Brooklyn was subdivided from Fitchett's dairy farm from 1888, when 208 lots went on sale, with more sections sold further up the hills in 1899 and 1902. Housing now climbs the eastern slopes of the hills above Happy Valley, about 3 km south of the city centre, and the suburb's wind turbine on Polhill was sited there because of Wellington's higher than normal winds.
Brooklyn homes span more than a century, from early villas and cottages to later infill, and many sit on steep sections. We handle switchboard upgrades, rewiring, repairs and outdoor lighting built to handle the wind, and we plan cable routes on slopes with care.
Common Home Types in Brooklyn
The early Brooklyn subdivisions mean plenty of homes are around a century old, and many have been renovated in stages. That can leave rubber-insulated cable in parts of the house and a board with little RCD protection. Later homes and infill are generally wired in plastic-sheathed cable but may still have an original board that is now full. Houses on sloping sections often have a subfloor that is tall on the downhill side, which can make it easier to run new cable underneath.
What Brooklyn Conditions Mean for Your Wiring
Brooklyn sits high and exposed. Hawkins Hill, the highest point on Wellington's southern hills, holds the North Island's highest recorded gust at 248 km/h, and the turbine above the suburb is there because of the wind. Outdoor lights, sensor lights and external sockets need firm fixings and weatherproof ratings. Steep streets were a problem from the start: the original route via Aro Street was so steep that a new tram route was cut through the Town Belt in 1906. Many houses sit above or below the road, so a cable to a garage or car deck can be a long run that has to stay clear of banks.
Electrical Services in Brooklyn
- Emergency Electrician: Power out, sparks, a burning smell or a breaker that will not reset?
- Electrical Repairs: Tripping RCDs, dead power points, flickering lights and faulty switches traced to the cause and repaired, not just reset.
- Switchboard Upgrades: Old fuse boards replaced with a modern switchboard, circuit breakers and RCD protection, inspected and certified.
- House Rewiring: Full and partial rewires for villas, bungalows and older homes, replacing tired rubber-insulated or overloaded wiring.
- Power Points: Extra power points, USB sockets, outdoor weatherproof outlets and new circuits for heat pumps, spa pools and workshops.
- Extractor Fans: Bathroom extractor fans and kitchen rangehoods wired and ducted outside, to move steam and damp out of the house.
- CCTV Installation: Home and business security cameras and CCTV, wired or wifi, with recorder setup, outdoor cabling and phone viewing.
- Oven and Cooktop Installation: Ovens, induction cooktops and new kitchen circuits connected safely, including upgrades from gas or older electric hobs.
- Electrical Inspections: Electrical safety inspections and pre-purchase checks with a written report, covering the switchboard, wiring, RCDs and earthing.
- Smoke Alarm Installation: Hard-wired and long-life photoelectric smoke alarms installed in the right places, including rentals that must comply.
- LED Lighting: LED downlights, pendant and feature lighting, dimmers and smart switches, planned around how each room is used.
- Outdoor Lighting: Garden, deck, driveway and security lighting, with sensors and timers, wired safely for the outdoors.
- EV Charger Installation: Home EV chargers installed on a dedicated, properly protected circuit, with a switchboard check and certificate.
- Solar Panels: Solar panel systems and home batteries sized to your power use, installed and connected by licensed electricians.
- Commercial Electrician: Maintenance, fit-outs, lighting upgrades and fault finding for offices, shops, clinics and light industrial sites.
- Test and Tag: Portable appliance testing and tagging for workplaces, with a full register of results for your records.
- Data Cabling: Network and data cabling for homes and offices: Cat6 points, comms cabinets, wifi access points and TV outlets.
Not sure what you need? Read the electrician prices guide or book an electrician in Brooklyn.
Working in Brooklyn
Hawkins Hill, at 495 metres, is the highest point on Wellington's southern hills.
The wind turbine on Polhill was sited above Brooklyn in 1993 because of Wellington's higher than normal winds, and was replaced with a larger 900 kW turbine in 2016.
You will often see our vans near Brooklyn wind turbine and Central Park on the way to a job in Brooklyn.
Electrician Brooklyn FAQs
Why do my outdoor lights in Brooklyn keep failing?
Wind-driven rain is a common cause, getting into fittings that are not rated for the exposure. We fit outdoor lights with a proper weatherproof rating and solid fixings, and check that connections are sealed.
Can you run power to a garage at street level below my house?
Yes. We plan the route with you, size the cable for the distance, protect the circuit with an RCD and keep the cable away from unstable banks. You receive a Certificate of Compliance for the work.
Does my older Brooklyn home need a new switchboard?
Not automatically. We look for rewireable fuses, missing RCD protection, signs of heat and lack of space. If the board is sound we say so, and if it needs replacing we explain why.
Can you add an EV charger to a hillside garage?
Usually. WorkSafe guidance calls for a dedicated circuit with the right RCD protection, and on a sloping site the distance from the board matters. We measure the run and check capacity before quoting.