8 Amsom Close, Somerford, Congleton, CW12 4QEMon–Fri 8am–7pm · Sat 9am–3pm 07946 541693 AboutServices Service Areas Our WorkReviewsContactRequest Free Quote NICEIC Approved · Reg 041430 - Home - Help & Advice # Electrical help and advice from a Congleton electrician Straight answers to the questions people ring us about most: tripping circuits, EICR codes, whether a house really needs rewiring, and what work has to be certificated. Mike Maccabe has been on the tools since 1988, and none of this is a sales pitch. Ask Mike a question 07946 541693 Since 1988 38 years on the tools 10-year certificate On every full rewire No deposit Pay on completion 6-year guarantee NICEIC insurance-backed Start here ## What is actually going on with your electrics Most people ring us at a decision point rather than out of curiosity. A period property with wiring flagged on survey. An EICR with C2 codes and a deadline from an agent. A new kitchen the existing board will not take. Lights that keep tripping with no obvious cause. In every one of those cases what you need first is an honest explanation, and only then a price. The pages below set out the things we get asked about week in, week out. Read what applies, ignore the rest, and if your situation is not covered then ring Mike and ask. We would far rather spend ten minutes on the phone telling you a repair will do than turn up and sell you a rewire you did not need. ### When a tripping circuit is telling you something A breaker that trips once in five years is an event. A breaker that trips every time the shower runs, or every time it rains, is a fault waiting to be found. Resetting it repeatedly is the one response that helps nobody: protective devices operate for a reason, and the reason does not go away because the switch went back up. Half of these faults are an appliance rather than the installation. Unplug everything on the affected circuit, reset, then reintroduce items one at a time and see which one brings it down. If the circuit trips with nothing connected, the fault is in the fixed wiring and needs testing properly. That is an emergency electrician job if there is burning or smoke, and a booked fault-finding visit otherwise. ### Rewire, or repair? Age on its own does not condemn an installation. What matters is the cable type, the condition of the earthing and bonding, the protection at the board and the number of genuine defects found on inspection. Rubber, lead or fabric-covered cable is effectively at the end of its life and normally means a full house rewire. A sound PVC installation with a tired board very often means a consumer unit upgrade and some targeted remedial work instead, at a fraction of the cost. The way to find out which you are looking at is an EICR: a proper inspection and test of the installation with every observation coded and explained. If you are buying, a home buyer electrical report does the same job before you exchange, which is a much better time to discover it. ### What has to be certificated Certain work is notifiable and must be inspected, tested and certificated: new circuits, work in kitchens, bathrooms and outdoors, and consumer unit replacement among them. Uncertificated work is the thing that surfaces at the worst possible moment, usually in a solicitor's enquiries during a sale, and it can also cause difficulty with an insurance claim. Everything we install is tested and certificated, and full rewires carry a 10-year electrical installation certificate. As an NICEIC Approved Contractor, registration 041430, the work is also covered by NICEIC's 6-year insurance-backed guarantee should Amara ever cease trading. ### Safety in the home, without the scaremongering Two things genuinely save lives in a house, and neither is expensive. The first is RCD protection on the circuits, which is what a modern board provides. The second is interlinked smoke, heat and CO alarms so a fire downstairs wakes the bedrooms upstairs. If the property is being rewired, a hard-wired alarm system costs very little to include; if the house is finished and decorated, a wireless interlinked system gets you the same outcome without chases and lifted floors. For landlords and small premises, the plug-in equipment matters as well as the fixed wiring, which is what PAT testing covers: damaged flex, wrong fuses and tired extension leads, all recorded in a register you can produce when someone asks. Common questions ## The questions we are asked most Why does my RCD keep tripping?An RCD trips when it senses current leaking to earth. The usual causes are a faulty appliance, water where it should not be, a damaged cable, or an ageing immersion or shower element. Unplug everything on the affected circuit, reset, then reintroduce appliances one at a time. If it trips with nothing plugged in, the fault is in the fixed wiring and needs testing. Does my house need rewiring?Age alone does not decide it. Rubber, lead or fabric-covered cable, a fuse board with rewirable fuses, round-pin sockets, no earth at the light switches, or an EICR full of C2 codes are the real indicators. An inspection tells you whether the installation needs replacing or repairing, and we would always rather say repair when repair is honest. What do C1, C2 and C3 mean on an EICR?C1 is danger present and needs action immediately. C2 is potentially dangerous and needs remedial work: it is what makes a report unsatisfactory. C3 is improvement recommended, which does not fail the report. FI means further investigation is required. How long does a full house rewire take?A typical three-bedroom house is usually one to two weeks depending on access, floor coverings and how much making good is involved. We plan room by room, restore power at the end of each day wherever it is safe to do so, and clear up as we go. Do I need an EICR before a new consumer unit?Mike recommends one as best practice, and it is charged separately. A new board with modern protection will find faults that an old fuse board tolerated, so it is far better to know what is behind it before the change rather than after. Should my alarms be interlinked?Yes. Interlinking is the single biggest improvement over standalone units, because a fire starting downstairs then sounds the alarm in the bedrooms upstairs. Hard-wired interlinking suits rewires and renovations; radio interlinking suits finished homes. Can I install my own sockets or lighting?Some minor work is permitted for a competent person, but anything in a kitchen, bathroom or outdoors, and any new circuit, is notifiable work that must be certificated. Uncertificated work causes problems at sale and can invalidate insurance. How do I know an electrician is genuinely registered?Ask for the registration number and check it with the scheme directly rather than taking a logo on a van at face value. Amara Electrical Contractors Ltd is an NICEIC Approved Contractor, registration 041430. What is a fixed price and what is an estimate?Everything quoted here is a fixed price in writing, agreed before work starts, with no deposit. Fault-finding call-outs are the exception: those are charged at an hourly rate, made clear before we attend, because nobody can price a fault they have not seen. What should I do in an electrical emergency?If there is burning, smoke or a smell of scorching, switch off at the main switch and call. Do not keep resetting a breaker that will not stay in: it is telling you something. Never touch anything wet near an electrical fitting. Where we work ## Local advice, from a local electrician We are based in Somerford, Congleton and keep to a deliberately tight patch so one electrician can turn up when he said he would. - Electrician in Congleton - Electrician in Cheshire - Electrician in Manchester - Electrician in Stoke-on-Trent - Electrician in Stockport - Electrician in Cheadle - Electrician in Wilmslow - Electrician in Altrincham - Electrician in CreweBrowse all our electrical services, see recent work in Cheshire, or read our Google reviews. ## Still not sure? Ask Mike directly Describe what the electrics are doing and you will get a straight answer, not a sales pitch. Quotes are free, fixed in writing, and no deposit is required. Call 07946 541693 Accredited, approved and independently reviewed - - - - - - Congleton-based domestic electrical contractor and rewire specialist. NICEIC Approved Contractor, registration 041430. Established 2007. - 07946 541693 - michael@amaraelectrical.co.uk - 8 Amsom Close, Somerford, Congleton, CW12 4QEFacebookGoogle Business Profile ## Services - All electrical services - Full House Rewires - EICR Reports - Home Buyer Electrical Reports - Consumer Unit Upgrades - EV Charger Installation - Emergency Electrician - Sockets - Lighting - Smoke & Alarm Installations - Wired Alarm Installation - Wireless Alarm Installation - PAT Testing ## Areas Covered - All areas we cover - Congleton - Cheshire - Manchester - Stoke-on-Trent - Stockport - Cheadle - Wilmslow - Altrincham - Crewe ## Opening Hours - Monday – Friday8am – 7pm - Saturday9am – 3pm - SundayClosed © 2026 Amara Electrical Contractors Ltd. All rights reserved. ContactAbout MikeOur WorkReviewsHelp & AdvicePrivacy PolicyTerms & ConditionsNICEIC Approved Contractor 041430 · £5,000,000 public liability Call Mike Free Quote