As an electrician in Corsham, Chippenham and West Wiltshire, I get to visit a lot of houses and therefore a lot of different installations. Quite commonly in older properties where the installation is around 25+ years old, the electrics like outside lighting, shed electrics or summerhouse electrics tend to be supplied from a type of cable that isn't suitable to be used outside.
If you had an electrician in Corsham, or an electrician in Chippenham quoting for electrical works in your home, they may have mentioned that RCD protection is required to be installed for the works to comply with the current electrical regulations.
But what's an RCD and what's the point of having it?
According to Electrical Safety First,
A lot of us these days upgrades our phones every year or 2. Upgrades our tablets, laptops, TV's cars etc but we never consider upgrading our homes.
Many older houses still only have 1 single or 1 double socket per bedroom. Too few sockets in kitchens and lounges. I see far too often people using an extension lead plugged in to an extension lead simple because of a lack of sockets. This has a chance of overloading your socket causing it to burn out. A relatively easy fix, but is a potential fire worth it?
These will not only help you save money they will make your home become less of a burden on the planet.
1. Switch off (at the socket) any appliances that aren’t in use. Did you know that appliances on standby still use a reasonable amount of power?
2. Appliances: When it’s time to buy a new appliance look for the most efficient type, electric heaters come in different shapes and sizes!
sing a good, reputable, local electrician who takes pride in their workmanship often means you won't have any problems with your electrical installation. This becomes even more relevant when it comes to outdoor lighting. Many times I've come across outside lights with water ingress that will cause half the house to lose power when they trip the RCD.
Why do my LED bulbs not dim?
Why do my brand new LED bulbs flicker and strobe when dimmed?
Have you found yourself asking any of the above questions? If so, hopefully this article will help answer them.
Registered electricians join a 'competent person scheme', there are a few out there (I'm part of NAPIT) but they all do the same thing. Registered electricians get assessed yearly by their scheme operator. We have to prove the work we are doing is safe and meets current regulations and, among other things, we have to prove we have all relevant insurances and documents to safely carry out work.
An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is essentially an MOT of the electrics in a house. A formal inspection is carried out along with a range of tests that will highlight any defects within the installation.
It can definitely be hard to tell how how old your fuseboard is unless you have experience working as an electrician or know someone who has and I want to help you ensure your fuseboard is up to date and keeping you safe from any potential.
Below is an approximate price guide for some common jobs in a domestic premises. Please note these are to be used as a guide only and are certainly not to be used as a final figure. A survey of the prospective job would be needed to attain an accurate quote.
All prices are inclusive of VAT
Many Electricians in Bath and West Wiltshire are simply not interested in small electrical works. They want the choice jobs, and will drop you like a hot potato when a bigger, supposedly more lucrative, project comes in.
Others advertise as electricians having no qualifications. They thrive on the basis that you don’t understand what they do and, as a result, overcharge for shoddy, and often dangerous, work.
I set up Watt & Co. Electrical in order to fill a gap in the domestic sector. I want to provide you with a quality service that provides you with exactly what you need from an electrician.
