A shiny new fuse box offers man advantages over previous types and editions. Most are centred around safety and convenience. Find out what your friendly local electrician serving Medway & Maidstone has to say about his experience with fuse box upgrades in Kent.
Why should you have a fuse box upgrade? If you don't have the following, this is what they can do for you, in order of importance:
Residual Current Devices (RCDs):
Unlike the standard fuses and breakers (MCBs) which are there to stop the cables from melting and burning the place down! RCDs are there to protect YOU, as a living breathing creature of this planet (and your loved ones and pets!). RCDs are there to monitor for potentially dangerous situations that could lead to a lethal electric shock, and trip off the power before this happens.
18th Edition Metal consumer unit:
Metal consumer units came out off the back of so many electrical fires starting inside the fuse box. a metal consumer unit is there to stop the flame from spreading, much unlike the old wooden and plastic fuse boxes. This helps to:
1) Stop the fire from spreading so you have better chances of escaping the property
2) Stop the fire from spreading and ruining more of the property than necessary
Residual Current Circuit Breakers With Overcurrent Protection (RCBOs):
These are the next level up from RCDs (please see RCDs above) and it's all about convenience in the event of a fault. RCDs used to be deployed to look after a whole property. The problem with this, is ANY circuit it looks after could have a fault, and the entire property loses power. RCBOs give each circuit their own dedicated RCD to look after each individual circuit. So say if the downstairs lighting circuit has a fault - only the downstairs lighting circuit trips off. The rest of the property still has power - the sockets, cooker, shower will still have power. It makes the problem much less an urgent situation that might warrant the dreaded emergency call out fees!
Surge Protective Devices (SPD):
If you are local to Chatham in Kent, you might have heard about the Wayfield surge and week-long power outage in the summer of 2023. It was quite the catastrophe - Many households lost expensive white goods such as washing machines and fridges in the surge. SPDs are there to look for and take the hit in the event of a surge, in an attempt to save as many electrical devices as possible. Its literally the bodyguard who's job is to take the hit.
These are now standard devices we should be expecting to find in residential properties as a minimum. RCDs are a hard recommendation because they are the to protect you. RCBOs and SPDs are soft recommendations because the minimum safety has already been met by the RCD.
There are further protective devices such as Arc Fault Detection Devices (AFDDs) which look for loose connections and shuts the power off to stop those dreaded house fires. They are mandatory for particular circuits in high risk buildings (4 storey residentials such as HMOs, properties with thatched roofs, and the like). which over time will soon enough start becoming a real recommendation, and then just a standard expectation, in all properties.
How to prepare for a Fuse Box upgrade:
A Fuse box, or consumer unit, upgrade should go a little bit like this:
- Electrical contractor does an Existing Installation Condition Report (EICR), or health check on the electrics, as we like to call them. Read more about what goes into an EICR here
- All issues found are fixed prior to the board upgrade
- All of the wires are disconnected from the fuse box and the fuse box is removed from the wall and suitably disposed of
- Holes are made in the new fuse box for cable entries, and suitably sealed (both for IP rating and to maintain its non-combustible properties with intumescent sealant
- Cables are dressed inside the new fuse box and the board is labelled with all the appropriate stickers etc
- Final tests are conducted as part of the commissioning process and the installation goes live again
- Electrical installation certificates and building control notification (part P) is produced by the electrical contractor within a month of the work being carried out (we usually aim for 2 weeks maximum)
Preperation for everyone - On the day of the board upgrade, the contractor will need access to the fuse box for the best part of the day. Power will very likely be off for the best part of the day, so make sure your phone is charged, you have provision for lighting, and if you're lucky enough to have a gas hob, make sure you have a candle lighter!
Preparation for those with children - If you have youngsters up to teenagers - be fully prepared when the Wifi goes down and the TVs turn off! electrical work often presents the perfect opportunity for the family to actually talk to each other and great way to foster this is with a board game or two!
Preparation for those who work from home - Are you able to take the laptop to a cafe or hotel for the day?
Are you looking for a fuse box upgrade in Medway or Maidstone in Kent? See what we've got to offer
Call us on 01634 218 821 (Medway) or 01622 277 321 (Maidstone)
