Does my house need rewiring?
I have lived in the same house for many years and have become concerned that it may need rewiring. What are the tell-tale signs that the house should be rewired?
Replies from 6 tradespeople
Most of the time it is difficult to pin point tell tale signs to the untrained eye. Your best bet would be to get an EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report). This report will determine whether or not your electrical installation is safe for continued use. Any problems will become apparent in the report and they can be rectified!
Hope this helps
Joe
It's often hard to tell if a house needs rewiring without taking a closer look at your electrical system. Even if your wiring is old it may not need rewiring depending on its condition.
I would recommend having an EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report) carried out, this will tell you exactly what is needed to bring the property up to scratch. Depending on the size of the property you can expect to pay £100-£160
Check the fuse board and the cables size.
Hi if the property is more than 40 -50 years old and never been modified on the electrical side it will probably need rewiring or most likely part of it so possibly lighting will have no earthing system and most definitely it will need a fuse box change and Earth bondings upgrade also , if property older than that it will need a full rewire .
If the circuits are controlled by rewireable fuses then the consumer unit needs to be replaced, with RCD protection and miniature circuits breakers.
Here are a few things to look for:
- Cables coated in black rubber - black rubber was phased out in the UK during the 1960\'s. Cables coated in lead or fabric are even older. Modern cables use PVC insulation.
- A fusebox with a wooden back, cast iron switches, a haphazard mixture of circuit boxes
Older round pin sockets and round light switches, braided flex hanging from ceiling roses to light fittings, black switches, sockets mounted in skirting boards
- Wall mounted light switches in bathrooms
