Electricians in HobartOld houses, cold nights and creeks that rise fast.

Older houses, and what's behind the walls

Battery Point is known for weatherboard cottages and multi-storey terraces, some dating from the first years of Hobart Town. The inner suburbs from the tramway era have narrow lanes of timber and brick cottages, and post-war houses are common right across the city.

In homes like these, the wiring has usually been changed in bits over many decades. You may find fewer power points than you'd like, lighting circuits with no safety switch, and old cable in places that are hard to reach. An electrician who works on older homes will test before quoting, and tell you whether a rewire or a switchboard upgrade is the real fix.

The City of Hobart publishes heritage guidance for areas such as Battery Point and West Hobart, and places on the Tasmanian Heritage Register are protected under the Historic Cultural Heritage Act 1995. If your home is listed, check with the council before changing anything on the outside, like moving a meter box or adding solar to a street-facing roof.

Cold months and heating loads

Light frost comes most years, sleet can fall from June to September, and suburbs higher up kunanyi get snow more often than the city. Heat pumps, panel heaters, heated towel rails and electric blankets all run at once on a cold night, which is when an overloaded circuit trips or an old power point starts running warm.

If a breaker trips every time the heater goes on, don't just swap the heater to another outlet. Power keeps tripping explains what's likely going on.

The paperwork you should get

All electrical work in Tasmania has to be done by a licensed practitioner. Once the work is energised, the person responsible must give you a copy of the record of the work in an approved form as soon as practicable, and keep their own copy for at least 10 years. Ask what you'll receive before the job starts, and keep it with the house papers.