Switchboard Upgrades in Kew

Why this comes up in Kew

Kew is Federation and interwar houses on large blocks, a significant number heritage-listed, with 1960s and 1970s apartment blocks along the main roads. That housing stock is the starting point for almost every decision on a job here, because it sets what the original installation was sized for and how much has been added to it since.

The dominant driver of this work in Kew is major renovation on large houses, and the load that follows it: ducted zoning across two storeys, pools, studios and EV charging.

What we find in Kew

Across Kew the pattern is consistent: original boards that have had decades of additions, often in awkward positions — under stairs, in cellars, in service passages built for a much smaller installation.

None of that is unusual, and none of it is a reason for alarm on its own. It does mean an assessment is worth more than a phone estimate, because what matters is the combination of what is there and what you are about to ask of it.

What the work involves

The old board comes out and a modern enclosure goes in, with a circuit breaker and an RCD protecting every circuit and every one of them labelled so the next person can read it. In older properties the consumer mains and the main earth often have to be replaced at the same time, because the incoming cable was sized for a house with a stove, a fridge and a few lights. If the backing panel is asbestos it has to be removed and disposed of properly, which is a licensed job in its own right. Most domestic upgrades are a single day on site.

The Kew complication

Large blocks and heritage constraints together mean the mains run is usually the expensive part, and it has to be planned rather than assumed.

What to expect on the day

Most domestic upgrades are a single day on site, with the power off for a good part of it. We agree a day that suits you and tell you what time we expect to be back on — including if the distributor has to attend to pull the service fuse, which is outside our control and worth knowing about in advance.

Why it is worth doing properly

The reason it is worth doing once, properly, is that a board is the thing everything else depends on. Solar, batteries, EV charging, air conditioning and any future circuit all land on it, and a board with no spare ways stops every one of them.

Nearby

We cover the inner east generally, and the same work in the suburbs either side of Kew: Hawthorn, Balwyn, Camberwell. If your property is close to a boundary it makes no difference to us — it is the same van and the same day rate.

What it costs

Every job is quoted per project after a site inspection rather than off a list. How we quote sets out what the quote covers and what moves it. Quotes are free, fixed-price and confirmed on site.

If the board is full, has no safety switches, or still has ceramic fuses, it is worth having assessed rather than added to again.

Litmec Electrical is a licensed Victorian electrical contractor (REC-10383, Energy Safe Victoria) based in Newport and trading since 2007. Call 0418 583 097 to talk through a Kew property.