Electrician in Porto, 24 Hours

What might be wrong with the electrics

In Portuguese homes the fuse box is called the quadro elétrico. It is usually a small panel near the front door, with a main switch and a row of breakers. Tell us what happened and when, and we take it from there.

These are the situations we are called out for most often and what usually sits behind each one.

Circuit breaker tripping

When the breaker trips and trips again the moment you reset it, the fault is in the circuit, not in the breaker. Resetting it over and over hides the problem and heats the installation. On the phone we ask whether it trips with everything off or only when one appliance comes on: that separates a wiring fault from an appliance fault. We also wrote a short guide on what it means when a circuit breaker keeps tripping.

Power cut in the flat

First, check whether the stairwell lights and the neighbours have lost power too. If they have, the cut is on the grid and there is nothing to repair inside your home. If it is only your flat, the problem is in the fuse box or the supply to it, and that is work for an electrician.

Short circuit or a burning smell

A bang, a spark at a socket, a smell of burnt plastic, or a breaker that drops the instant you plug anything in. Switch off the main switch on the fuse box and leave the socket or appliance alone. If there is smoke or flame, leave the building and call 112, the European emergency number. Never use water on an electrical fault.

Sockets and switches

The plug sits loose, a switch crackles or a light flickers for no reason. The part is the easy bit: what matters is the wire behind it, which may have been running warm for months. So we check the connection before replacing the socket or switch.

Fuse box or consumer unit: repair or replace

In older buildings the original consumer unit often no longer matches the appliances people run today, and some homes still have the old fuse board.

It does not always need replacing. When a single breaker or connection is worn, we repair what is wrong. When the board no longer protects the home properly, for example because it has no RCD, the device that cuts the power when current leaks, we explain why and offer a replacement with breakers and an RCD. You get both options with a quote for each, and the decision is yours.

If you rent, you may want to forward the quote to your landlord before we go ahead. We are happy to wait for that.

New wiring and small electrical jobs

Not every electrical job is an emergency. We also carry out new work, from one extra socket in the living room to a full consumer unit. It comes up a lot in kitchen refits, when a new oven or hob goes in.

You book them by phone or WhatsApp at a time that suits you. We look at the existing installation first, then quote. We carry out repairs and installation work. Certification is issued by a certifying body and we point you to it when it is needed.

Electrician, plumber or another service: which one you need

Sometimes the breaker trips because water has got into the installation, from a leak in the flat above or a burst pipe near a socket. Then there are two faults: the electrical side is ours and the leak needs a plumber in Porto. Because we do both, we handle all of it in the same visit.

If the hot water has stopped and it comes from an electric storage tank, the right service is hot water cylinder repair. If you are not sure what you have, send a photo on WhatsApp and we will tell you.

What our electrical repairs cover

• Consumer units and circuit breakers
• Short circuits and power failures
• Sockets, switches and lighting points
• Light fitting and downlight installation
• New circuits and cable runs
• Fault finding across the installation
• RCDs and earthing

How the job goes, from the first call to the invoice

It is always the same path, day or night. Being left without power is easier to handle when you know what comes next.

1. You call or send a message

   A person answers. We ask for your full address, what is happening, whether the whole flat is out or only part of it, and whether the breaker trips on its own or when you switch something on. With that we tell you what is likely and how long we will take to get there.

2. We agree the visit

   We confirm the arrival time and how you would like to pay while still on the phone, so there are no misunderstandings at the door. We also tell you what to do while you wait: leave that circuit off, unplug the appliances on it and stop resetting the breaker.

3. We diagnose at your home

   The technician traces the fault circuit by circuit with test equipment and checks appliances on their own until the cause is found. They explain what they see in plain words and show you the socket, wire or appliance responsible.

4. You get the quote before we start

   We tell you what needs doing, what it costs and how long it takes. If the repair is not worth it, we say so. Nothing goes ahead without your approval.

5. We repair and test in front of you

   After the repair we switch the circuits back on one by one, with the appliances that caused the trouble running, to confirm the board holds. If a part has to be ordered, we tell you how long it will take rather than inventing a date, and if a circuit has to stay off until then, we say so plainly.

6. You keep the invoice and our number

   The invoice lists the work and the parts used separately. That document is your guarantee and what entitles you to complain if anything fails. If the fault comes back, you call the same number.

Electrician questions

Electrician across Greater Porto

We send an electrician to every municipality of Greater Porto. In Porto, around Paranhos, Ramalde and Aldoar, there are many mid twentieth century blocks with consumer units that no longer match the number of appliances plugged in. Much of the housing in Maia is recent, but in Águas Santas and Pedrouços the old board faults come back.

• Porto
• Matosinhos
• Vila Nova de Gaia
• Maia
• Gondomar
• Valongo
• Espinho
• Vila do Conde
• Póvoa de Varzim