There is no such thing as an “18th Edition board” you can simply swap in. There is a set of requirements in BS 7671, and a board change is the point at which your installation is brought into line with as many of them as the existing wiring allows. We upgrade consumer units to the 18th Edition across Barking, Dagenham, Becontree and Creekmouth.
Call 07502 396654.
Before and after
A typical Barking board fitted before 2008: plastic enclosure, rewireable fuses or early MCBs, no RCD protection on socket circuits, 16 mm² meter tails, main bonding missing or undersized, no space for surge protection, and no certificate or test record.
After a full upgrade: non-combustible metal enclosure, individual RCBO per circuit, every circuit residual-current protected, 25 mm² tails correctly terminated, 10 mm² main protective bonding proved, Type 2 surge protection fitted or space provided, and an Electrical Installation Certificate issued.
The three changes that matter
Residual current protection on everything. Older split-load boards protected socket circuits with one shared RCD. Current practice gives each circuit its own RCBO, so a fault no longer takes out half the house. In a rented property it means one tenant’s faulty appliance does not plunge the whole flat into darkness at 11pm.
A non-combustible enclosure. Since 2016, consumer units in domestic premises must be in a metal enclosure or a non-combustible cabinet. This came directly out of fire investigation data — loose terminations heat up, and plastic boards do not contain the result.
Surge protection considered by default. Amendment 2 moved SPDs from an optional extra to a standard consideration for dwellings. Whether one is fitted is a decision to be made and recorded, not ignored.
Meter tails upgrades
Your tails are the heavy cables running from the meter to the consumer unit. In older Barking installations they are frequently 16 mm², occasionally smaller, sometimes original to the 1950s and stiff enough to have cracked at the bend. Current practice for a standard domestic supply is 25 mm², correctly sleeved.
Undersized tails limit what the installation can safely draw at exactly the moment households are adding EV chargers, induction hobs and heat pumps. They also cannot be ignored on a board change, because the new unit’s terminals are sized for modern conductors and the installer signing the certificate is signing for the whole arrangement.
Work on the supply side of the meter belongs to the distribution network operator, not to your electrician. We will tell you clearly which side of that line each part of the job falls on, and arrange isolation properly rather than improvising it.
Tails and bonding upgrades
Main protective bonding connects the incoming gas and water services to the main earthing terminal, so that during a fault every metal part in the building sits at the same potential. It is a 10 mm² conductor in most domestic installations, clamped within 600 mm of the meter, and labelled.
Missing bonding is one of the most common serious findings on inspections in this borough — particularly in houses where a boiler has been replaced but the electrics have never been inspected. It is also cheap to put right compared with almost anything else on an electrician’s price list, and it is the single item most likely to turn an unsatisfactory report satisfactory.
Consumer unit relocation in Barking
Relocation comes up constantly in conversion work and kitchen refits — the board sits over a worktop, behind a fitted wardrobe, or in a cupboard that is now a shower room.
Two constraints govern it. The unit must remain readily accessible for operation and isolation, which rules out the back of a cupboard behind boxes. And the length and route of the meter tails is not unlimited, so “anywhere in the house” is rarely the real answer. Where the distance is genuine, the usual solution is a switched isolator near the meter with a submain to the new board position. That is a bigger job than a straight swap and we price it as one from the outset.
Landlord fuse box upgrades
For rented property, a board upgrade is usually not a wish-list item — it is the remedial work arising from an unsatisfactory EICR, most often a C2 for absent RCD protection on socket circuits or for missing main bonding.
Under the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020, private landlords must have the installation inspected at least every five years, supply the report to tenants, and complete remedial work within 28 days of the report — or sooner if it says so. Local authorities can impose substantial financial penalties for non-compliance, and the requirement has since been extended into social housing, with existing tenancies to be inspected by 1 November 2026.
Electrical Installation Certificate for consumer unit work in Barking
The document you need at the end is specific. A board change produces an Electrical Installation Certificate — not a Minor Works Certificate, and not an EICR. The EIC covers new work; the EICR is an inspection of existing work.
Ours comes with a full schedule of test results showing measured values circuit by circuit, and the work is notified to building control through our NICEIC registration, so you do not need to contact the council yourself.
How the job runs
- Survey and test — existing installation inspected, tails and bonding checked, insulation resistance measured.
- Written quote — board, tails, bonding and any remedial work priced separately rather than bundled into one number.
- Install and commission — isolation arranged, unit fitted, full initial verification carried out.
- Certify and notify — EIC with schedule of test results issued, work notified under Part P.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is the power off?
Most of a working day for a straightforward swap. Longer if tails or bonding need replacing, and considerably longer for a relocation.
Can I keep my old board if it still works?
Working and safe are different tests. A board with no RCD protection on socket circuits is functioning exactly as designed and would still attract a C2 on an inspection.
Do I need building control involved?
A consumer unit replacement is notifiable under Part P. As a registered installer we self-certify it. An unregistered installer means you notifying building control yourself, in advance, and paying their fee.
What if a circuit fails testing during the upgrade?
We find that out during the pre-works survey rather than mid-job, and quote the remedial work separately so you can decide. Fitting modern protection to old wiring always finds the faults in that wiring — the question is only whether you hear about them before or after the invoice.
Book a consumer unit upgrade in Barking
Barking is a couple of miles from our base in Dagenham, so response times are short in practice rather than in advertising. We run a 24-hour call-out alongside planned work, and also handle full and partial rewires.
Call 07502 396654 or email idealelectricians@gmail.com for a free, no-obligation estimate.
Ideal Electricians Ltd · 9 Woodward Road, Dagenham, Essex RM9 4SJ · NICEIC approved · Part P compliant · 15+ years