Ceramic fuses and fuse wire
If you are still rewiring a fuse with wire off a card, the board predates safety switches entirely.
REC 11743
Single & Three Phase
Same Day Available
SwitchboardUpgrades
Ceramic fuses and rewirable boards belong in the shed, not on the wall of a house with a family in it. We replace them with a compliant board, properly labelled, on the same day where we can.
Same standard, every boardCircuits identified, labelled and tested, and a Certificate of Electrical Safety before we pack up.
Quick Quote
Three fields. We come back with an upfront price for your switchboard upgrades.
Licensed REC 11743
Fully Insured
Emergency & Same Day
Free Quotes
Homes & Business
Warning Signs
Six Reasons Boards Get Replaced
If more than one of these sounds like your place, the board is doing you no favours. None of them are urgent on their own. Together they usually mean the board is older than the wiring behind it.
Breakers that trip for no reason
Nuisance tripping is usually a board or a circuit telling you something, not a fault to be reset and ignored.
No safety switches, or only one
One RCD covering the whole house means a fault anywhere kills power everywhere, including the fridge and the alarm.
No spare ways left
Every way used means the next air conditioner, EV charger or shed circuit cannot go in without a board change anyway.
Scorch marks, buzzing or heat
Any browning around a fuse holder, a burning smell or a buzz from the board is a call now, not a call later.
Nothing labelled, nothing known
If nobody can tell which switch does what, nobody can isolate safely in an emergency.
Before And After
What Actually Changes
A switchboard upgrade is not cosmetic. It changes what happens in the half second after something goes wrong behind a wall.
Before
Old rewirable fuse board
- Fuse wire that has to be replaced by hand, often with the wrong gauge
- No residual current protection, so a person becoming part of the circuit is not detected
- One fault takes out more of the house than it needs to
- No spare capacity for new circuits
- Circuits unlabelled and unknown
- Enclosure often open, unsealed or heat damaged
After
Compliant modern switchboard
- Circuit breakers that trip and reset, sized correctly to the cable
- RCD protection on the circuits the Wiring Rules require it on, tested before handover
- Faults isolated to the circuit they happen on, so the rest of the house keeps running
- Spare ways left deliberately for future circuits
- Every circuit identified, tested and labelled
- Sealed enclosure, correct main switch and a surge device where you want one
Tested, Not Just Installed
Every board we install is tested circuit by circuit before we leave, and the results stay with the job. The sheet in this photo is from a three phase board we finished in Melbourne. That is the last step on every upgrade we do, single phase or three.
26Years On The Tools
11743REC Licence
Scope
What Goes Into An Upgrade
01
New enclosure and main switch
Correctly sized and sealed, with room to work in and room to grow.
02
Circuit breakers sized to the cable
Not to the appliance and not to whatever was there before. Every breaker matched to what it is actually protecting.
03
RCD protection
Safety switches fitted to the circuits the Wiring Rules require them on, and tested with an instrument rather than by pressing the button.
04
Main earth and bonding checked
The part nobody sees and the part that decides whether the safety switches can do their job. Checked and brought up to standard as part of the upgrade.
05
Circuit identification and labelling
Every circuit traced, tested and labelled, so the next person at the board knows what they are switching off.
06
Surge protection if you want it
Optional, and worth discussing if you have solar, a home office or a lot of electronics on the same supply.
07
Test results and certification
Full test sheet and a Certificate of Electrical Safety for the prescribed work, handed to you before we leave.
How It Runs
A Board Swap, Start To Finish
Step 01
Look At What Is There
A photo of the open board is often enough to quote from. If not we come out. Either way the quote is free and the price is upfront.
Step 02
Book The Power Off Window
Most single phase upgrades are a same day job with the power off for part of it. We tell you roughly how long before the day, not on it.
Step 03
Change Over And Test
Old board out, new board in, every circuit reconnected, identified and tested with an instrument.
Step 04
Label, Certify And Explain
Board labelled, test results recorded, Certificate of Electrical Safety issued, and two minutes showing you which switch does what.
Pricing
What Changes The Price
Every board is different, which is why we quote them individually rather than off a flat rate. These are the things that move it.
01
How many circuits the house has
A two bedroom unit and a five bedroom house with ducted heating and cooling are not the same job.
02
Single phase or three phase
Three phase boards carry more hardware and take longer to change over.
03
The condition of the existing wiring
If the mains, the earth or the circuits coming into the board are not up to standard, that work is separate and we will show it separately.
04
Whether the enclosure has to move
Sometimes the meter box is the wrong size or the wrong position and the board has to be relocated or extended.
05
Extras you want fitted
Surge protection, spare ways, an EV charger circuit or a separate garage or shed supply added at the same time.
Our Work
Boards We Have Changed
Photos from Bernard Electrics jobs around Melbourne. No stock imagery, just the work.
Questions
Switchboard Upgrade FAQ
The clearest sign is ceramic fuses with fuse wire, which means the board has no safety switches at all. Frequent tripping, no spare ways, scorch marks or a buzzing sound, and unlabelled circuits are the others. Send us a photo of the open board and we will tell you honestly whether it needs doing.
Most single phase domestic upgrades are a same day job, with the power off for part of it. Three phase boards and jobs where the enclosure has to be moved take longer. We will give you the expected power off window before the day rather than on it.
Yes, for part of the day. We will tell you roughly how long when we book it in so you can plan around the fridge, a home office or anyone working from home.
The Wiring Rules require residual current protection on the circuits they apply to, and that scope has widened over the years. When we upgrade a board we fit RCD protection to the circuits that require it and test each one with an instrument before handover.
Yes. We do single phase and three phase domestic boards, and industrial switchboard installation and changeovers as well.
Yes. Every circuit is tested and a Certificate of Electrical Safety is issued for the prescribed electrical work. You keep it, and it matters at sale or insurance time.
It depends on the number of circuits, single or three phase, the condition of the existing mains and earth, and whether the enclosure has to move. Quotes are free and the price is upfront, with no hidden fees and no surprise call out charge.
Service Areas
Where We Work
Based in Doncaster East and working right across inner Melbourne, the bayside suburbs, the south east and the eastern suburbs.
Bayside
- Brighton
- Sandringham
- Hampton
- Beaumaris
- Black Rock
- Cheltenham
- Highett
- Mentone
- Parkdale
- Mordialloc
- Aspendale
- Edithvale
- Chelsea
- Bonbeach
- Carrum
- Elwood
Inner Melbourne
- Carlton
- Fitzroy
- Collingwood
- Abbotsford
- Richmond
- Cremorne
- South Yarra
- Prahran
- Windsor
- St Kilda
- Albert Park
- Port Melbourne
- South Melbourne
- Southbank
South East
- Oakleigh
- Clayton
- Mulgrave
- Springvale
- Noble Park
- Dandenong
- Keysborough
- Endeavour Hills
Eastern Suburbs
- Doncaster East
- Glen Waverley
- Mount Waverley
- Wheelers Hill
- Rowville
- Wantirna
- Ferntree Gully
- Boronia
- Bayswater
Other Services You Might Need
Still Got Ceramic Fuses?
Send a photo of the open board and we will tell you what it needs and what it costs, at no charge.
Contact
Talk To Us About Your Switchboard Upgrades
Phone, text, email or the form. Whatever is easiest. Urgent jobs are always best by phone.
- Phone or SMS0474 906 716
- Emailbernardelectricsptyltd@gmail.com
- Based InDoncaster East, Victoria
- HoursMonday to Saturday, plus emergency callouts
- LicenceREC 11743, fully insured
Send An Enquiry
Tell us what you need and we will come back with a free quote.