Te Aro was packed with working-class houses and businesses by the 1880s. Since the early 2000s apartment buildings have gone up right across the suburb, many converted from former office blocks, and rooftop apartments on existing buildings have become a local feature. Former market warehouses now hold apartments, offices and venues around Cuba Street and Courtenay Place.
That makes most Te Aro work a mix of apartment and commercial jobs. We trace faults inside units, add circuits for kitchens and heat pumps, plan EV charging with body corporates, and look after lighting, data cabling and test and tag for the shops, bars and offices that fill the suburb.
Common Home Types in Te Aro
Most Te Aro homes are apartments, and many sit in buildings that started life as offices or warehouses. Each unit usually has its own distribution board fed from a main board in a shared plant area, so some faults are inside the unit and others belong to the building. Work on common property, such as risers, car parks and main boards, needs body corporate approval. Converted buildings can contain wiring from several eras, and rooftop additions bring their own new supply. Older cottages and small terraces remain in pockets, and these may still have rubber-insulated cable that should be replaced rather than extended.
What Te Aro Conditions Mean for Your Wiring
Te Aro is mostly flat, sitting between The Terrace and the base of Mount Victoria on land that includes reclaimed foreshore out to Cable Street. Wellington is the world's windiest city by average wind speed, about 27 km/h, and wind funnels between tall buildings, so exterior signage lights and balcony fittings need solid fixings and weather ratings. Wellington has hundreds of buildings on the earthquake-prone register, and strengthening work in older buildings can involve moving cabling and lighting. Parking is scarce, so EV charging usually depends on a shared car park and a plan the body corporate signs off.
Electrical Services in Te Aro
- 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 Te Aro.
Working in Te Aro
Wellington is the world's windiest city by average wind speed, about 27 km/h, because of its exposure to the winds blowing through Cook Strait.
The Te Aro Reclamation Act of 1879 allowed 40 acres of foreshore to be reclaimed out as far as what is now Cable Street.
You will often see our vans near Haining Street and Waitangi Park on the way to a job in Te Aro.
Electrician Te Aro FAQs
Can I get an EV charger in my Te Aro apartment car park?
Often, but car parks are usually common property, so the body corporate must approve the work and agree where the supply comes from. WorkSafe guidance calls for a dedicated circuit with the right RCD protection. We assess the building's supply and give the body corporate a written scope.
The power is out in my apartment only. Is it my problem or the building's?
Start with your own distribution board and look for a tripped RCD or breaker. If everything there looks normal, the fault may be on the building's side. We can test both and tell you who is responsible for the repair.
Do you do test and tag for Te Aro offices and bars?
Yes. We test and tag portable appliances, leads and power boards, keep a register of results and remind you when re-testing is due. We work after hours if that suits a bar or restaurant better.
Can you install data cabling in a converted office space?
Yes. We run Cat6 points, wireless access point cabling and comms cabinets for apartments and offices, planned around the existing building so cable routes stay tidy.