Switchboard upgrades across south-east Melbourne
The safety switch trips when the kettle and the heater run together. The board is full of ceramic fuses and there is nowhere left to add a circuit. That board was sized for a house that had a fridge, a television and not much else.
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The board tells you before it fails
Most people ring us about a symptom, not a switchboard. If any of these sound like your place, the board is the thing to look at first.
- The safety switch trips when you run two appliances at once, and resets fine afterwards.
- Ceramic fuses with fuse wire, rather than circuit breakers you can flick back on.
- No safety switch at all, which is common in anything wired before 1991.
- The board is full. There is no spare way for a new air conditioner or an EV charger.
- Scorch marks, discolouration or a burning smell anywhere near the board.
- A building inspection or an insurer has flagged the switchboard in writing.
- You are renovating, and the plan adds an induction cooktop, a heat pump or a second bathroom.
- The backing panel looks like asbestos sheet, which is likely in homes built before the mid 1980s.
What a switchboard upgrade actually covers
Scope varies with the age of the wiring and the state of the mains. This is what a standard domestic upgrade includes.
- Inspection of the existing board, the consumer mains and the earthing system before anything is quoted.
- Removal of the old board, including safe handling where the backing panel contains asbestos.
- New enclosure sized with spare ways, so the next circuit does not mean another upgrade.
- Circuit breakers on every final subcircuit, replacing rewireable fuses.
- RCD protection on the circuits we alter, as AS/NZS 3000 requires for domestic installations.
- Main switch, earthing and bonding checked and brought up to standard where needed.
- Every circuit labelled legibly, so the next person can find the right breaker in the dark.
- Testing, an independent inspection and a Certificate of Electrical Safety for your records.
About Switchboard upgrades
What a modern board actually does
An old fuse board interrupts a circuit when the wiring is overloaded. That protects the cable in the wall. It does nothing at all for the person holding a drill that has just gone through that cable.
A modern board does both jobs. Circuit breakers protect the wiring and reset without fuse wire. Residual current devices detect current leaking to earth, which is what happens when electricity finds a person, and cut supply in well under a tenth of a second. Those two functions are why an upgrade is a safety job rather than a convenience one.
What we find in Melbourne boards
- Ceramic rewireable fuses, common in anything built before the 1980s.
- An 1980s replacement board with circuit breakers but no residual current device at all.
- A 1990s board with RCD protection on the power circuits only, leaving lighting and the oven unprotected.
- Boards that are physically full, so a new circuit means a new board regardless of anything else.
- Asbestos backing panels, which are likely in anything from before the mid 1980s.
Asbestos backing boards
Older switchboards are frequently mounted on asbestos sheet. It is not dangerous sitting on the wall and it becomes dangerous the moment somebody drills or cuts it. We identify it at the quote stage, price the removal properly, and use a licensed removalist where the job requires one.
Anyone who offers to drill straight through it to save you money is not somebody to have in your house.
Sizing it for what comes next
The mistake worth avoiding is replacing a full board with another board that is nearly full. Induction cooktops, heat pumps, solar and car chargers all want a circuit, and most households add at least one of those within a few years of an upgrade.
We size the enclosure with spare ways as a matter of course, and we check the consumer mains at the same time. There is no point fitting a larger board behind a mains cable that cannot feed it.
We quote the job in front of us
No rate card, because the honest number depends on things nobody can see from a website. Estimates are free.
03 9889 3341Not urgent? Send the details and we will come back to you within one business day.
Standards this work is held to
Switchboard alterations are prescribed electrical work in Victoria. That means the job carries a Certificate of Electrical Safety and an independent inspection by a Licensed Electrical Inspector who does not work for us. It is a genuine second set of eyes, and it is the part of the process worth caring about.
The installation itself is wired and tested to AS/NZS 3000, the Australian and New Zealand wiring rules. For domestic work that standard sets RCD protection on final subcircuits, which is the reason an upgrade usually ends up covering more circuits than the one that was tripping.
Ask any electrician for their REC number before they touch a board. Ours is 20101, and it is checkable with Energy Safe Victoria.
How long it takes
- Quote
- Same day in most cases across south-east Melbourne, once we have seen the board.
- On site
- A standard single-phase domestic board is a one day job. Allow for the power being off for most of the working day.
- Mains as well
- Adding a mains or three-phase upgrade can extend the job and may need a distributor booking.
- Certificate
- Issued after inspection, usually within a few days of completion.
Rated 5.0 across 216 Google reviews
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Symon did a brilliant job replacing my bathroom fan. He quoted me $700 when another company quoted me over $2k for the same job! Symon was easy to communicate with, performed the job quickly and tidied up after himself. Would…
Aretha Peethamparam, Google review -
We recommend Simon unreservedly. Tired of overpriced superficial service and competency? Don’t look any further than Simon @ STL Electrical. And to boot, he’s a good guy. Simon will now be our go-to sparky.
Nigel Bird, Google review -
Highly recommend Simon and STL Electrical. One of our mains tripped during a freak thunderstorm resulting in no power to part of our kitchen (incl fridge) and internet. Simon was a lifesaver and kind enough to respond to an after…
Nat Chen, Google review
Switchboard upgrades questions we get asked
How do I know my switchboard needs upgrading?
The common signs are ceramic rewireable fuses instead of circuit breakers, a safety switch that trips repeatedly or none at all, a board with no spare ways left, scorch marks or a burning smell at the board, and an asbestos backing panel in homes built before the mid 1980s. Any one of those is worth an inspection.
Do I need a safety switch on every circuit?
When we upgrade a domestic switchboard, the final subcircuits we alter are brought under RCD protection as AS/NZS 3000 requires. In practice that means power, lighting and any new circuits end up protected, not just the power points. We confirm what is in scope before starting.
How long will my power be off?
Plan on the power being off for most of the working day for a standard single-phase domestic board. If you work from home or run a fridge full of stock, tell us when you book and we will schedule around it.
What does a switchboard upgrade cost?
It depends on the number of circuits, the state of the existing wiring, whether the consumer mains need replacing and whether an asbestos panel is involved. We do not publish a rate card because those variables move the price too far. You get a fixed quote after we look at the board, and the estimate is free. Ring 03 9889 3341.
Do I get a Certificate of Electrical Safety?
Yes. Switchboard work is prescribed electrical work in Victoria, so it carries a Certificate of Electrical Safety and an independent inspection by a Licensed Electrical Inspector. You get the certificate for your records, and it matters at sale or insurance time.
Can you replace the mains at the same time?
Usually yes, and often it is the sensible move. If the consumer mains are undersized there is no point fitting a bigger board behind them. We check the mains cable size and the point of attachment when we quote, and tell you whether an upgrade to three phase is worth doing while the board is open.
What happens to an asbestos backing board?
It is handled as asbestos, not cut or drilled. We identify it at the quote stage, price the removal properly and use a licensed removalist where the job requires one. Anyone who offers to just drill through it is not someone to have in your house.
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Talk to an electrician now
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03 9889 3341Not urgent? Send the details and we will come back to you within one business day.