Modern households run a lot more through their wiring than the homes of the 70s and 80s were designed for - air conditioning, induction cooktops, EV chargers, a dozen devices on charge at once. The switchboard is where that catches up with you. Here are the warning signs we tell every customer to watch for.
The warning signs
Any one of these is worth a phone call; two or more means don't put it off:
- Ceramic fuses - if your board still has rewirable ceramic fuses, it predates modern safety switches entirely
- Breakers that trip regularly - a sign the board or circuits are overloaded
- Flickering or dimming lights when appliances kick in
- Buzzing, crackling or warmth around the switchboard
- No safety switches (RCDs) on power and light circuits - now required for good reason
Why it matters
An overloaded or outdated switchboard isn't just inconvenient - it's the leading cause of electrical fires in older homes. Modern boards include safety switches that cut power in milliseconds when a fault is detected, protecting people, not just appliances.
An upgrade also future-proofs the house. Planning a split system, a solar install or an EV charger? Each adds load, and an old board is often the first thing standing in the way.
What an upgrade involves
A typical switchboard upgrade is a single-day job: we replace the old fuses with modern circuit breakers and safety switches, label every circuit properly, and make sure the board has room for whatever you're planning next. As licensed A Grade electricians we handle the lot, including any required certificates of electrical safety.
If you're not sure where your board stands, we'll take a look as part of any free onsite quote - no charge, no obligation.
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