Homes are at risk of fire if the electrical wiring is old and out of date. We explain the signs of old wiring that you need to look out for to protect your home and family.
The electrical wires in our homes are hidden behind walls so we tend not to think about them. If we plug in a device and it works or switch on a light switch and the lights come on, we accept that we have electricity in our home and it works. So how on earth do we know if our home needs to be rewired?
If any of your switches or sockets have dark smoke or burn marks around them, you need to call an electrician as your home is at risk of fire. Other problem signs are a burning smell or a strange buzzing noise coming from the socket. They should be silent.
If the lights flicker when you switch them on, it may be a sign that the wiring is no longer sufficient to for your lighting. Another sign of a problem, is when you find you are having to replace light bulbs often.
Fuses or circuit breakers are supposed to trip when there is a problem to prevent fires from starting, however, if you find you are visiting your consumer unit on a regular basis to switch the circuit breaker back on, then it is time to call in an electrician. Of course, the problem can be due to using a faulty appliance or device so if this only happens when you try to use your hairdryer then it is time to buy a new one. If you don’t have a modern RCD consumer unit with circuit breakers that switch the power off when there is a problem but have an old fuse board that requires fuses to be replaced, it would be wise to call an electrician to install a modern RCD consumer unit.
If you live in a home older than 25 years, you may need your home’s electrical wiring and consumer unit upgraded. Signs that these have not been done recently are:
If your home has an old fuse board, rather than a modern consumer unit it should be replaced. A consumer unit will have a horizontal row of switches, whereas a fuse board will look much simpler and you will see the wires going into the fuses.
Depending on the issue, you may not need a full rewire.
If you have just moved into an older property, it is worthwhile getting an EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report). Before you start decorating your new home, this report will tell you the state of your home’s electrics and what needs to be done to rectify the situation. Your electrician may tell you that everything is in order, you need a new RCD consumer unit, a partial rewire or a full rewire.
If you have called out an electrician to fix an issue such as faulty socket, they will advise you on the state of your wiring and fuse board and what your next steps should be.
Faulty and old wiring does cause fire especially nowadays when we use so many electrical devices and appliances in our homes. So please, if you are unsure, call our your local, professional electrician.
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