How long does a house rewire take?
A complete house rewire normally takes several days. The exact timescale depends on the size of the house, access to cables, the condition of the existing installation and whether you stay in the property during the work.
The electrical work and the making-good do not always finish together. A rewire may be electrically complete before plaster repairs, flooring work or decorating have finished, so the overall programme should allow for both stages.
There are three main parts to the work:
- Preparation and removal: we confirm the circuit layout, isolate the existing installation and remove or disconnect wiring that cannot remain.
- Installation: new cables are run to the lighting points, sockets, switches, cooker, shower and other fixed equipment. We fit the new consumer unit and make the required connections.
- Testing and completion: we test each circuit, check the protective devices and issue the electrical certification for the completed work.
The work may move from room to room rather than taking the whole house out of use at once. Even so, circuits need to be isolated while we work on them. That can leave parts of the house without lighting or power for periods during the installation.
Access has a major effect on the programme. Cables may need to pass through floor voids, loft spaces, cupboards, ceilings or walls. Empty rooms are easier to work in than furnished ones. We may need access behind fitted units, under floor coverings or around built-in joinery, depending on the existing layout.
Older properties can require more careful planning. Solid walls, unusual extensions, exposed beams, listed interiors and previous alterations can limit where cables can run. We can often use lofts, floor voids and existing routes to reduce unnecessary disturbance, but the survey needs to establish what the building will allow. A barn conversion or older rural house should not be given a firm timescale from its floor area alone.
The number of circuits also matters. A modern installation may need separate circuits for items such as an electric cooker, immersion heater, shower, outbuildings or electric vehicle charging. Adding these during the rewire can increase the installation work, but it avoids treating a larger electrical demand as an afterthought.
Making-good is usually a separate part of the building work. Chasing walls, lifting boards and removing fittings can leave holes, marks or disturbed finishes. We explain what our quotation includes before work starts, including whether plaster repairs, joinery, flooring and decoration are included or need to be arranged separately. This prevents the electrical completion date being mistaken for the date when every room is fully decorated.
A clear quotation should also identify the assumptions behind the timescale. Check that it covers the number of circuits, the consumer unit, testing, certification, access arrangements and any work to outbuildings. If the property changes during preparation—for example, concealed damage is found or a route is inaccessible—we can explain the effect before carrying out additional work.
At the end, we test the installation rather than relying on the age or appearance of the cables. Our NICEIC- and ECA-registered electrical team provides the relevant certification, giving you a record of what was installed and tested. The final programme is therefore the time needed to install, test and document the system, plus any agreed repairs to the building itself.
If you’re living in the property, the calendar time can be longer than the electricians’ working time. We plan around rooms that need to remain usable, such as a kitchen, home office or bedroom, and agree when each area can be cleared.
Access arranged before we start helps keep the programme moving. Moving furniture, emptying cupboards and lifting agreed floor coverings gives us a clear route for the cables. If access is restricted, we explain the likely effect on the timetable before work begins.
