Electrical repairs and fault finding across south-east Melbourne
A circuit is dead, the safety switch will not stay on, or a power point is warm to the touch. Fault finding is a process of elimination, and the honest version of it starts with testing rather than guessing.
- 5.0 from 216 Google reviews
- Registered Electrical Contractor REC 20101
- 25 years trading
Something has stopped working, and you want to know why
Fault finding is diagnosis before repair. The symptom you can see is rarely the fault itself, which is why guessing at parts gets expensive.
- A safety switch trips and will not reset, or resets and trips again within minutes.
- One room or one run of power points has gone dead while the rest of the house is fine.
- A power point or light switch is warm, discoloured, or smells faintly of burning.
- Lights flicker or dim when an appliance starts up.
- You get a tingle from a tap, an appliance or a metal fitting. Stop using it and ring.
- A circuit trips only when it rains, or only when the dishwasher runs.
- Something in the roof space was disturbed by another trade and a circuit stopped working.
- Half the house lost power but the street did not.
What fault finding and repair actually covers
We charge for the diagnosis because that is the skilled part. Once we know what failed, you get a price before anything is replaced.
- Systematic testing to isolate the circuit and the point of failure, rather than replacing parts hopefully.
- Insulation resistance and earth continuity testing where a fault is intermittent or weather related.
- Faulty power points, switches and light fittings replaced.
- Damaged, perished or rodent-chewed cable repaired or replaced back to a sound point.
- Loose or burnt connections at the board remade and torqued properly.
- Nuisance tripping traced to the appliance or the circuit causing it, and reported plainly.
- The property made safe on the first visit even where a permanent repair is booked for later.
- Testing and a Certificate of Electrical Safety where the work requires one.
About Electrical repairs and fault finding
Fault finding is testing, not guessing
The most common wasted spend in this trade is replacing a safety switch because a circuit keeps tripping. The device was doing its job. The fault is still there, and you have paid for a part that was never broken.
Proper fault finding is a process of elimination with an instrument in hand: isolate the circuit, test insulation resistance and earth continuity, and narrow down to the point of failure. It takes as long as it takes, which is why we charge for time and tell you the rate before anyone is dispatched.
What we get called out for
A circuit that keeps tripping
A safety switch trips because it is detecting current leaking to earth. The usual causes are moisture, a failing appliance, or cable damage. Unplug everything on that circuit, reset once, then reintroduce appliances one at a time. If it trips with nothing plugged in, the fault is in the fixed wiring.
Dead circuits
One room or one run of outlets goes dead while the rest of the house is fine. Often a loose connection at an outlet or at the board, sometimes a damaged cable, occasionally a failed protective device. All three are found the same way.
Heat and smell
A power point that is warm to touch, a switch that is discoloured, or a faint burning smell near the board. Heat means resistance and resistance means a connection that is failing. Switch that circuit off and ring. This is the one that does not wait until Monday.
Faults that come and go
A circuit that only trips when it rains, or only when a particular appliance runs. Intermittent faults are the hardest to find and the most likely to have been given up on by somebody else. Insulation resistance testing under load usually finds them.
What happens on the visit
We test first and report what we find before doing the work, so you are deciding with information rather than agreeing to an estimate. Where a permanent repair needs parts or access we do not have, the property is made safe on the first visit and the repair is booked. Nothing unsafe is left in service.
Where a fault turns out to be a symptom of wiring past its service life, we will say so. Patching the same circuit a third time is money spent twice.
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
Fault finding is charged for the time it takes because there is no way to know in advance how long it takes. What we can commit to is method: testing, not swapping. Replacing a safety switch because a circuit trips is the most common wasted spend in this trade, and it almost never fixes anything, because the device was working correctly.
Repairs are made to AS/NZS 3000 and the altered circuits are tested before we leave. Where a fault has been caused by wiring that is past its service life, we will say so rather than patching the same circuit a third time.
How long it takes
- Attendance
- Same day in most cases across south-east Melbourne, and 24 hours for anything unsafe.
- Diagnosis
- Most faults are isolated within the first hour.
- Repair
- Usually the same visit. Cable damage inside a wall or roof can extend it.
- Make safe
- Always immediate. A dangerous circuit is isolated before anything else happens.
Rated 5.0 across 216 Google reviews
-
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 -
Simon from STL Electrical is excellent, one of the best tradies I worked with during my renovation. He works fast, does quality work, and communicates well. Plus he wears little booties when he comes inside the house which is very…
Jerome Levinson, Google review
Electrical repairs and fault finding questions we get asked
Why does my safety switch keep tripping?
Because it is detecting leakage to earth, which is its job. The usual causes are moisture, a failing appliance or damaged cable. Unplug everything on that circuit, reset once, then reintroduce appliances one at a time. If it trips with nothing plugged in, the fault is in the fixed wiring and you need us.
Can you tell me the cost before you come?
Not for fault finding, and anyone who does is guessing. We charge for the time and we tell you the rate before we are dispatched. Most faults are found within the hour.
Is a warm power point urgent?
Yes. Heat means resistance, resistance means a loose or failing connection, and that is how electrical fires start. Switch it off at the board and ring.
The whole street is out. Can you help?
No, and nor can any electrician. That is a network fault and only your distributor can restore it. Their faults number is on your electricity bill.
Do you fix work another electrician did?
Often, yes, and without editorialising about it. We will tell you what we find and what it will take to put right.
Related
Talk to an electrician now
Fastest way to get an answer is the phone. It is answered 24 hours a day, seven days.
03 9889 3341Not urgent? Send the details and we will come back to you within one business day.