If you have an old rewireable fuse board, as a home owner your likely to hear “Your fuse board is illegal….” I’ve heard electricians tell customers this many times, or “your house needs a rewire…” a surveyors favourite based on a cursory glance at your fuse board…so what’s the truth?
Huge numbers of houses still have these old boards fitted and often, providing the rest of the electrical installation is sound they do not need replacing, they are certainly not illegal as the board has only to meet the standards of the wiring regulations from the time it was installed, they also are not always an immediate indicator that your house needs a rewire, often the only way to establish this is to have the house tested, but they are an indicator of the age of your wiring.
However, the current wiring regulations stipulate that all the circuits in a domestic dwelling should be protected by an RCD device, preferably multiple RCD’s and most work you might ask an electrician to carry out in your home will require this. (Information on RCD’s can be found here what is an RCD and why do I need one?) so a replacement fuse board or Consumer Unit may well be required in addition to any other works to bring the installation up to a standard that meets the current legal requirements.
If you are planning on renting your property out or are already a Landlord, you may also be required to upgrade the fuse board as Landlords are responsible for ensuring that their properties meet the current safety regulations, the electrical installation should be deemed to be safe and certified by a competent electrician.
If you would like any more information or advice on this the please do get in touch chris@brickhill-electrical.co.uk 07515 861972
