When an installation keeps breaking down and has collected years of DIY fixes, you end up wondering whether it wouldn't be better to redo everything. That isn't always the right answer, and it can only be decided once we've seen the installation. For an overview of the work, see also our electrical renovation page.
When should you rewire rather than repair?
Two situations really justify a full rewiring.
The first is an installation that's undersized throughout: cables too small for what they feed, a kitchen without dedicated circuits, a single circuit for half the home. Fixing that circuit by circuit ends up costing more than redoing everything in one go.
The second is a major electrical renovation, when the whole home is being renovated. If the walls are already open for other trades, or partitions are still to go up, this is the right time: running the electrics at that stage costs far less than coming back once the finishes are done.
No earth, on the other hand, doesn't on its own justify redoing everything. It's dealt with case by case: in a flat, it depends on the building, as we explain on our page about rewiring an old apartment. In the meantime, 30 mA residual-current devices protect people, without replacing a proper earth.
Outside these situations, targeted work is usually enough. Our page on electrical code compliance helps you tell what's a safety matter from what can wait.
What gets replaced, and the question of conduit
In a full rewiring, the panel, the accessories (sockets, switches) and all the wires are replaced. Timber mouldings and cables without mechanical protection are removed. Junction boxes buried in the walls are made accessible or removed: the standard requires it, and it will make future work easier.
That leaves the question of conduit. Can the new wires be pulled through the old conduit to avoid chasing the walls? Sometimes, but you only find out by trying, once the job has started: a conduit can be crushed, too tightly bent or too narrow for today's cables. So a quote can't be built on it. The costing allows for routes we're sure of, depending on the room: chasing, trunking skirting or a false ceiling.
How the job runs
The order is almost always the same.
- Survey: we identify the existing circuits, note the points to create, and decide with you where each socket and switch goes, based on how each room is used.
- Strip-out: power off, removal of the old accessories and of cables no longer in use.
- Running the cables along the routes allowed for in the quote: chasing, trunking skirting or false ceiling.
- Fitting the back boxes, sockets, switches and lighting points.
- The panel: circuit distribution, protective devices, labelling. The detail is on our electrical panel replacement page.
- Testing: earth continuity, tripping of each residual-current device, insulation resistance and a check of every circuit before power goes back on.
When the whole installation is redone, a Consuel certificate is needed before the meter is put back into service. We take care of it.
How many circuits, and which ones
A sound installation is judged less by its number of sockets than by its number of circuits. A three-room home usually has between twelve and sixteen: several lighting circuits, several socket circuits and the dedicated circuits. Each of those has its own line and protection: washing machine, dishwasher, oven, a 32 A hob, and heating if it's electric.
That separation is why a fault in the kitchen doesn't plunge the bedrooms into darkness, and why the faulty appliance is quickly found. If your power trips regularly, it's often because that work was never done: our page on a breaker that keeps tripping explains why.
Duration, budget and living through it
Allow one to three weeks depending on the size and the amount of chasing. The budget starts at €150/m² incl. VAT with standard-brand accessories, excluding plaster, paint or flooring repairs, which are priced separately.
Can you stay in the property during the work? In most cases, yes: we move room by room and restore power every evening. The kitchen and bathroom are the two delicate points, because they concentrate the dedicated circuits. We arrange things so they're never both without power at the same time. On a heavy renovation with the walls open, though, it's better to plan on staying elsewhere for a few days. We tell you before we start.
On budget, the reduced 10% VAT rate applies to homes over two years old, and our page on electrical renovation grants covers the rest. Our electrician pricing in Paris is online. For a precise costing, contact us: the visit is free and the detailed quote follows within a week.
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