Last Updated on June 19, 2022 by husnain
In this problem solving write up from hero service, we’re going to look at some of the signs that indicate your house may need rewiring whether it was installed thirty-forty years ago or even if you live in a new house will help you to figure out or if you need to call in an electrician.
Now just to reassure you this, I am not writing this article to convince you that your house desperately needs rewiring and it’s not designed to persuade you out of having essential work carried out the goal is simply to explain some things about the electrical installation in your house so you can make an informed decision. You may have found yourself in a situation where maybe a moving house and a report from a solicitor has informed you that your property needs rewiring or you may have arranged for an electrician to come and do some work on your property may be as little as adding a socket or two installing an EV charger fitting solar panels.
Table of Contents
Clues that indicate that you may need a rewire
This may well strike you as being a bit odd because you’ve never noticed a problem with the electrics in your house everything’s working just fine however some electrical installations are so old that they may be missing certain key safety elements that are now pretty much essential in new installations.
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(1) Fuse Box
Look at the fuse box if your fuse box looks burnt or its color has changed from the inner side then that is an indication that the wiring behind it is older and may be in need of replacing in addition this type of fuse box is missing some critical forms of protection that can make your installation safer a rewire combined with a new fuse box or consumer unit will provide you with something called an rcd that helps to protect users from electric shock and an spd which can protect your appliances from damaging surges in the electrical supply.
(2) Sockets and Switches
Another clue can be found by looking at your switches and sockets. It can be made of an old plastic called Bakelite and again if you look at any loose button or socket then it’s possible the older wiring may be in place behind it and may need replacing. You’ll notice however I’m saying maybe and could be and this is because there’s a number of companies who produce new switches to look like these old ones to kind of give a vintage effect to space or even for use in period properties.
However, it can be another clue to help you make a decision just a word of caution on this one though it’s possible that someone may have come in and changed all the sockets and switch fronts in your house to kind of spruce a property up before sale without actually replacing any old degraded wiring behind them however if your socket outlets, for example, look a little bit older and yellowed or even damaged then again that’s an indication that there may be old unsuitable cable behind it.
(3) Cables
These days we tend to install cables that are insulated with PVC with an outer sheath also made of PVC now if you look around your property you may be able to see some of the existing cables may be running outside to a socket maybe around your fuse box or even in the loft if you can access it older installations used to be wired up in cables that look like this it’s insulated in vulcanized india rubber as it shortened to and over time this insulation has a tendency to turn brittle and break away so if the cables in your house look like this they’ll probably need replacing. For detailed information and real-time support.
