Electrician Southend

Your Electricity flows from the power station to a substation, to a pad transformer, to your electric meter then finally to the consumer unit. Along the journey, voltage’s reduced to a safe level to use in your home.

Modern Consumer Units use a combination of RCD, MCB and RCBO fuse. Each has a switch that ‘trips’ in the event of overload, cutting power. Fuses are reactivated by flicking the switch back on.

Each part of your electrical system has a fuse, for example, sockets, lighting, cooker, smoke alarms etc. RCD’s (Residual Current Devices) protect against electrocution and electrical fire, while MCB’s (Miniature Circuit Breakers) protect the circuits and appliances from overheating and overloading.

A combination of both RCD’s and MCB’s are utilised, providing full protection to your home at an affordable price.

RCBO fuses do the job of both RCD and MCB fuses, protecting both people and circuits/appliances. While they are the safest and preferred option when installing/upgrading consumer units, they are the most expensive.

All consumer units fitted are built from non-combustible metal in accordance with the latest 17th edition wiring regulations. We’ll ensure your home is safe and legal when fitting or upgrading a unit.

If you live in an older home, you may still have a traditional ‘fuse box’, in which case an upgrade is highly recommended.

Old fuse boards are common in older style Southend homes. While they still work and are legal, they are nowhere near as safe as modern Consumer Units.

Old fuse boxes are mounted on a wood base and house traditional fuses that use fuse wire which melts when overloaded and needs replacing manually to work again (rather than the flicking of a switch).

Modern fuses cut power faster. Traditional fuses are a fire risk also.

The cable runs around your home, connecting to other sockets on the way and finally back to the consumer unit, this installation known in the Electrical trade as the ‘ring main’.

The live cable connects to the back of the faceplates so you can plug in and power your appliances.

The faceplates screw into backboxes that sit inside the wall (or sometimes on the wall). The backbox keeps the cable out the way, preventing electrocution.

It’s essential that faceplates are not loose, missing screws or cracked; this is a potential electrocution hazard.

We can replace and upgrade old and damaged faceplates. Standard white plastic, decorative plastic, metal, stainless steel and decor wood styles are available so you can match your sockets with your interior decoration.

New sockets include one, two and three gangs (single, double or triple) available with built-in RCD’s and USB ports so you can run your appliances while charging your smartphones. We’ll fit any socket you may require, including appliance switches, cooker switches, ethernet sockets, telephone sockets, shaver units, fused connection units (for directly wired appliances) and more.

Adding Power to your outdoor areas with outdoor sockets allows you to use lawnmowers, power tools and portable outdoor lighting without extension leads running from inside the house (which are inconvenient, quickly pulled out and a trip hazard). RCD sockets are the best option for outdoors; these prevent electrocution if you ever cut through a cable while mowing the lawn or trimming a hedge.

General Lighting includes traditional chandeliers, downlights, ceiling lights, kitchen and bathroom lights.

General lighting allows you to carry out your everyday living. Every room in your home will have some form of general lighting.

There are hundreds of different lights available the style of light will depend entirely on your personal taste.

Accent lighting’s used to highlight features of your home, styling the mood and atmosphere. An example of this would be an adjustable downlight angled towards a fireplace or a downlight over a picture hanging on the wall.

Task lighting is generally installed in the kitchen and home office spaces to enable more straightforward food preparation and work.

For example, spotlights installed underneath kitchen cabinets will greatly illuminate kitchen worktops boosting productivity while making the area more pleasant to work in.

We supply and fit all types of garden, outdoor and security lighting.

Whatever lighting you need, one of our Electricians will guide you in making the best choice for each room and outdoor area.

Click Here For More Information On Our Lighting Services

All wiring installations conform to the latest 17th edition BS7671 wiring regulations (utilising brown wire for live, blue for neutral and yellow/green for earth).

If your property has red, black and green cable, then you could need a full rewire. Rewires are planned meticulously by our professional Electricians ensuring minimal disruption to you and your family when the work’s undertaken.

Don’t do this yourself. Use a qualified electrician who will ensure the appliance is installed to the required regulations.

We offer a complete appliance connection and installation service.

Many older homes in the area have old-style earthing and Bonding which isn’t up to current regulations.

If you have an older property and unsure about your earthing and Bonding, let one of our electricians check it for you.

The inspection will verify your electrical system is safe for use and allow one of our electricians to issue the relevant certification.

The certificate can be produced on request to your tenants or letting agents to prove your properties safe.

We also offer portable appliance testing (PAT), where we check and test all plugin appliances. PAT testing isn’t a legal requirement but a favoured optional extra by many landlords.

PAT Testing

Portable Appliance Testing (PAT) is highly recommended for landlords and business owners.

If you rent a property or run a business, an electrical accident caused by a faulty appliance is a real possibility.

As a landlord or employer, you have a responsibility to ensure the safety of your tenants and employees.

PAT testing ensures the portable appliances in your property or workplace are safe for use and don’t pose an electrical accident threat.

Therefore it’s good practice to undertake PAT testing every 1-2 years for added protection and peace of mind.

One of our electricians will visit your property or premises at a convenient time and test all your portable appliances, which ranges from small devices such as kettles to larger stationary plug-in appliances like washing machines.

Work premises will have appliances and tools used for their day to day trade.

These will be checked and tested also.

Appliances are thoroughly inspected for wear and tear and signs of electrical damage before being tested for continuity, insulation and polarity.

Once tested and the electricians satisfied, the appliance is safe. It’s passed.

Any appliances that don’t pass testing can be repaired or replaced.

Most faults are quick and straightforward to repair, often involving minor replacements or adjustments.

The sockets are fitted to the best areas of your exterior walls by an electrician who’ll then connects the socket to your power supply.

The sockets are made to withstand the outdoor elements for many years with robust construction and heavy-duty sprung covers.

The covers also keep plugs in position, stopping them from being pulled out in the event of a stretched cord.

Built-in RCD fuses are an optional extra for increased safety.

Motion sensor lighting will activate as soon as an intruder walks passed or timed lighting that provides constant light after dark will prevent them from entering in the first place.

The intruder will also notice you have CCTV and an alarm (we’ll position the lighting, so they see your security systems).
One of our electricians will visit your property after dark and determine where all the vulnerable at-risk areas are.

A cost-effective lighting system is designed to cover these areas. The system will include the latest LED bulb technology, ensuring your security lighting system is very cost-effective to run.

Research has shown that properties are far less likely to suffer from forced entry and theft.

Our electrician’s design and install security systems for domestic properties and commercial premises.

After an installation, a would-be thief will see your property protected and likely not bother attempting to breach your doors or windows.

In the unlikely event, you did suffer a break-in, you will be alerted instantly so you can notify the authorities.

Homes should have mains powered interconnected alarms on every floor of the house and ideally in multiple rooms.

If a fire occurs in one room, all alarms are activated, alerting everyone in the building so they can escape quickly.

One of our qualified electricians will analyse your home and design a fully functioning heat and smoke alarm system.

The system will be linked, powered by electricity and feature backup batteries that’ll provide power in the event of a power cut.

We also fit specialised smoke and heat alarms made for the hard of hearing, disabled and older persons.

Those that are harder to notify and can’t escape quickly.

Electricians are available out of hours if required, so there’s no disruption during your open hours.

Emergency Electricians are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week (with no call out charges). In the event of electrical failure, you will have your business back up and running quickly.

We install and repair all commercial consumer units and wiring, including three-phase systems, Cat 5, Cat 5E & Cat 6.

When experiencing a power cut, you first need to establish whether it’s down to a tripped fuse or your energy supplier.

First, check your consumer unit, check the RCD switches, is a switch in the off position? If so, this could be the cause of the power cut. Try switching it back on.

(If fuses are regularly tripping, then there’s probably a fault with your electrical system, let us check your system we’ll quickly find and rectify any faults).

Also, check that the main on and off switch of the consumer unit is in the ‘on’ position.

Not a tripped fuse? Talk to one of your neighbours if they are experiencing a power cut also it’s a problem with your supply.

Notify your supplier who’ll confirm if the power cut’s down to them; your electricity will come back on eventually.

If the power cuts are not down to a tripped fuse or your supplier, give us a call. We’ll find and repair the fault, check your system’s safe and have your power back on in no time.

You may have power but have issues with your electrical system.

These issues include the consumer unit making strange noises, burning and smoke from sockets and lights, regular tripping of fuses, and flooding the electrical system.

If you’re experiencing any of these issues, give us a call, we’ll advise you over the phone and send out an electrician if necessary.

Never tamper or attempt to repair the electrical system yourself. Electricity is dangerous. Always leave it to a qualified electrician.