Renovations are booming across Australia, with homeowners’ total spend on property upgrades reaching $54 billion in 2025. More than one in three households across the country took on an improvement project.
Brisbane is leading that charge. With house prices soaring, Brissie homeowners have got equity to work with – and many of them are reinvesting it back into their properties. The Queensland capital accounted for over $1-billion of nationwide renovations last year – the most of any local government area.
Despite the scale of this investment, there’s still one trade that gets called in too late: electricians. You want to get your electrician involved in the planning stages of your reno, not when the walls are already sealed. At this stage, upgrading your electrics becomes expensive and disruptive.
If you’re planning a reno, you need to talk to your Brisbane home renovation electrician early. Here’s what to ask them:
Is my switchboard up to the job?
Modernising your home with a renovation adds load to your electrical system. A kitchen upgrade alone can introduce an induction cooktop, a larger oven, a dishwasher and new lighting circuits. That’s a lot more power being drawn every day.
If you’re in a Brisbane property built before the 1990’s, like many of those in Kedron, Chermside and Stafford are, your switchboard isn’t designed for the load you’re about to place on it. The fuse board will lack modern circuit breakers and RCDs – it won’t have the capacity for your plans.
Our recommendation: get your switchboard assessed before you start your reno. The electrics will fall into place nicely once it’s upgraded.
Should I replace my wiring?
It’s not just the switchboards of older homes that raise concerns – it’s the wiring too. Often it’s degraded to the point of being a safety hazard, and when the renos kick off, you realise there’s a lot of work to be done to bring it up to spec. Single-insulated cabling, aluminium conductors and aged PVC wiring can all be safety hazards and may not meet current Australian Standards.
The good news is that a renovation is the perfect time to deal with this problem. You’re going to have tradies in your home anyway, and it’s likely your walls will be opened up for construction work. It’s not a bad time to get the electrics overhauled!
Are you Licensed?
The last thing you want is a fly-by-night electrical contractor working on your renovation. Luckily, it’s easy to prove if you’re dealing with a legit business. All electrical work in Queensland must be carried out by a licensed electrician under the Electrical Safety Act 2002. Any contractor doing work valued over $3,300 must also hold a valid QBCC licence. If you’re unsure of whether they seem up to the task, ask to see their valid license.
Using an unlicensed contractor can void your home warranty insurance and leave you with little legal recourse. We’d recommend avoiding this. Also, please don’t attempt to DIY any of the electrical work. This is illegal in Australia and could land you in all sorts of problems.
Where should power points, lighting and switches go?
This sounds like an obvious question – you’d be surprised how many homeowners bypass it and regret it later! It’s easy to get placement right before you plaster the walls. If you need to make changes afterwards, it gets expensive and time-consuming.
Here are some things to think about:
- How will each room be used – what devices will be at work?
- What number of bench appliances will there be in your kitchen?
- Where will your home office monitors sit?
- Will the outdoor entertaining area have lighting and power?
- Would you like USB outlets? Two-way switches? Dimmable circuits?
Should we add solar, a battery or an EV charger?
Rooftop solar now accounts for more than 11% of Australia’s total electricity supply. The Cheaper Home Batteries program has further boosted uptake. Lower power bills and environmental sustainability are the drawcards here – is that something you’d like to get on board with? What about converting to an EV and saving on fuel costs?
These are all topics we can chat about if you’re planning a reno. It might be a good time for you to future-proof your home while other work is underway.
How will the electrical work be sequenced with other trades?
More than likely, you’re going to have a few different trades working on your renovation. Your Brisbane sparky will need to be on site for two separate stages of work: the rough-in, which happens before the walls are plastered over; and the fit-off, which occurs after most other stages are completed.
Voltora Industries likes to keep our communications clear, whether we’re dealing with our customers or other trades. Poor scheduling and coordination can cause timeframes and costs to blow out (60% of renovators in Australia spend more than they originally intended). When you need us on-site, we’ll be there – and we can also be flexible with the timeframe you’re looking at.
Contact Voltora Industries – Your Home Renovation Electrician
A home renovation is an exciting project to embark on. You want to make sure its done right, because you’re likely to be injecting a large amount of cash into it. Good planning is the first step to a successful renovation, and good planning needs to involve a licensed electrician.
The Voltora Industries team can help you ascertain what electrical upgrades you need, what your budget should be and how to fit in the electrical work among other trades. From the initial assessment through fit-off and certification, we’ll make sure your reno is electrically safe and compliant, and delivers everything you want.
Get in touch today and let’s get the ball rolling on a no-obligation quote. We want to get this job done properly for you.
Lets get started
