Electrical work and repairs in Loughton

What sort of wiring is behind the walls in Loughton?

Loughton's homes fall into two broad groups, and the electrics in each tell a different story. North east of the town centre, the Debden estate was built by the London County Council in the years after the Second World War to rehouse families from east London, and its terraces, semis and low blocks of flats went up quickly to a small number of standard designs. Closer to the forest, along the roads that rise from the High Road towards Baldwins Hill and York Hill, stand much older and much larger houses: Victorian and Edwardian villas with later detached homes between them.

What should Debden homeowners know?

A house built in about 1950 has had three quarters of a century of electrical change. The original wiring would have been rubber insulated, which hardens and crumbles with age, and most Debden houses have been rewired at least once since, many of them while still council owned. The question is how well, and how long ago. Clues that the last rewire is itself getting old include a consumer unit with a wooden back or rewirable fuses, surface cables in trunking that has yellowed, lighting circuits without an earth and a kitchen with two sockets for a room that now holds ten appliances.

Many of these houses were bought under the right to buy and have since gained extensions, loft rooms and conservatories, each adding load to a board designed for far less. Solid concrete ground floors are common on the estate, so cables for new sockets have to come down from the ceiling or run in the wall rather than under the floor, which affects how a job is planned. If you have bought a former council house recently, an inspection report is the quickest way to find out what you have inherited.

Tenants of the district council or a housing association should report electrical faults to their landlord, who is responsible for the installation.

What about the big houses by the forest?

Large Victorian and Edwardian houses have long cable runs, several floors, cellars and often a run of outbuildings, and they have usually been altered many times. It is common to find two or three generations of wiring side by side, a second board added for an extension and fed from the first, and a garden with lighting and a pond pump put in by a previous owner with no certificate to show for it. High ceilings and lath and plaster make running new cable slow, and houses in the Baldwins Hill, Staples Road and York Hill conservation areas may need the council's view before anything is fixed to the outside. If the house is listed, cutting into original fabric for new wiring can need listed building consent.

Common requests from these homes are a full inspection before or after a purchase, a replacement board with RCBOs for a house with many circuits, outdoor power for a garden office, and tracing a fault across a large installation. For a house with a separate annexe or a flat over the garage, say whether it has its own meter.

Are there flats and conversions in Loughton?

Yes. Debden has purpose-built flats and maisonettes, including some above the shops on The Broadway, and the older part of town has Victorian houses divided into flats and newer blocks near the station. In a block, the communal lighting, the door entry system and the supply to the landlord's areas are not yours to alter, so a fault in the hallway goes to the managing agent or the council. Inside your own flat, work is yours to arrange, and if you let the flat the five-yearly inspection rules for landlords apply.

Who covers a power cut in Loughton?

If the whole road has gone off, ring 105 to reach the network operator rather than an electrician. Ring 105 too if you see a damaged cable or a sparking street fitting.

What helps with a Loughton enquiry?

Say whether the house is on the Debden estate or in the older town, roughly when it was built, and what you have noticed. A photo of the consumer unit is the single most useful thing you can add. With your consent, the enquiry goes to one local electrician who covers IG10, if there is one. If nobody does, we tell you and your details stay with us.