Service For your home Perth metro
Breakers trip when you run the kettle and the dryer together. Half the circuits share protection. The RCD's a mystery. We strip the old board out, install a full RCBO bank, label every circuit, and hand over the safety certificate.
Recent switchboards
The problem
Half the circuits share breakers. The RCD is either non-existent or hasn't been tested this decade. Every time the kettle, the toaster and the dryer go at once, something trips — and you reset it without thinking.
That's not a quirk of the house. That's a switchboard from a different era trying to handle modern load. Induction cooktops, ducted aircon, EV chargers, instant hot water — none of it existed when most Perth boards were installed. The board's working past its rating, the RCD's not catching what it should, and the only sign anything's wrong is a breaker that won't stay up.
Add an EV charger or a smart prewire to a board like that and you're inviting trouble. Cover the basics first.
What's involved
Most domestic upgrades are a one-day job. Power off for the install, power back on the same afternoon. Here's what's actually happening behind the cover.
Western Power notified, mains isolated, old board carefully removed. Existing circuits identified and labelled before anything's touched.
Every circuit gets its own RCBO — proper overcurrent and earth-leakage protection on each one. No more sharing, no more guesswork when something trips.
Whole-of-house surge protection on the incoming mains. Worth doing once — catches everything from lightning hits to grid spikes.
Every circuit labelled clearly. RCDs tested under load. Insulation resistance and earth continuity checked end-to-end.
eNotice lodged with Building & Energy WA. Your record's official.
Electrical Safety Certificate provided on completion. Keep it with your house records — needed for sale, insurance claims, future trades.
Signs you're due
None of these on their own means the board's unsafe. Together, they're the board telling you it's had enough.
Breakers trip when you run two big appliances at the same time.
You've still got ceramic fuses or rewireable fuse wire.
The RCD test button hasn't been pressed in years (or you don't have one).
Circuits aren't labelled, or the labels are wrong.
Power points are warm to the touch or making a buzzing sound.
You're planning solar, an EV charger, or a kitchen reno.
Buying or selling the property and the building inspector flagged it.
House was built or last rewired pre-2000.
Compliance & certification
All switchboard work is carried out to AS/NZS 3000 (the Wiring Rules) and the WA Electrical Requirements (WAER), with Western Power notified for any service or meter work. On completion, the job is tested under load, the RCDs are verified, and an Electrical Safety Certificate is issued and handed to you.
A Notice of Completion is lodged directly with Building & Energy WA via eNotice. Keep the certificate with your house records — you'll need it if you sell, refinance, or make an insurance claim.
Dark Spark Electrical is licensed (EC15006) and carries active public liability insurance. Happy to provide certificates on request.
From quote to certificate
Phone call or quote form — we work out roughly what you've got and what you need. 10 minutes.
We come and check the board, supply, and any complications. Fixed-price quote back to you within a day.
Power off, new board in. Most domestic jobs done same day. We work around your routine.
Tested under load, labelled, eNotice lodged, certificate emailed. You're good for the next 25 years.
Switchboard FAQ
Most single-phase domestic boards are a one-day job. Three-phase or complex jobs (sub-boards, custom enclosures) can run to two. We give you a fixed timing in the quote.
Usually 4–6 hours during the install. We'll let you know the day before so you can plan around it — defrost the freezer, charge phones and laptops, make sure the gates open before we kill the mains.
Yes. If we need to isolate at the meter or upgrade the service, we coordinate that with Western Power directly. Notice of Completion lodged at the end.
Fine — three-phase upgrades are part of what we do. Common on bigger builds, anything with a workshop, or homes preparing for a 22kW EV charger.
If you're upgrading after a fault or an insurance event, your insurer usually covers the work — provided it's certified. Hand them the safety certificate we issue.
Often, yes. New EV chargers and solar systems load the board harder than older circuits were designed for. We check the board's capacity first — if it can take it, we plug straight in. If not, we sort the board so the new install actually works safely.
While we're at it
Free quotes. Usually replied same day, Mon–Fri.