Professional Re-Wire... How much mess?

[DIYWell]

Don't go for the cheapest quote. Definitely go for a sparky with an apprentice. Sounds like a week to do the job. Sparky will chase in the cables but won't fill afterwards so, as suggested earlier, get them to price the job subbing out the plastering so you only have one throat to choke if it goes wrong.

In this modern world, always good to check if the spark is on YouTube or Instagram since it demonstrates their work ethic and attention to detail.

When filament bulbs blew in my late mother's house, it would knock out the lighting circuit and she'd have to find a torch to find the fuseboard. My solution was to wire in an emergency light beside the fuseboard wired to the lighting circuit so she could find the button to press. Wired a couple more on plugs in strategic locations so if the power went out there was a lower risk of tripping.

 

[securespark]

Also he's a retired plasterer and actually thinks he can fill the chases himself - even though he's almost 80 and in very bad health, but also in denial about this.

I suppose the answer is probably two stages - empty each room, re-wire, plaster, move back in with bare wet plaster. The repainting can be done much more gradually a room at a time.

Two points:

I know from personal experience that it is very difficult to accept you can no longer do those things that you have done with consummate ease all your life.

I didn't do any additions, but me and a colleague rewired a house in Brum (almost) without leaving any visible signs. We were lucky there was capping everywhere. Careful cutting round the boxes allowed them to be removed with minimal damage: a smidge of wallpaper over the cabling where it entered the box had to be damaged and was glued back down. If you looked closely, you could see it, but it was acceptable to the resident. She was over the moon!

As for the chases, I have had very good results using bonding and skim, then going over the skim with a float trowel making sure the area is well-moistened. If there are any imperfections left, they can be filled with fine filler and sanded.

Wallpaper is more awkward. Depending on the paper, you can removed a section (or if you are lucky a whole width). A sharp knife can be used to cut sections out, then when they are glued back into position, the cuts are (if the wallpaper is painted) filled with fine filler and touched up with emulsion.

The only problem with repainting is if the colour of the paint is vastly different to that which you are using to touch-up. This usually occurs in smoker's houses where nicotine has stained the walls.

Having said all of that, it is very time-consuming, but I have done it where the householder has wanted minimal disturbance to decoration and was prepared to pay the premium.

But I suspect there will be much more urgency in their minds.

I noticed with my elderly customers that they could get very distraught when something went wrong, or things were not as they thought they should be. Even changes or issues that you or I would see as small or insignificant or a temporary nuisance can upset them greatly. They will likely fret until things are back as they were before the rewire.

Obviously, its imperative there are no trip hazards. Rewiring any occupied house is awkward and time-consuming, but more so in one occupied by the elderly and it can be virtually impossible when the properties are very small.

I would definitely find a way to get them out of the gaff, preferably for the whole duration of the work, but if not, just for the duration of each working day. The former is better, then you're not scrabbling to get all the boards and carpets back down at the end of each day.

 

[Vicario]

Definitely box everything up before the work starts. My MIL had a very nice boiler man and his apprentice who did a superb job but managed to break an old jug as they were moving a table. Turned out it had considerable sentimental value but she didn't mention it at the time as she liked the blokes and thought that it would be 'bad manners' to complain.

 

[sparkwright]

It all depends how it has been done before.

If all the wiring comes from the loft (and not from under the floor) then it may be easy.

However, since you have mentioned wooden suspended floors, it seems likely the socket wiring will have been wired under the floor.

In those days, they almost certainly used conduit in the walls, and brick cavities were often used too.

Whether your electrician intends on re-using any brick cavities is a matter for him to decide.

The amount of mess and damage and disruption will partly depend on how caring and experienced your electrician is.

 

[sparkwright]

To tackle this job, I would probably try to do this is in stages - probably lights first, as these should be easy-ish as most of the work is in the loft, and there is a good chance that the switch drops are in tubes. While the electrician is doing the lighting work, it will give a chance to think about the socket wiring route, as he explores the loft and bungalow.

As for the sockets, it makes sense to do just one or two rooms at a time - if going under the floor. It may be possible to re-use any conduits, which would involve removing the old wiring and threading the new cables into it. It would also be vital to keep the old wiring temporarily working/new wiring partially working for the customer - though if the electrician has some helpers more work could get done a lot faster.

Avoid chasing, and consider surface mounted boxes for the sockets situated immediately above the skirting board if it seems unlikely that setting cables to original positions is impossible without damage.

There's no point wrecking the place if the customers aren't bothered about having all the accessories flush.

Insist that slack cable is left under floor and above ceilings where cables may be chased in at a later date.

Try to put sockets in corners of rooms, where only a corner of the carpet should need lifting, and a floorboard can be cut rather than entirely removed.

 

[mattylad]

IF you do send them away, your also going to have to pack up all their stuff before the company come in.
In that case go around taking loads of pictures of every top/wall etc. where things are that your packing up.

Old folks tend to get upset after something like this when they come back and certain stuff is not where it should be, reviewing photo's really helps.

BTW, is a cruise about 2 weeks?

 

[Ivor Windybottom]

Thanks to everyone for all the replies. Really useful stuff.

The plan will be...

We drop off rolls of bubblewrap and plastic crates/boxes.
They pack up all belongings that are either on furniture that needs moving or just in the line of fire of a stray elbow
We stack all crates of belongings in the garage, where their car normally goes (avoiding under the light fitting), all labelled with which room they belong in
They go somewhere else, on holiday or whatever
We cover furniture that doesn't need to move with polythene dust sheet
My other half camps out there, keeps an eye on things, assists with moving furniture and decides any issues
Sparky sub-contracts his own plasterer, they ensure plaster is left smooth but unpainted
Carpets put back, cleaned, furniture returned
Crates from garage go into each room, leave them packed up
They come back
They put ornamental stuff back as and when they like and/or paint when they get round to it
They get strict orders not to rush or worry about the patched bits of walls, just paint each room whenever

Hopefully the stress will be all worth it. The real answer was to have done it 20 or 30 years ago, but we are where we are.

 

[Ivor Windybottom]

If there was ducting then would it normally be visible from inside a wooden light switch or socket back box?

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

They pack up all belongings that are either on furniture that needs moving or just in the line of fire of a stray elbow

Ensure any bookcases, ornamental display units, cupboards, and similar, on upper floors are cleared of contents too. They can be very heavy when full, if they might need to be moved.

If there was ducting then would it normally be visible from inside a light switch or socket back box?

VRI/VIR, might mean 5/8" grip steel tubes down the walls, with joints in the ceiling above. The elbows in the ceiling should be able to be released, but 5/8" is just large enough to accept 1x 1.5mm T&E. If more cores are needed then the 5/8" will need to be chopped out.

You might be able to see the conduits, by removing a switch. The original switches might have been surface toggle switches, later replaced by sunk versions, or the original sunk switches, might be wooden boxes.

 

[mattylad]

see if you can find those left over rolls of wallpaper that are always kept just in case.

 

[sparkwright]

You need Home Rewire - a Scottish company on YouTube.

On seconds thoughts, perhaps not.

 

[sparkwright]

If there was ducting then would it normally be visible from inside a wooden light switch or socket back box?

Maybe.

But you would probably be able yo move the wiring up and down, slightly.

 

[securespark]

You need Home Rewire - a Scottish company on YouTube.

On seconds thoughts, perhaps not.

Watched one vid where they hacked out a load of MICC...

Another was one day rewire. Oh, lummy...

 

[Taylortwocities]

That would add dramatically to the cost, best option would be floor by floor, upstairs first, living down, then downstairs mostly living up.

Its a BUNGALOW!

 

[sparkwright]

Watched one vid where they hacked out a load of MICC...

Another was one day rewire. Oh, lummy...

That bloke talks about doing a full rewire in one day, or if it's a large job, one and a half days!

I don't know how anyone can think about half days when it comes to occupied full rewires.

That bloke is not shy about chasing and plastering either.

He offers a service for wrapping up valuables for protection too.

I suppose he would, the disruption he causes.