Emergency Electrician, Adelaide North-East
Power out, a breaker that won't stay on, a burning smell at the switchboard or a sparking outlet. Call 0435 006 420. We're based in Wynn Vale and we cover the Tea Tree Gully area, so you aren't waiting on someone crossing town.
What Counts as an Electrical Emergency
Not everything that goes wrong needs someone out that hour, and we would rather tell you that on the phone than charge you for a callout you didn't need. These are the ones that genuinely shouldn't wait:
- A burning or hot plastic smell anywhere near the switchboard, a powerpoint or a light fitting
- Visible sparking, arcing or scorch marks at an outlet, switch or the board
- A safety switch or circuit breaker that trips again immediately every time you reset it
- Water in the switchboard, or water through the ceiling near lights and wiring
- Total loss of power to the property when the neighbours still have theirs
- A shock, tingle or buzz from a tap, appliance or metal fixture
- Storm damage to the overhead service, the meter box or the point of attachment
- Anything hot to touch that shouldn't be, including a switchboard door or a wall around an outlet
Do This Before We Arrive
If you can see or smell something wrong, turn the main switch off at the switchboard first. That removes the hazard while you wait, and it costs you nothing but a bit of inconvenience. If only one circuit is the problem and you can identify it, switching off that breaker alone is enough.
Don't keep resetting a breaker that trips straight back on. It's tripping because it's detecting something, and forcing it repeatedly is how a fault becomes a fire. Leave it off and call.
If someone has had a shock, treat that as serious regardless of whether they feel fine afterwards. Isolate the power and get medical advice.
If the problem is a tap or metal fixture giving you a tingle, keep everyone away from it, turn the main switch off, and call. That symptom can indicate a lost neutral or a fault energising the plumbing, and it's one of the more genuinely dangerous things we get called to.
What We Do When We Get There
The first job is making the property safe, which sometimes means isolating a circuit before anything else happens. Then we test to find the actual cause rather than replacing components until the symptom disappears.
Most emergency callouts land on one of a handful of causes: a failed appliance leaking current to earth, water ingress into an outdoor circuit or a light fitting, a loose or burnt connection generating heat, a failing RCD or breaker, or damage from rodents or building work in the roof space.
Once we know what it is, you get a clear explanation and a price before we do the repair. If it's something we can fix on the spot you'll usually have power back the same visit. If it needs parts or a bigger job like a switchboard replacement, we make it safe, restore what we safely can, and book the rest properly.
If the Whole Street Is Out
If your neighbours have lost power too, that's a network fault, not your installation, and it belongs to SA Power Networks rather than us. Their faults and emergencies line is 13 13 66. Calling us in that situation just costs you a callout for something we can't fix.
The quick test is your neighbours and your own main switch. If they have power and you don't, and your main switch is on, that's on your side of the meter and it's our job. If nobody has power, ring SA Power Networks first.
What Drives the Price
We aren't going to publish a headline figure that turns into something else once we're on site. What we'll do is tell you exactly what moves the number, so you can see where your job is likely to sit before you call.
- Time of day and day of week, since after-hours attendance costs more than a weekday callout
- How long the fault takes to isolate, as intermittent faults take longer to find than obvious ones
- Whether the repair is a straight replacement or needs a section of cable run
- Whether the switchboard is safe to work on as it stands or needs replacing to fix the problem properly
- Parts, particularly if a breaker, RCD or fitting is an older type that needs a like-for-like match
Quotes are free, fixed, and state what's included and excluded. If we think something might turn up once we open things up, you hear about it before we start rather than on the invoice.
Call 0435 006 420Where We Do This Work
We service all of Adelaide. Being based in Wynn Vale, these are the suburbs we're in most often and where we can usually get to you fastest. Pick yours for local detail, and if you are somewhere else in the metro area, just call and ask.
Common Questions About Emergency Electrician
It depends where we're when you call. We're based in Wynn Vale and most of our work is inside the Tea Tree Gully area, so for the suburbs we cover it's usually quick. Call 0435 006 420 and we'll give you a real time rather than a vague window.
Yes, after-hours attendance costs more than a standard weekday visit. We tell you the rate on the phone before we come out, not after we arrive. If the problem can safely wait until morning, we'll say so and you can decide.
If it resets and stays on, it's usually a faulty appliance and you can narrow it down yourself by unplugging things one at a time. If it trips again immediately every time you reset it, or if there's any smell or heat involved, stop resetting it and call us.
Most of the time, yes. Common faults get repaired on the spot. If it needs a part we don't carry or turns out to be a bigger job like a full switchboard replacement, we make the property safe, restore whatever power we safely can, and book the rest in.
That's a network fault and it belongs to SA Power Networks on 13 13 66. If your neighbours have power and you don't, it's on your side of the meter and that's when you call us.
No. The breaker is tripping because it's detecting a fault, whether that's an overload, a short or current leaking to earth. Resetting it repeatedly forces current through whatever is faulty, and that's how a manageable problem turns into a fire. Leave it off and get it looked at.
Related Services
Switchboard Upgrades
Old fuses out, RCBOs in. Shock protection on every circuit and room to add what you want next.
Read moreSafety Switches & RCD Testing
Proper trip-time testing with a calibrated instrument, not just pushing the button on the board.
Read morePowerpoints & Extra Circuits
New outlets run properly from the board, plus dedicated circuits for the appliances that keep tripping things.
Read moreRecent Work
Real Emergency Electrician jobs from around Adelaide, with photos and what was actually involved.
Partial Rewire of a 1950s Kingswood Home
Circuits kept tripping in a 1950s home. Testing found perished rubber and cotton-braided cable still in service, with newer work joined straight onto it.
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Burning Smell at the Switchboard
A hot-plastic smell near a board isn't something to monitor. This one was a loose connection cooking the main switch.
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Underground Cable Fault Finding in Golden Grove
Lighting that kept tripping at a Golden Grove soccer club, traced to a buried join that had let moisture in and corroded the conductors.
Read the jobGet a Free Quote
Owner-operated, licensed and insured. Justin quotes the job, does the job, and answers the phone afterwards.