Rewire of an older timber ceiling house, Fuman

The brief

An older house in the town’s old fabric with a timber ceiling and veranda, wired in twin flex nailed straight onto the timber beams. In winter, with the electric heater and water heater on, the main switch tripped, and one junction box showed scorch marks. The owner did not want the timber ceiling damaged.

How it was done

1. 01 Full survey of the routes and insulation testing; the old wiring could not be kept
2. 02 New surface routes planned along corners and beside frames to stay unobtrusive
3. 03 Flame retardant conduit on stand-off saddles clear of the timber, with closed junction boxes
4. 04 Heater and water heater circuits separated from lighting and general sockets
5. 05 New board with 30 mA RCD protection and labelled circuits
6. 06 Earth installed and the water pipe bonded, with earth resistance measured
7. 07 All old wiring removed so that no redundant cable was left on the timber

The outcome

The following winter, heating and water heater ran without tripping the main switch, and the timber ceiling was left untouched. No cable now sits directly on timber, and the test figures went to the owner.