7 Signs Your House Needs Rewiring
Wires and cables are susceptible to general wear-and-tear. Exposed and loose wires can present a real safety problem if left, especially with over 1200 house fires a year being caused by faulty wiring. The current guideline is that a house should be rewired every 25 years. However, you may need to rewire sooner if you are experiencing faults.
If you’ve recently purchased an older property or your current home still has old wiring, we strongly recommend having a qualified electrician run an inspection of your wiring. Not all faults are clear to see. However, there are signs that you can spot that indicate that your home or business needs an upgrade. Here are our common signs that a house needs rewiring.
1- Shocks
The major sign that there is a fault with wiring is if you receive a shock when plugging in an appliance. No small shock is a safe one. If you pick up even the smallest jolt when touching a cord or socket, you should contact an electrician.
2- Noises
Any unusual sounds coming from plug sockets are a sign that some wiring has likely been exposed and needs addressing. There should be no sounds coming from any power outlet so if you detect any buzzing from sockets or light-switches, it’s best to have an electrician take a look.
3- Flickering or dimming lights
While it can be blamed on the light fitting or the bulb, brightening and dimming lights can be caused by the voltage they’re receiving. Sometimes, they may receive a spike of power that blows out the bulbs completely. The fluctuation in power could be down to bad wiring and other faults.
4- Appliance plug fuses blowing
A clear warning sign would be regular surges that cause plug fuses to blow down to a sharp increase in voltage. If you experience a surge that blows a fuse, get in contact with an electrician to check if it was a one-off occurrence or an indication of a serious electrical issue.
5- Fuse box tripping
If your property experiences regular outages caused by your circuit breakers tripping, it could be a sign that there is a fault in the wiring. Regular trips are cause for concern. Modern appliances in the home may be overtaxing an older system, therefore meaning your fuses may need upgrading to a more modern system.
6- Discolouration
If you’ve noticed discolouration around light switches, sockets or other electric outlets, the cause could be sparking. Any sparking caused by faulty wiring is a fire risk and should be looked into immediately.
7- Age
If your property hasn’t been rewired in many years, that alone is a sign that an electrician should take a look at your wiring for your peace of mind. Cables and wires degrade over time and are a very common cause for house fires. If your home is over 40 years old, it’s a good idea to consider having your property rewired so it follows modern electrical safety standards.
Having Your Home Rewired
Rewiring a property can be a big job depending on how the old the property is, how many rooms there are and if there will be any additional repair work. There are many different factors to take in which is why we first survey the situation at hand to get an idea of the job and provide a quote for the work that needs to be completed.
At TJC Electrical, we have a team of fully qualified electricians at hand for any rewiring job. It’s important that a competent and experienced electrician take over any rewiring jobs to a high standard, covering all necessary building regulations. We take safety extremely serious and any work carried out by us will mean the correct requirements.
Home survey
Our first step will be to run an inspection of your property. This includes testing your systems to determine where you need a partial rewire or you need a complete rewire. You can book a survey online. We work around you so our electricians don’t disturb you at home while we check your electric systems.
Removing your old wiring and upgrading
As part of your house rewire, your old wiring and fittings will be removed and a new consumer unit (fuse board) will be installed. New cables will be run to the correct locations for plug sockets, switches and lighting, existing wiring will be replaced and back boxes and cable channels will be added to the walls.
Once this is done, sockets, switch faceplates and lighting fixtures will be installed. The installation will then be certified and signed off.
How much does a rewire cost?
The costs of a house rewire will depend on how long the job will take, the supplies used, how large the property is and whether the job is a partial rewire or a full house job. The average cost of full rewires is usually between £2000 and £5000 and depends on the size of the house. We quote for each job on an individual basis for this reason. Our quotes are non-obligatory and we don’t tie you into any contracts.
How long does a house rewire take?
How long house rewiring takes will depend on the size of the house and how many bedrooms it has. A single room rewiring can take around a day, whereas a three bed semi can take up to seven days to complete.
Arrange for your house survey today
Concerned that your wiring needs replacing? Act on it as soon as possible for your peace of mind. Get in touch with our team today and arrange for one of our electricians to survey your property.