A Fuse board goes by many names. A few common examples are; Fuse box, Consumer unit & Distribution board. They all, however, serve the same purpose. To protect your property.
Why should I replace my Fuse board?
New Fuse boards, Consumer units and Distribution boards that are installed have the capability to protect people as well as the property. That's right, up until recently most fuse boards would only isolate problems to your homes wiring. Now they can detect if a person has come into contact with electricity and disconnect the power quickly..
Other changes and advances in the design of new fuse boards are:
- Fire integrity - Many consumer units and fuse boards are located underneath peoples stairs or by their front door. Quite often they're located by coats, plastic bags and other flammable materials. If an electrical fire was to start under your stairs because of your fuse board, it would quickly block your only escape route. New consumer units and fuse boards are made from a fire retardant material, which is designed to contain any fire that develops internally.
- Circuit breakers - Old fuse boards would use re-wireable fuses. These could easily be wired with the wrong sized wire. They also took longer to isolate faulty circuits in comparison to a new consumer unit.
- RCD's - This is the device which detects whether electricity has taken a wrong path in your property and found a way to earth. This is what can protect people and pets from electrocution and a great addition to new consumer units.
