Fuse Board Replacements Liverpool
Fuse boards (otherwise known as Comsumer Units) are the nucleus of your home electrical system; distributing electricity around your home and protecting you and your family from electrical surges or fires.
A modern fuse board (consumer unit) is made up of three main parts:
- The main Switch
- MCB’s (Circuit Breakers) and/or Fuses
- Residual Current Devices (RCD’s)
The main switch – allows you to turn off the electricity supply to your entire home. It’s important to know where this switch is, in or order to quickly switch off your electricity in the case of an emergency. Larger premises may have more than one mains switch, and more than one fuse board e.g. if you have electrical Economy7 storage heaters, with a separate fuse board.
Old Fuse Boards
Old fashioned consumer units (fuse boards) with re-wireable fuses, are still present in many households and are not necessarily a danger to you, although we would always recommend getting old fuse boards and wiring checked by a certified electrician.
These old fuse boards can be left in situ and do not need to be changes unless certain electrical work in being undertaken, where such work requires the installation to be upgraded to meet modern electrical standards.
Your consumer unit only needs to meet the requirements for the the time it was installed, even if that was some time ago.
Buy to Let Properties
Replacing your consumer unit may be necessary if you choose to rent out your home or if alterations to the electrical installation are carried out. Landlords in the UK are responsible for ensuring any property meets all current safety standards and are legally required to ensure that the electrical installation is safe, and is regularly certified by a competent electrician.
With rented accommodation, it is the landlords responsibility to ensure that the electrical installation and any appliances provided are safe at the start of and throughout the tenancy agreement.
Your local authority can take action to enforce electrical safety in your properties under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).