had one firm so far giving me a quote
widely recommended by other tradesmen
very competent at doing their job
but not at explaining what is actually getting done/installed
I don't think it's deliberate - the firm does loads of work for the local authority, so not much need for explaining to council tenants (I live in an ex-council house)
wonder if I should invite the guy back to explain things/ask a few questions/increase the number of sockets I want installed......
--
Has he given a spec? If not, then spell out what you want as a minimum, and ask him what difference it makes to the price. Otherwise you may get the bare minimum council house spec!
Probably will.
I'd draw out a floor plan of the house showing the positions of all sockets etc (and keep a copy) for the purposes of getting a quote.
You need to give it a bit more thought than that really. Not only sockets and where you want them, but how many circuits, and things like multi split CU with two, three or more RCDs (i.e. the levels of discrimination you are prepared to settle for):
Outside Lights?
Emergency lighting? (handy to have it where the CU is)
Protected circuits for Heating / freezers / fish tanks / alarms etc
Loft light?
Shaver socket in bathroom?
Extractor fans?
Interlinked smoke alarms?
placed for modern needs, and then some! I know of one dodgy firm that claimed that the definition of "rewire" meant just replicating the existing 1960s installation and once the job had begun charged extra when the disappointed customer said they expected more.
Chris
You might also want to discuss how the cables will be run - all wiring to be sunk, or surface-mounted trunking? How much making good will they take care of?
Chris
If the council is like mine then that would not be a bad thing as the specs are very good
Isn't that beyond the knowledge of most who have to get this job done by a pro?
Considering some of the installs I have seen it might be beyond the knowledge of a pro.
Most people are happy to just mark on the the wall where they want the sockets and leave it for the electrician. It seems that Gill is wanting to know more than most people about her installation.
Spending an extra £40 on the CU choice now can save heartache later eg having the freezer on it's own RCBO could save the contents of the freezer when water gets into the outside light.
Having seen the way some electricians plaster, you might want to ask for a discount if they are making good ;-)
Having said that - got a phonecall from my neighbour once, a few days after I rewired his place; "all the lights have gone out"!
I asked what he was doing, and he said plastering. So the moral of that storey is that yes a 100mA trip RCD will trip when you fill a light switch with wet plaster!
one thing I wish he had splt out was the phone number of my local electricity distribution company which I'm supposed to contact to sort out their box of tricks
--
Now can you give us more details of that statement please?
my (digital) meter and original 1950's fusebox sits on top of some clunky biscuit-tin sized black metal box with 'Norweb' plastered all over it
is the electrician saying that the Norweb thingy needs replacing by Son Of Norweb?
--
Long ago, when I woz a lad and fuses had fuse wire, the house had no "slack" in any of the cables emerging from the wall. Round light switches would sometimes die, and my dad replaced them with modern square ones. Never enough cable to fit a surface mount box, so my dad used to wire up the switch, fill the hole with polyfilla, and fit the switch with the plate flush by embedding the working parts and wires in the polyfilla before it set. Never blew a fuse, though.
I used silicone sealant for safety - I presume it's insulating?
Owain
do many/any customers actually chisel out the socket placings and cable runs?
--
That's all right. Once the plaster has dried out he can just reset the RCD and all will be well. (OK, maybe not *entirely* well ...)
I had that onec. well worse.
Turned out that just filling an old rawlplug with paint had highlighted the fact that a previous occupant of the rented place had drilled into a cable and presumably just 'left it there'.
Of course the landlord blamed me. And refused to give me half the deposit back when I left.
But the last laugh was on me, because I had never paid a deposit. I paid three months rent in advance instead.. :-)
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.