It’s been a busy month for the team at Imp Electrical, with a surge in distribution board upgrades across the Lincoln area. The majority of these have been driven by one common issue: failing RCDs in older properties, which often cause nuisance tripping due to earth leakage.
If you’ve ever experienced your electrics randomly cutting out, particularly when nothing obvious is wrong, there’s a good chance your board might be to blame. Older consumer units typically use a single 30mA RCD to protect all circuits. While this was the standard at the time, it’s not ideal. A small fault or bit of leakage on one circuit can knock out the entire board, leaving the whole house in darkness – and the source of the problem can be tricky to pinpoint.
With a modern distribution board, each individual circuit is protected by its own 30mA RCBO (Residual Current Breaker with Overcurrent protection). This upgrade offers major safety and reliability benefits. If a fault occurs on one circuit – for example, your downstairs sockets – only that circuit will trip. The rest of the house continues running as normal while the fault is safely isolated.
Not only does this make fault-finding easier and quicker, but it also significantly improves day-to-day convenience and peace of mind for homeowners.
If your property still has an older consumer unit, or you’re noticing regular trips, it might be time to consider an upgrade. Get in touch with us for advice or a free quote – we’ll help make sure your home is safe, reliable, and up to current standards.
