In message , george139
writes
looking at having to re-wire my ex-wifes house to save on cash.

A good way to do so, a lot of the charge for rewiring is down to labour.

It
definitely needs a new consumer unit - the existing one being a metal
box with some old bakerlite type switches and well you get the idea.
Also the wiring to the light fittings and sockets is starting to fall
apart.

If it really is falling part then it is probably old rubber insulated
cable, and certainly beyond the end of it's life. how old is the house
/wiring? A full rewire, even if some bits are usable is probably the
best way to go

(in our current house - 30's semi - we had a mix of the original rubber
cable on the lights with newer (1960-70) sockets and a few lights.
Even though some of the sockets could have been re used , linked in,
just redoing the whole lot made much more sense.


1) should I just save up and get an electrician in?

I have no idea - how competent do you feel to do the job? Have you done
any wiring before, do you have much general DIY experience?

2) should I do the donkey work myself - I am reasonably competant at
stuff - and get an electrician in to do the consumer unit?

TBH, I'd consider the CU the easy bit...... If you can do the rest then
that shouldn't hold any worries.

3) I presume that I will be having to cut out channels in wall to add
new sockets

Assuming you have brick/block walls then yes you will need to cut
channels, and recesses for the back boxes.

4) Should I rent or buy and angle grinder to do the channelling?


Certainly don't use an angle grinder for this, it creates an immense
amount of dust - I did it once never again.

You may find you don't actually have to go to much effort to cut
channels. I have managed to do most of mine just buy cutting channels in
the plaster, only in a few places did i need to touch the brickwork..
While modern plaster might require a bit of work, the 1930's stuff in
this house doesn't. The surface layer is fairly hard, but underneath it
is fairly crumbly. It is possible to score though the lot with a Stanley
knife, and then remove the plaster with an old chisel easily.

If there is a lot of channelling to do and you can arrange to do it in
one go, then you can hire specific channelling cutters. that do the
best job.

What I would by is an SDS drill. Cutting out recesses in brick with a
standard hammer drill and a hammer and bolster is a dreadful job. An SDS
drill makes it an almost cinch. You can get special box cutters, but I
just use a couple of SDS chisels, does the job fine.


Clearly I have not done this before but as the house really belongs to
me I am not averse to gtting stuck in and sorting th#e jovb myself -
if it isnt going to take to long.

I did mine it fits and starts as other jobs allowed etc. if you able to
do the job in one fell swoop, most disruptive, but easiest in the long
run, then I would guess that DIY-ing by yourself alone, we would be
talking say 2 weeks or so?

Take time to read up on the job, understand the various requirements,
spend plenty of time planning, ask here for clarifications etc. I would
also suggest getting a copy of the 'On Site guide' if you a re going
ahead. it's not a how to manual but it is a reference manual really on
various technical requirements and procedures that anyone doing a rewire
should understand about.
--
Chris French, Leeds