exceeds the fuse rating.
A fuse may occasionally 'blow simply as a consequence of a bulb blowing in the lighting circuit, but in all other instances, a fuse repeatedly blowing means a circuit or an appliance has a serious fault on it. Such instances should be investigated by an electrician. |
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| Wiring renewal |
| Modern electrical installations are wired in plastic insulated cable. The cable is coloured old grey or white. The installation should ideally have a single consumer unit or fuse board with circuit breakers and RCD, s. Years ago, cable was rubber insulated. Even further back in time, cables had fabric insulation (mineral insulated) also lead covered. If your home is not cabled in plastic insulated cable or if it has several fuse boxes or white china-looking fuses, then it is probable that it needs to be completely rewired.
Both mineral and rubber-insulated cables breakdown (rot / perish) in time, leading to dangers of electric shock, fires, and short-circuits. In some cases, D.I.Y people 'have-a-go' at rewiring their own homes before selling them to you. This can lead to transparent issues and safety implications due to the fact that the installation 'looks' okay, but the detail and knowledge required ensuring safe working has not been applied.
Would you - for example - risk having your teeth treated by a Do-It-Yourself dentist? We think not! A little knowledge is a dangerous thing! When in doubt - call us out. We will look at your installation for as little as £125.00 pounds and give you a verbal report on its status. If you require a full written survey, then more time and testing is required. We can provide a full electrical survey with a detailed written report from £210.00 pounds.
It is a good idea to obtain a full written survey prior to exchanging contracts on a new home purchase. Your surveyor is normally insufficiently qualified or skilled to provide a detailed analysis of the electrical system. |
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| Earth Bonding |
| Many people may have heard this expression: 'earth-bonding' but it is still the most over-looked vital feature of your electrical installation. The problem is that earth-bonding in not a requisite to making things work: your appliances and electrical system will all function without earth bonding, but if and when something goes wrong, the absence of earth-bonding is likely to transform a non-critical event into a very serious one.
In simple terms then - your bathroom and kitchen are (electrically) the most dangerous areas of your house. Water exposed environments are the riskiest areas to consider when realising the consequences of electrical malfunction and electric shock.
The core function of earth-bonding is to protect you from serious electrocution should a fault occur and cause electric current to flow in metal pipes and objects (radiators, taps, pressed steel baths, boiler cases). Correct earth-bonding ensures minimum risk of a fatal electric shock.
Sadly, most of the properties we visit are not correctly earthed.
Take a look under your sink or your bath. Do you see metal clamps around those copper pipes with a green / striped yellow cable attached to them? If you don't see them, they are not there and this means the pipe work is not earth bonded as they should be.
We provide earth bonding to kitchens and bathrooms from £180.00 pounds per room. It rarely requires decorative repair and it will certainly protect you from a serious electrical hazard.
Take a look and if there is no sign of the earth bonding then give us a call |
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| Rewiring your home |
A completely new electrical installation involves a lot of labour-intensive work. Providing an estimate which is detailed and accurate requires a thorough inspection of your home to understand the challenges involved.
Give us a call to arrange a home visit. |
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| Improving electrical safety on a small budget |
A full rewire of your property is quite expensive. Very often, a full rewire is not necessary because some improvements to an older installation may have been carried out already. If your budget is very small yet you suspect your electrical installation is unsafe.
We can undertake to improve the system by introducing a modern consumer unit and proper earthing arrangements. We can advise you on how to prioritise work on your electrical system so it can be made safe in stages of work more affordable by you.
If you suspect you have an unsafe system, why not give us a call to discuss your requirements. |
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| Guarantee of workmanship and materials |
As an N.I.C.E.I.C. approved contractor any new works carried out by us will be warranted as installed to the most up to date electrical regulations at the time of the works being carried out.
We are inspected by the N.I.C.E.I.C. on an annual bases to ensure the standard of
works to BS 7671 are carried out, Also we are approved to the new Part P regulations that are in force now. |
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| Periodic Inspection and testing |
BS 7671 states that electrical installations should be inspected and tested according to the type of building and type of use of the building.
We can carry out this type of work to current regulations. Give us a call.
We can provide a full electrical survey with a detailed written report from £210.00 pounds. |
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| Maintenance Works |
We can carry out maintenance work to current regulations. Give us a call.
From one of replacement to complete renewal. |
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