Switchboard Upgrades Wellington

Every circuit in your home starts at the switchboard, and so does its protection. A lot of Wellington houses, from Newtown cottages to post-war state homes in Naenae and Porirua, still have rewireable fuses or an early breaker board with little or no RCD protection and no spare room for an EV charger, a heat pump or an induction cooktop.

This page covers the board itself: when it is due, what goes into the new one, how it should be mounted in a city that shakes, and how the inspection and certificates work. If the cables running out to the rooms are also original, our rewiring page covers that side.

Pricing: a free quote and a fixed price agreed before we start. You get a written, itemised quote, and small jobs can be quoted from photos.

If the cables in the walls are the problem rather than the board, see house rewiring.

Signs your board is ready for replacement

Age on its own is not a reason to replace a board, but some features are. Ceramic holders with fuse wire, an old timber or possible asbestos backing panel, scorch marks, a board that runs warm or buzzes, and no RCDs at all are the usual ones. So is a board where every slot is full and a new circuit would mean doubling up or adding a sub-board.

WorkSafe lists fuses that blow and breakers that trip for no clear reason as warning signs, and suggests replacing fuses with plug-in circuit breakers of the same rating where possible, because they are safer and need no rewiring after a fault.

• Rewireable ceramic fuses
• No RCDs, or RCDs on power circuits only
• Scorching, heat or a buzzing sound
• No spare ways for new circuits
• A board that moves or rattles on its mounting

What goes into a new switchboard

A modern board gives every circuit overload protection and RCD protection against electric shock. We usually fit RCBOs, which combine a breaker and an RCD in one device, so a fault on one circuit switches off only that circuit instead of half the house. Where budget matters more, circuits are grouped under shared RCDs.

From 13 November 2025, the version of AS/NZS 3000 cited in New Zealand law requires RCDs that provide shock protection to meet Type A requirements, or to be Type F or Type B. Every circuit is labelled, and surge protection and spare ways for future work can be added.

How It Works

Mounted for earthquake country

The Wellington Fault runs from Cook Strait through Karori and the city and along the Hutt Valley, and the region has many other active faults. A heavy old board screwed loosely to a sheet of backing timber can pull away in a strong shake, straining the cables behind it. When we replace a board we fix the new enclosure securely to the framing and make sure the cables entering it have enough slack and support.

Research on the Hutt Valley floor has found that shaking can be amplified on its deep alluvial ground towards the Petone foreshore, so a well-fixed board matters there too. It is a simple detail that costs little at install time.

Room for an EV charger, heat pumps or induction

Upgrades are often prompted by a new appliance. Each EV charging point needs its own dedicated circuit, and WorkSafe's EV charging guidelines call for a Type B RCD, or a Type A RCD with an RDC-DD, on a MEN switchboard. Induction cooktops and larger heat pumps usually want their own circuits too.

Before quoting we check the main supply, the main switch rating and the existing load. If the house needs more supply capacity, Wellington Electricity says changing capacity is one of the jobs it must be involved in, arranged through your power retailer. On the Kāpiti Coast the lines company is Electra. We tell you early if your plans need that step.

Inspection, certificates and the day itself

WorkSafe says work on the main switchboard, main cable and main earth must be inspected by a licensed electrical inspector, and the electrician arranges it. We book the inspection as part of the job. You receive a Certificate of Compliance and an Electrical Safety Certificate, and the inspector provides a record of inspection.

Power is off for most of the day, so we agree a start time that suits you. We remove the old board, fit the new enclosure, reconnect and label each circuit, and test every one before switching back on. Tests often uncover faulty circuits the old fuses were hiding, and we tell you before fixing anything extra.

What drives the price

The main factors are the number of circuits, RCBOs or shared RCDs, the condition of the existing circuits, whether the board moves, and extras such as surge protection or new EV and cooktop circuits. Asbestos backing panels need extra care, and hillside homes with steep or no vehicle access can add time.

We look at your board, or a few clear photos of it, and give you a written, itemised fixed price that includes the inspection and certificates. Our electrician prices guide explains typical cost factors in more detail.

Why Choose Cheeky's Electrical for Switchboard Upgrades

Switchboard Upgrades FAQs

Switchboard Upgrades Across Wellington

We cover every region: Central Wellington, Eastern and Southern Suburbs, Western and Northern Suburbs, the Hutt Valley, Porirua, the Kāpiti Coast.

Related Electrical Services

• House Rewiring
• Emergency Electrician
• Electrical Repairs

Switchboard Upgrades Guides

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• Old Wiring in Wellington Houses: Rubber, TRS and Wire Colours
• Trees, Wind and the Power Line to Your House: Who Is Responsible?
• Old Fuse Box in a Wellington Villa? Signs It Needs Replacing

See the electrician prices guide or every service we offer.