Fuse boards and consumer units
Consumer unit replacement in Preston
Most people still call it a fuse box. The job is a consumer unit replacement: a new board, properly protected, labelled, and able to take the circuits the house actually has. We do that work in Preston and the surrounding towns. Call 07869 600553.
When a Preston house needs a new board
The consumer unit is the point where the supply splits into the circuits that run the house. If that board is old, damaged, or simply full, everything you want to add next is harder and less safe. We replace boards in family homes, rentals and small commercial units when the existing one is no longer the right piece of kit.
- Rewireable fuses, or a board with no RCD protection at all
- Scorching, cracking, a warm cover, or breakers that will not reset reliably
- A full board when you need a kitchen, a shower, an outbuilding or a charger
- An EICR that has come back unsatisfactory because of the board
- Solar or a heat pump that has to be tied in properly, rather than stuffed into a spare way that is not spare
Send a photo before you book. Plenty of boards look worse than they are, and some that look modern are still the reason a new circuit cannot be added. We would rather tell you from the photo.
What the day actually involves
We isolate the supply, remove the old board, and fit the new consumer unit to the circuits that are there. Each circuit is identified and tested. That testing is not optional decoration. It is how we know a lighting circuit has an earth, a ring is still a ring, and a borrowed neutral from an old terrace is not about to cause a nasty surprise.
You should expect the power to be off for a proper part of the day. We agree a start time that respects school runs, home working, or a shop that would rather we were there before the doors open. At the end the board is labelled in words a person can read, the cover is on straight, and the cupboard is left usable.
If the test shows a circuit that is not safe to put back on, we do not hide it behind a new lid. You get a clear explanation and a price for the repair, which might be small or might be the start of a rewire.
Older boards in local houses
Walk a Victorian terrace in Preston and you will still find boards tucked into meter cupboards that were never designed for them, or a later consumer unit feeding lights that were never rewired. 1930s semis often have a board in the hallway that has already been changed once, with a garage or a loft conversion added afterwards on whatever spare way was left.
Newer homes around Warton and the PR4 estates usually start with a decent board. They come to us when someone wants a charger on the drive, a hot tub, an annex, or a workshop in the garage, and the original board has no room or the wrong protection. The conversation then is whether we upgrade the board, rearrange the circuits, or both.
Commercial cupboards are their own version of the same problem: a board that grew by one breaker every time a new bit of kit arrived. If that is a shop, an office or a workshop, look at the commercial electrician page as well.
We handle the paperwork
A consumer unit replacement is notifiable work in England. That catches people out when they are mid-sale or mid-let and someone asks for the document. We explain, before the day, how the notification for your job will be dealt with and what you will receive at the end.
If you need a particular registration or certificate named by a solicitor, ask us on the first call. We will tell you whether we can meet that request. We would rather have that conversation early than hand you a piece of paper that is not the one they asked for.
We can do a board change with other work
Kitchens, bathrooms and heating upgrades often need a new circuit at the same time as a better board. Doing the electrical and the plumbing or heating as separate mysteries is how jobs stall. On one number we can look at the board, the shower, the cylinder and the controls together.
If the visit is only the board, that is a complete job on its own. Call 07869 600553 with the photo, or start from the electrician in Preston page if you are still working out which electrical job you actually need.
Areas we cover
Boards we change around Preston
Consumer unit changes in Preston, Warton, Freckleton, Kirkham, Lytham, Penwortham, Fulwood, Leyland, the Fylde and South Ribble. Send a photo of the existing board. We can usually tell you from that whether a straight swap is realistic.
Related work
Other jobs we do around Preston
- EV charger installation. Home charge points, including the board upgrade when the existing fuse box will not take one.
- House rewires. Full and partial rewires when the cable, not just the fuse board, is the problem.
- EICR certificates. Landlord, sale and insurance electrical inspection reports, written in plain English.
- Electrician in Preston. Domestic and light commercial electrical work, from a single socket to a rewire.
FAQs
Consumer unit questions
- What is the difference between a fuse box and a consumer unit?
- A fuse box is the old name, and it often means a board with rewireable fuses or early plug-in breakers. A consumer unit is the modern board, with breakers and RCD protection, or RCBO protection on individual circuits. People use both names for the thing on the wall. A photo tells us which you have.
- How do I know the board needs replacing?
- Common reasons are rewireable fuses, a wooden or cracked casing, no RCD protection, scorch marks, a board that is full when you need another circuit, or a board that will not safely take an EV charger, an electric shower or solar. An EICR sometimes flags it formally. You do not have to wait for a report if the board is obviously done.
- Will the power be off all day?
- The power is off while the board is changed and the circuits are tested. For a straightforward house that is a large part of the day, not a five-minute swap. We tell you the likely window once we have seen the board and how many circuits are on it. Fridges and freezers, alarms, and anyone working from home need a plan for that window.
- Can you add an EV charger or a shower at the same time?
- Often that is the right day to do it, because the board is already off and open. Sometimes the charger or the shower is the reason the board has to change. We will say which way around it is before you book. Charger installs are described on our EV charger page.
- What if the cables behind the board are the real problem?
- Then a new board on its own is the wrong spend. Old rubber cable, badly overloaded rings, or lighting with no earth can mean a partial or full rewire. If we find that, we stop and explain it. We would rather you put the money into the cables than into a tidy lid on top of a poor installation. See <a href="/house-rewire-preston">house rewires</a>.
- Is a consumer unit change notifiable?
- Replacing a consumer unit is notifiable electrical work in England. Before we start, we explain how the paperwork for your particular job will be handled. Ask the question when you call if a buyer, a landlord or an insurer needs a specific document at the end.
- Do you label the circuits?
- Yes. A board nobody can understand is half the reason the next fault takes longer. Circuits are identified and the labels are written so a later electrician, or you, can see what is what. If a circuit does something unexpected, that is noted rather than given a hopeful name.
- Can you do this in a rented house?
- Yes. Landlords book board changes after an inspection, after a shock, or because the old fuses are no longer acceptable. Tenants should speak to the landlord before a board is changed, unless there is an immediate danger. If it is dangerous now, call us on the emergency number first.
Call, text or WhatsApp
Ask about a new consumer unit
WhatsApp a photo of the board, the inside of the lid if you can open it safely, and the address. Tell us if you are also adding a charger, a shower, a kitchen or solar.
- Phone
- 07869 600553
- Area
- Warton, Lancashire, PR4. Preston and the surrounding towns.
- Hours
- Open 24/7