Power in a lived-in home
We work for owners and tenants in houses and flats alike: from an extra socket to a new distribution board right through to a complete electrical refurbishment in older buildings.
Most enquiries from private households start small: a missing socket, a fuse box that keeps tripping, a staircase light that won't come on. We look at the existing installation before writing a quote — and tell you plainly whether a single cable run is enough or whether the distribution board has reached its limit.
Typical jobs in houses and flats
Six types of work make up the bulk of our private customer business — from a two-socket afternoon appointment to the refurbishment of an entire floor.
Expanding sockets
Additional sockets and switches exactly where life needs them: behind the TV, at the desk, in the kitchen. Either chased flush into the wall or run as surface-mounted trunking, if the plaster is to stay untouched.
Renewing the distribution board
We replace old meter cabinets with fuse links with a distribution board featuring circuit breakers and RCDs. In doing so, we split the circuits cleanly so that half the flat isn't hanging off the same breaker.
Lighting and connections
Fitting ceiling outlets, installing spotlights in suspended ceilings, connecting outdoor lights with motion sensors. This also includes connecting cookers, instant water heaters, or awnings.
E-check and inspections
We inspect the system and the connected devices, take measurements, and record the result in a report. Useful before a purchase, after a renovation, or when the insurer wants to see proof.
Old-building electrics
In buildings from the fifties to the seventies, the protective earth conductor is often missing. We survey the existing setup room by room and renovate in stages, so the flat stays liveable.
Narrowing down faults
If a breaker trips without any obvious reason or a room has no power, we track down the fault using measurements instead of swapping parts on suspicion. Call-out by phone arrangement.
Single job or refurbishment in stages
Not every old installation needs replacing all at once. After the inspection, we lay out both options openly — what each one can do, and what it leaves open.
Single job
- Usually done in a single working day, often within a few hours
- You can stay in the flat while the work is carried out
- Manageable scope, fixed price after inspection
- Doesn't solve the underlying issues of an overloaded distribution board
- Only limited options where an earth conductor is missing
Refurbishment in stages
- New distribution board, separate circuits, RCD protection throughout the property
- Work done section by section, bathroom and kitchen stay usable
- Documentation and test report on completion
- Multiple appointments; dust and chasing work can't be avoided
- Higher budget, but sorted for years to come
Process
Working in a lived-in household
- Site visit: We look at the meter cabinet, distribution board and affected rooms, and record what's already there — cable type, cross-sections, protective devices.
- Quote: You receive a written, itemised breakdown split into materials and labour, with notes on points that can only be clarified once the wall is opened up.
- Scheduling: We agree on working days and the expected power-off periods, and tell you which preparations on your part make sense.
- Execution: Cable routes are checked with a cable detector, sockets fitted, cables laid, then connected and labelled.
- Measurement: Insulation resistance, loop impedance, RCD trip time and phase rotation are measured and logged.
- Handover: We walk you through the functions, hand over the test report and explain the distribution board layout.
This helps us on the day of the work
In lived-in flats, preparation matters more than the installation work itself. Beforehand, we note which circuits will be switched off and for how long, where furniture needs to be moved, and when fridges, heating controls and workstations need power restored. For any chasing work we set up dust barriers, protective fleece and a vacuum directly at the tool. By the end of the day the area is swept clean, and any open sections are covered or secured against contact.
Costs
What determines the price
Two flats of the same size can end up costing very different amounts. The deciding factors are the building's structure, the condition of the existing installation, and how much cabling needs to be newly run.
We clarify these points during the on-site visit, so the quote leaves as few unknowns as possible.
From practice
These are the cases we see most often
Most enquiries about houses and flats can be traced back to a handful of starting situations. Here's how we recognise them and how we proceed — this also helps you get a sense of your own situation in advance.
- Residual-current device trips repeatedly: We disconnect the circuits one by one and measure the leakage current until we find the faulty device or damp cable causing it. Common causes include outdoor lights, garden distribution boards and old instantaneous water heaters.
- Too few sockets in the living room or office: Instead of stacking multi-socket adapters, we extend existing sockets into triple or quadruple combinations or run a dedicated circuit for the workstation.
- Kitchen being renovated: We plan the connections before installation — a dedicated circuit for the oven and hob, sockets behind the appliances at an accessible height, and worktop lighting under the wall units.
- Bathroom renovation: Protected zones apply around the bath and shower here. We position lights, sockets and the mirror cabinet so that the required clearances are maintained, and connect pipework to the equipotential bonding.
- Wall-mounted charging point for the electric car: We check the service connection and main fuse rating, lay the supply cable, fit circuit protection along with suitable residual-current protection, and register the charging equipment with the grid operator.
- Changing the lighting without renovation: Switching to LED, additional switching points via radio switches or motion sensors in the stairwell — solutions that don't require new cabling in the wall.
What electrical work do you need done?
Tell us about your project, and we'll get back to you to clarify the details.