What usually needs updating in a post-war house here?
Mainly the parts that weren't designed for modern living. Many homes around Mowmacre Hill and Stocking Farm were built after the war, and while most have had some updates, the original layout still shows in a few places. None of these is a reason to panic, but each is worth sorting before it becomes a problem, and most can be priced from a few clear photos:
- Kitchens with two or three sockets
- Far fewer than today's appliances need.
- Old immersion heater switches
- Worn, or left in place after the cylinder went.
- Cables buried under loft insulation
- Thick insulation can make older cables run warm.
- No outside tap or socket
- Handy for hoses, jet washers and garden tools.
Can an old lighting circuit take new light fittings?
It depends on whether it has an earth. Lighting circuits wired before the mid-1960s often didn't include one, and some of those still survive in houses that were otherwise updated. Metal light fittings need an earth to be safe; some plastic fittings are designed to work without one.
If you're planning new lights, send a photo of the inside of a ceiling rose with the power off, or let us check on the visit. Where there's no earth, the options are fittings made for that situation or rewiring the lighting circuit, and we explain both before pricing.
Can you fit an outside tap or garden socket?
Yes, and both are common requests in houses with gardens near Abbey Park and the river. An outside tap needs an isolating valve inside, so it can be drained before frost, and a double check valve so garden water can't be drawn back into your drinking supply, as the water regulations require.
An outside socket must be weatherproof and RCD-protected. It's often fed from a nearby indoor circuit, but if that circuit is already busy, a new one may be better. Both jobs usually fit in one visit.
Tell us where the hose or tools will be used and where the nearest indoor pipe and socket are. A photo of the wall inside and out lets us plan the route and give one fixed price without a survey.
Do you look after business units off Abbey Lane?
Yes. There are offices, workshops and trade units towards Abbey Lane and Beaumont Leys, and the owner or tenant is responsible for keeping the electrics safe. Day to day, that means regular checks rather than one big job:
- Commercial EICR
- Periodic inspection, often every five years for offices and shops.
- Emergency lighting tests
- A monthly function test and an annual full-duration test.
- PAT testing
- Portable appliances tested and labelled, with a record.
- Planned maintenance
- One plan that keeps the dates for you.
Can you look after my home and my unit on the same trip?
Yes. Plenty of people who run a small business in north Leicester also live nearby. Put both lists on one request and we'll price each job clearly, then plan the visit so business work that needs the power off happens before you open or after you close.
Being about 4 miles away, when the diary allows, we come out the same day for a fault that's stopping work. We're open every day from 8am to 8pm, so a weekend slot is often possible for the jobs at home.