Licensed electrician · PGE 305056
I'm Marcus. I upgrade switchboards across Adelaide, from old ceramic fuse boxes to three-phase boards with solar. Every circuit gets its own RCBO, so one fault trips one circuit, not the whole house.
Text photos of your board and I'll send you a written quote.
Get a written quote 0468 008 822
This is what I fit. Your written quote lists each item for your board.
These are the things I find on real Adelaide boards that end in an upgrade.
Not sure? Text a photo of the board with the cover open. I can usually tell you from that.
A safety switch (also called an RCD) trips when it sees power leaking to earth. That is its job. The real question is where the leak is.
Often it is an appliance or a wet outdoor power point, and the board is fine. So I find the fault first. I only quote an upgrade when the board itself is part of the problem. Two jobs where it was:
If your power is tripping right now, start with why power keeps tripping or fault finding. If it is unsafe, see emergency call-outs.
In Erindale (#648) it was up to two hours of a five-hour visit. A three-phase board takes longer. Malvern (#565) was booked as a full day.
Only when the mains cable or meter needs work. Then SA Power Networks is part of the disconnection and reconnection. Your quote will say if that applies.
Real jobs from this year. Suburb and job number only.
An old rewireable fuse board with no safety switch at all. Replaced with a new enclosure, a new main switch and four Hager RCBOs. Every circuit tested, trip-tested and labelled.
A nine-circuit Scott board on an asbestos panel, found after an emergency repair. The panel was removed under control. A new fire-rated enclosure went in with a main switch and nine Hager RCBOs.
A late-night emergency. A 16A breaker had melted and the copper under it was charred. The house has solar, so the board stayed live from the inverter side until that was isolated too. The burnt conductors were cut back to clean copper, and three RCBOs replaced the burnt breaker and the old safety switch.
The safety switch would not stay on. All seven circuit breakers were changed to RCBOs and the main switch was replaced. Now a fault trips one circuit, not half the house.
Seven breakers changed to RCBOs, a new main switch and busbar, and the meter box brought up to standard ready for solar and a battery. Two hardwired smoke alarms were replaced on the same visit.
A three-phase board. Nine circuits moved onto their own Hager RCBOs, including a three-pole RCBO for the three-phase circuit, with a new 80A main switch. It was booked as a full day.
The old enclosure came out. A new enclosure and main switch went in, every circuit was re-terminated and sleeved, and a new main earth stake was driven and tested.
A shed sub-board with ceramic fuses and an old four-pole safety switch, fed from an RCBO in the house: two safety switches in a row. The shed got a new enclosure, a main switch and its own RCBOs for lights and power, fed from a new breaker in the house board.
Short clips filmed on real jobs.
★★★★★Good fast service, turns up when he says he’s going to , and gets the job done quickly and professionally, fans replaced and new switchboard installed.
Mark, Royston Park Google review · September 2026
The full terms are on the warranty page.
Send them through the quote page or text them to 0468 008 822. You get a written quote with each item listed. If I need to see the board first, I will tell you.
They are the same thing in the same spot. People say "fuse box" because older boards used fuses. A ceramic fuse has a thin wire inside that melts when a circuit is overloaded. A modern switchboard uses circuit breakers instead, and safety switches that cut the power if current leaks to earth. If your board still has fuses you pull out, those circuits have no safety switch protection.
Usually for one of three reasons. The board has no safety switch protection, or not enough. Something on it is failing, like a breaker that has run hot. Or there is no room for what you want to add, such as solar, a battery, an EV charger or a new oven. If none of those apply, you may not need one. I can usually tell you from your photos.
Often, yes. If the enclosure is sound and has room, I swap the old breakers for RCBOs and fit a new main switch. That is what we did in Royston Park (#427) and Glengowrie (#612). If the enclosure is open, damaged, full or on a suspect backing panel, it gets replaced.
No. On a recent upgrade in Erindale (#648) the power was off for up to two hours of a five-hour visit. A fridge and freezer are fine for that long with the doors shut. Your wifi will drop, so plan around it if you work from home. A big three-phase board takes longer. I tell you how long before I start.
Only for some jobs. If the mains cable or the meter needs work, SA Power Networks is part of the disconnection and reconnection. That happened in Edwardstown (#233A), where the mains cable was upgraded and the meter moved outside. Your written quote says whether your job needs it.
Some older Adelaide boards are mounted on a panel that may contain asbestos. That cannot be told from a photo, so I do not guess. In Prospect (#317) the old Scott board sat on an asbestos panel. It was removed under control and disposed of lawfully, and the new board went into a fire-rated enclosure.
Yes. While I am there I check your smoke alarms and test your safety switches. If an alarm needs replacing, I tell you, and it can be done on the same visit, as in Windsor Gardens (#630).
The switchboard upgrade guide for Adelaide homes goes deeper on the rules and what changes the scope. Related work:
Text photos of your board for a written quote, or tell us what you need.
