Fuse boards & consumer units
Fuse box & consumer unit upgrades
If your fuse board still has rewireable fuses, or trip switches with no test button, it predates the current wiring regulations and will not cut the power fast enough to protect someone getting a shock. Replacing it is the single biggest safety improvement most houses can have, and it is normally one day's work.
How to tell yours needs replacing
- Rewireable fuses — ceramic holders with fuse wire in them. These are decades out of date.
- A plastic enclosure — since 2016 consumer units in domestic properties have had to be non-combustible, which in practice means a steel case.
- No RCD test button — without an RCD there is nothing cutting the supply quickly enough if a cable is drilled through or an appliance fails.
- Nuisance tripping — one fault taking out the whole house usually means a single RCD covering everything.
What you get
A modern steel consumer unit with an RCBO on every circuit, so a fault on one circuit no longer blacks out the whole house and you can tell instantly which circuit is at fault. Surge protection (SPD) is included as standard — it protects boilers, TVs and computers from spikes on the incoming supply.
Before the new board goes on I test every existing circuit. That matters: a new consumer unit with sensitive RCBOs will immediately find faults an old board was quietly tolerating, usually damp in an outside light or a cable nicked by a previous trade. I would rather find those at the quote stage than halfway through the job, so you get an honest price rather than a low one that grows.
What it costs and how long it takes
A straightforward swap is a single day, with the power off for most of it. You get a fixed price in writing before I start — if the pre-checks turn up remedial work, I tell you what it is, what it costs and whether it genuinely needs doing now or can wait.
The paperwork
Replacing a consumer unit is notifiable work under Part P of the Building Regulations, so it has to be registered with Building Control. You get a full Electrical Installation Certificate with the test results for every circuit — keep it, because it is what a solicitor asks for when you sell the house.
Work like this is notifiable, which means it has to be registered with Building Control. I take care of that side for you: the building notice goes in to your council before I start, they inspect the work, and they issue the completion certificate to sit alongside your Electrical Installation Certificate. The council charges a fee for the inspection, and I will tell you exactly what it is when I quote, so it is in the price from the start rather than a surprise at the end.
Common questions
How long will my power be off?
Most of the working day for a standard swap. I will give you a realistic window before the day so you can plan around home working, freezers or anyone in the house who needs the power on.
Do I legally have to upgrade my fuse box?
No. There is no law forcing you to replace a working fuse board in your own home. But an old board without RCD protection will be flagged on an EICR, and most landlord and mortgage-related inspections will pick it up.
Will a new consumer unit stop my lights tripping?
Usually, but not always — it depends what is causing it. With RCBOs a fault is isolated to one circuit instead of tripping the house, and it becomes obvious which circuit is at fault. If there is an underlying fault on a circuit, that still needs fixing, which is why I test everything before quoting.
Is the certificate included?
Yes. The Electrical Installation Certificate is part of the job, not an extra. A consumer unit swap is also notifiable, so it gets registered with Building Control: I put the building notice in, the council inspects, and they issue the completion certificate. The council charges a fee for that and I will tell you what it is before you commit to anything.
Other things I do
House rewires
Full and partial rewires, planned around you room by room so you are never left without power or lighting overnight.
EICRs & landlord certificates
Electrical Installation Condition Reports for homeowners, landlords and letting agents — with any remedial work done by the same person who found it.
EV charger installation
Home EV charge points installed and certified, with an honest answer on whether your supply needs load management.
Want a price?
Tell me a bit about the job and I'll come and look. No charge for the visit, and a fixed price before anything starts.