How do I know if I need to upgrade my switchboard?
Switchboards are the central hub of your home’s electrical installation, directing the power from the street to the lights, power points and appliances within your home. Switchboards need to be updated to continue to meet the electrical demands of your home and to keep you and your family safe. A staggering 40 per cent of the 4,500 house fires in NSW each year are caused by electrical faults and appliances, which many were preventable had the switchboards been updated to our latest safety standards.
Safety switches detect earth leakage electrical faults in a circuit within 30 milliseconds, isolating the power to the circuit to avoid shocks or electrocution. Many switchboards are out of date and are poor quality and missing safety stitches. When left unchecked there is an unnecessary risk of electrical accidents, including fires and electric shock.
Here are some of the common reasons you might need to upgrade your switchboard:
- You are renovating.
- You are installing new or replacing old appliances.
- Your circuits keep tripping.
- You want to install additional power points in your home.
- Your switchboard has not been upgraded in years and you have old ceramic-type fuses, you’re likely not protected by safety switches which if you were building a new home today would no longer meet our current Australian Standards for safety.
- You hear a buzzing or can smell burning from your switchboard. This is an electrical emergency!
- Your lights flicker for no apparent reason.