NICEIC · BS 7671 18th Edition · Building Standards Scotland
House Rewiring in Fraserburgh, AB43
Full and partial house rewires from £3,500. NICEIC certified, plaster repair included, Building Standards notification handled. Typical 3 bed semi: 4 to 5 working days, fixed price in writing.
What scope do you need?
Prefer to call? 07426 416358
Rewire pricing at a glance
Plaster repair, Building Standards notification, and certificate all included in every quote. No day rates.
2 bed flat
from £2,800
3 bed semi
from £3,500
3 bed detached
from £4,200
4 bed home
from £4,500
Plaster repair included
No skip needed, full clean down on every job.
Do you actually need one?
Rewire vs fuse box upgrade vs spot remedials
The honest answer is, not every Fraserburgh home with old wiring needs a full rewire. We see plenty of properties where a consumer unit upgrade plus £200 to £400 of bonding and RCD work delivers the same safety outcome as a £4,000 rewire, without the disruption.
The decision usually hinges on the cable itself. Modern PVC twin and earth that's 30 years old still tests fine. Pre 1965 fabric or rubber insulated cable doesn't, and no fuse box upgrade in the world fixes that, because the new RCBOs would be protecting bad wiring underneath. If your cable insulation has degraded below 1 megaohm per circuit, you need new cable, full stop.
Three things tip the decision toward a rewire rather than a board upgrade. One, old fabric or rubber cable visible in the loft. Two, multiple C2 codes on a recent EICR adding up to £1,500+ in remedials. Three, you're already taking the property back to plaster for a renovation, in which case the marginal cost of rewiring is much lower because there's no plaster repair to do.
When we quote, we always quote both options side by side, full rewire vs fuse box upgrade plus targeted remedials, so you can choose based on the numbers and the disruption tolerance, not on a salesperson's opinion.
6 signs your home needs rewiring
Things we see again and again in Fraserburgh
Each of these on its own might not mean a rewire. Two or more together usually does. We test before recommending so the decision is based on data, not assumptions.
C2 fail on EICR
Ceramic or wire fuses
Pull-out wire fuses, brown brass fuse holders, or ceramic cartridges. Pre 1980s technology. No RCD, no overload precision. Always a fail on a Scottish landlord EICR. Triggers a full rewire roughly 60% of the time once we test the cable underneath.
Immediate concern
Fabric or rubber insulated cable
If you can see cables in the loft and the insulation looks like cloth or hard rubber, the cable is pre 1965 and well past its safe service life. Insulation breaks down with age, exposing live conductors. This is the strongest single indicator that a full rewire is needed, not a board upgrade alone.
Often a rewire trigger
Brown or scorched sockets and switches
Brown discolouration around socket faceplates, scorch marks on switches, or warm socket plates indicates loose connections, undersized cable, or arcing. Cosmetic in some cases, dangerous in others. We test before assuming the worst, but in pre 1990 properties this often means the underlying cable needs replacing.
Diagnostic signal
Lights flicker or dim when appliances run
Voltage drop on the ring main when a kettle, washing machine, or shower kicks in. Caused by cable too long for its rating, too many sockets per circuit, or aged cable resistance. Sometimes fixed by adding a circuit, sometimes by rewiring the whole ground floor.
Common in older AB43 homes
No RCD protection on any circuit
If your fuse box has only MCBs and no RCDs (or RCBOs), and you're more than 20 years old, your wiring almost certainly predates RCD requirements for bathroom and kitchen circuits. Sometimes resolvable with a board upgrade, sometimes the underlying cable also needs replacing because it lacks the right earthing.
Confirmed by EICR
Multiple C2 codes on a recent EICR
If your EICR returned 5+ C2 codes (potentially dangerous), the cumulative cost of remedials often exceeds the cost of a full rewire. We compare both routes side by side and quote each, so you can decide based on numbers, not guesses.
4 levels of rewire
Pick the scope that matches your property
Most comprehensive
Full rewire
Every circuit replaced. New consumer unit. New sockets, switches, light fittings, ceiling roses. Interlinked smoke alarms (Scottish reg). Plaster repair to all chase channels. Building Standards notification handled. The full reset.
£3,500 to £6,500 typical, 4 to 7 working days
When it makes sense: pre 1980 wiring, multiple C2 codes, planned renovation, change of use to rental
Most popular for older homes
Partial rewire (typically ground floor or upstairs only)
Replace half the circuits, leave the rest. Common in properties where one floor was rewired in the 90s but the other wasn't. We test the kept circuits before quoting so you don't end up with a half new, half failing installation.
£2,200 to £3,500, 3 to 4 working days
When it makes sense: mixed-age installation, budget constraints, recent partial work to keep
High risk rooms
Kitchen + bathroom rewire
Targeted rewire of the two highest-risk rooms in the house. Modern code requires RCD protection, separate circuits for high-load appliances, IP rated bathroom accessories, and proper bonding. If your kitchen and bathroom are pre 2000, this is often the right move ahead of a kitchen renovation.
£1,200 to £2,000, 2 to 3 working days
When it makes sense: kitchen renovation, EICR fail in wet areas, adding new appliances
Surgical fix
Single circuit rewire
Rewire one specific circuit. Most common reasons: an EICR identified one bad circuit, you're adding a new high-load appliance (electric shower, oven, EV charger) and the existing circuit isn't rated, or one ring main keeps failing tests while others pass.
£350 to £600, half day
When it makes sense: targeted EICR remedial, new appliance load, single failing test
What actually happens
A full rewire, end to end
Most quote-by-text platforms gloss over the process. We don't, because the question we get most often is "how long will my house be in chaos?" Here's the honest answer for a 3 bed semi.
- 1
Pre rewire survey
We visit, photograph every room, count circuits, check the supply head, agree on socket and switch positions, and discuss any moves you want (where the TV goes, kitchen layout, EV charger ready, etc.). Free, takes 60 minutes for a 3 bed.
- 2
Day 1 to 2: First fix
Lift floorboards or pull carpets in key rooms. Chase channels in walls for cable runs. Pull new twin and earth and earth bonding cable through the property. Mount new back boxes for sockets and switches. No accessories on yet, just the cable infrastructure.
- 3
Day 2 to 4: New consumer unit + earthing
Install the new metal clad RCBO consumer unit, terminate every new circuit into it, run main earth bonding to gas and water pipes, fit a new isolator at the supply head if needed.
- 4
Day 4 to 5: Second fix
Fit all new sockets, switches, light fittings, ceiling roses, smoke alarms (interlinked, Scottish reg compliant), and any extras we agreed (extra USB sockets, dimmers, smart switches, etc.). Test every accessory.
- 5
Day 5 to 7: Test, certify, plaster repair
Full BS 7671 testing on every circuit. Certificate signed off and emailed. Plaster repair to all chase channels (we use bonding plaster, ready for paint). Floors put back, dust sheets removed, full clean down. Notification submitted to Building Standards Scotland.
Detailed pricing
House rewire cost in Fraserburgh
All prices include the new consumer unit, plaster repair, certificate, and Building Standards notification. Fixed price in writing within 24 hours.
| Scope and property | Indicative price |
|---|---|
| Single circuit rewire (1 ring or radial) | from £350 |
| Kitchen + bathroom rewire (high spec rooms) | from £1,200 |
| Partial rewire (ground floor only) | from £2,200 |
| Full rewire, 2 bed flat | from £2,800 |
| Full rewire, 3 bed semi | from £3,500 |
| Full rewire, 3 bed detached | from £4,200 |
| Full rewire, 4 bed home | from £4,500 |
| Full rewire, 5+ bed or large granite cottage | from £6,500 |
| Granite cottage uplift (chasing through 9 inch stone) | from £400 added |
| Commercial / multi storey | Free quote |
What can affect the price
- •Wall construction. Granite stone walls add 10 to 20% to the labour because chase routing takes longer than plasterboard. We factor this into the quote up front, no day-rate add ons.
- •Number of accessories. A standard rewire includes a typical complement of sockets and switches per room. Extras (USB sockets, double sockets in bedrooms, smart switches) added at £25 to £75 each.
- •Earthing condition. Pre 1980 properties often need new main bonding to gas and water pipes during the rewire. Included in the quote, not extra.
- •Lifted carpets. We lift and re lay carpets. If a carpet is already at end of life and needs replacing, that's a decorator job, not us.
The mess
How we keep disruption to a minimum
The single biggest fear about a rewire is the mess. Fair enough, you're letting two tradesmen into your home for a week with chasing chisels and dust extractors. Here's what we do that most outfits don't.
Sequenced rooms
We work one room at a time, finishing each before opening the next. You always have a working kitchen and bathroom. Power off only in the room being worked on, typically half a day per room.
Dust sealed
Dust sheets on every floor we work on. Plastic dust seal on doorways to rooms we're chasing in. M-class vacuum hooked to chasing chisels (catches 99% of dust at source). Daily clean down at end of each working day.
Plaster repair included
Bonding plaster to every chase channel, sanded smooth, ready for paint. Most outfits charge this as an extra (£200 to £500 typical), we include it in the fixed price quote.
No skip needed
We bag, remove, and dispose of the old cable, old consumer unit, and chase rubble. No yellow skip on your driveway for 5 days. Most rewires we generate 4 to 6 contractor sacks, taken away on the last day.
The Fraserburgh niche
Granite cottage rewires, what's different about Fraserburgh
Fraserburgh has more pre 1900 granite cottages per square mile than almost any other AB postcode. They look gorgeous, they hold heat, and they're a nightmare to chase cable through. The walls are typically 9 to 12 inches of solid granite stone with lime plaster. Modern chasing tools work, but they take 3 times longer than they would on a plasterboard wall.
We get around this by routing cable strategically. Where possible, we run new circuits through the loft and drop down inside stud walls (most granite cottages have stud partition walls inside the stone shell). For sockets on the stone walls themselves, we surface mount in painted galvanised conduit, which looks deliberate and is much faster than chasing.
The granite cottage uplift on our quote is typically £400 to £600 added to the standard rewire price for a typical 3 bed cottage. We never charge it as a "discovery on the day" surprise. If your property is granite, we factor it into the quote up front based on photos alone.
Common questions
House Rewiring FAQs for Fraserburgh
How long does a full house rewire take in Fraserburgh?
A 3 bed semi typically takes 4 to 5 working days. A 3 bed detached or 4 bed runs 5 to 7 days. Granite cottages with 9 inch solid stone walls add 1 to 2 days for cable chasing. We give you a fixed timeline in the quote, not a day rate, so the price doesn't change if it takes us longer.
Can I stay in the house during the rewire?
Most customers do. We sequence rooms so you always have a working kitchen and at least one working bathroom. Power is off in the room we're working in (typically half a day per room) but the rest of the house stays live. For full rewires of small properties or if you have young kids or pets, some customers prefer to stay elsewhere for 2 to 3 of the 5 days. We can plan around either approach.
How much mess does a rewire actually create?
We chase cables into walls (about 1 to 2cm deep, 2cm wide channels) which need plaster repair afterwards. Floors come up where cables run beneath. Carpets get lifted and re laid. Dust is the main issue, we use dust sheets, vacuum daily, and seal off rooms not in use. Plaster repair is included in our quote (most outfits charge extra). Final paint touch up is your job, we don't paint.
Do floorboards need to come up for the whole rewire?
In most older Fraserburgh properties, yes for the upper floor where ceiling-mounted lighting circuits run. We try to lift only the boards directly above cable runs (typically 6 to 10 boards per room, not all of them). On the ground floor, we often run cables in the loft above and drop down through walls, which avoids lifting downstairs floors entirely. We assess this in the survey.
Do I need an EICR before or after the rewire?
Not before. The whole point of an EICR is to assess existing wiring, and if you've already decided on a rewire, the EICR is wasted. After the rewire you don't need an EICR either, the install certificate from the rewire itself is the gold standard document for the next 10 years (or 5 years if you're renting it out as a Scottish landlord).
Is plaster repair included in your rewire price?
Yes. Bonding plaster to all chase channels is included as standard. We don't paint, sand to a paint ready finish, or skim full walls, that's a decorator job and adds about £300 to £600 per room if you want it done. We coordinate with a local Fraserburgh decorator if you want us to handle the whole job.
What's the difference between a partial and full rewire?
A full rewire replaces every circuit, every socket, every switch, every accessory, and the consumer unit. A partial rewire targets specific rooms or circuits, typically the kitchen and bathroom (the highest risk rooms) or just the ground floor where the modern wiring is and the upstairs is original. Partials are cheaper but only sensible if the spared parts of the wiring are recent enough to be safe. We test the cable that would stay before recommending a partial.
Do you handle Building Standards notification in Scotland?
Yes. House rewires are notifiable to Building Standards (Scotland). We submit the notification on your behalf as part of the install, the cost is included in our quote. You receive both our BS 7671 install certificate and the Building Standards completion record. Both go in your seller's pack if you ever sell the property.
Need a rewire in Fraserburgh? Free written quote in 24 hours.
NICEIC certified, plaster repair included, Building Standards notification handled. Granite cottage friendly. Fixed price, in writing, no day-rate surprises.
Prefer to call? 07426 416358