New kitchen does it need own fusebox or change just the mains fusebox?

[Ell4848]

New kitchen will be installed. Do we need to rewire the kitchen? The fusebox we have is ancient and our electrician has recommended to rewire kitchen then have a consumer unit just for the kitchen electrics as he said things may trip because our consumer unit is old but my builder who covers all of this said we can change the main fusebox in the house and he's included first fix electrics in his quote


We are not changing too much when it comes to the electrics, some advice would be very much appreciated

We will be replacing the kitchen light fixture that is already there(ceiling) and replacing with something similar.

The washing machine will need a new socket installed ( double socket) and plumbing as its being moved completely to the opposite side of the kitchen where it is now

Fridge is staying in same location

The gas cooker will be moved approximately 50-60cm to the left of its current location and the new gas cooker will have an electric grill inside, the previous one was all gas (new cooker will have double gas oven with electric grill)

We would want to replace all socket covers currently there as well for aesthetics
Thank you in advance

 

[Mikegh]

Also the builder uses a certified electrician which will include 1st fix electrics is that rewiring,,??

Ya pretty much

 

[Ell4848]

Ya pretty much

So first fix and new main consumer unit should be ok?

 

[telectrix]

So first fix and new main consumer unit should be ok?

youhave 2 distinct issues here.

1.kitchen needs new circuits and can be independent of the rest of the house ( except for it's feed from the main CU).
2. the main CU needs updating , the existing wiring checked and any faults recified. this could be a simple few repairs or a complete rewire, dependeing in the conditionof the wiring, 50 years is average lifespan for an installation but you could find that the wiring is good for another 50.

above should be determined by a thorough inspection and test: then you will have a better idea of what is required. main thing is if you are going for rewiring, do it before decorating.

 

[buzzlightyear]

has above from my master , i would get independent spark in from the builders one. so if there is any shouting to do it will not be the builder .

 

[telectrix]

builder may be genuine and has a registered spark on hand. not all builders are rogues. i've worked with some good, some bad.

 

[Ell4848]

But the first fix in the kitchen is rewiring isn't it. Plus we are changing the main consumer unit.

If there is another issue with the electrics it wouldn't be the kitchen right? First fix is before they start decorating

 

[Ell4848]

builder may be genuine and has a registered spark on hand. not all builders are rogues. i've worked with some good, some bad.

He is. They are a big firm and do lots of extensive building work, extensions, full refurbishments, loft conversions
They do big jobs. Also he sent me a hole list of clients he's completed work with in the past 12 months with their email number and full address for reference purposes. I happen to know a couple

 

[Ell4848]

I've also requested the gas and electric certificates as well once work is completed

 

[buzzlightyear]

builder may be genuine and has a registered spark on hand. not all builders are rogues. i've worked with some good, some bad

i bet some were ugly . lol.

 

[telectrix]

i bet some were ugly . lol.

that could depend on their faces or their bum cleavages. both are usually hairy.

 

[Bellendian]

Never ever let a builder do your electrics. Not only are they not qualified but they charge more than necessary a lot of the time.

Get an electrician to do it.

I think you're confusing a genuine main contractor, with some plank that works out of an estate car, potentially giving bad advice with the above statement.
There are many established bona-fide building contractors that will either have qualified sparks on the payroll or sub contract the work to qualified sparks.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with a building contractor quoting to deliver an overall package of work that might require the services of many specialised and skilled subcontractors.
As for the charging aspect, well yes, you can expect a main contractor to apply a mark up to sub contract rates, as project management and ongoing liability have to be covered. I wouldn't refer to that as 'overcharging' though.

 

[Electrics]

I think you're confusing a genuine main contractor, with some plank that works out of an estate car

I'm not. 'genuine main contractor' doesn't mean he knows electrics, and neither does working out of a van. The best electrician at work works out of a hatchback.

The point was, most builders aren't going to be actually qualified or experienced to do electrics, and the ones that get someone else in who is qualified to do it are going to be mostly miles more expensive than just going directly to a firm yourself since they put loads of mark up on top for themselves.

potentially giving bad advice

'Get an electrician to do your electrics' is bad advice on an electrical forum?

 

[Bellendian]

I'm not. 'genuine main contractor' doesn't mean he knows electrics, and neither does working out of a van. The best electrician at work works out of a hatchback.

The point was, most builders aren't going to be actually qualified or experienced to do electrics, and the ones that get someone else in who is qualified to do it are going to be mostly miles more expensive than just going directly to a firm yourself since they put loads of mark up on top for themselves.


'Get an electrician to do your electrics' is bad advice on an electrical forum?

I think you mis understand my point.
The ones that employ reputable, skilled subcontractors also manage the job, time everything in, and carry the overall risk.
Many customers want a turn key one stop solution, and are happy to pay for that service, as opposed to trying to manage all the trades themselves. So it's not a case of 'they just pocket it all themselves' it's delivering a service to the customer that they want, and are happy to pay for.
To say that all customers should dismiss any builder that includes electrical work in their package of work, and say that they should have to go to the hassle of having to arrange and project manage their own spark is ridiculous.
And yes, I do think that saying a customer should not trust a reputable main contractor to deliver a quality job, and that they should have to arrange and micro manage all the trades is bad advice.

 

[Electrics]

I think you mis understand my point.
The ones that employ reputable, skilled subcontractors also manage the job, time everything in, and carry the overall risk.
Many customers want a turn key one stop solution, and are happy to pay for that service, as opposed to trying to manage all the trades themselves. So it's not a case of 'they just pocket it all themselves' it's delivering a service to the customer that they want, and are happy to pay for.
To say that all customers should dismiss any builder that includes electrical work in their package of work, and say that they should have to go to the hassle of having to arrange and project manage their own spark is ridiculous.
And yes, I do think that saying a customer should not trust a reputable main contractor to deliver a quality job, and that they should have to arrange and micro manage all the trades is bad advice.

In the real world it's hardly graft to call a spark and tell him 'it's ready for you tuesday, do you need a key' is it.

The point is most builders offering to do electrics will do them themselves and those that don't put huge markup on the price for themselves.

I can't actually believe you're taking umbrage with what i'm saying just because 1/100 'builders' will be some legit huge company who does everything properly, it's mad. The vast majority of the time, by letting a builder take care of your electrics you're getting a worse, more expensive job.

 

[IAmSparkytus!]

Jerry... Jerry... Jerry...