Seymour Chambers, 92 London Road, Liverpool L3 5NWAvailable day or night · 24/7 Emergency
info@fixelectricalnw.co.uk
Fix Electrical (NW) Ltd
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Maintenance & Fault Finding · Liverpool & the North West

Electrical
Fault Finding & Maintenance in Liverpool.
Quick diagnosis, honest fix, no guesswork.

Nuisance-tripping RCDs, dead sockets, flickering lights, mystery breaker trips. We diagnose properly with the right test kit, then fix the actual cause, not the symptom.

15+ years in the trade · NAPIT approved · £2m insured · 24/7 emergency line

15+ years
In the trade
NAPIT approved
Registered contractor
£2m insured
Public liability
Certified
JIB Gold Card · C&G 2391
Service Overview

Maintenance & Fault Finding in Liverpool, the full picture.

Everything below is what an honest, NAPIT-approved contractor will actually do for you, not what a marketing agency thinks sounds good on a website.

What it covers

Fault finding is the diagnostic side of the trade, using calibrated insulation resistance testers, loop testers, RCD testers and thermal imaging to isolate exactly why something is tripping, running hot, or failing to work. Maintenance is the planned upkeep side, periodic inspection, remedial works from EICRs, reactive repairs, and keeping domestic and commercial installations compliant and reliable.

Who it's for

Homeowners with nuisance tripping, dead circuits or intermittent faults; landlords whose tenants keep calling about dead lights; commercial and light industrial operators who need reactive support; facilities managers wanting planned inspection cycles rather than reactive-only maintenance.

When you need it

The second something intermittent starts, because intermittent faults get worse and become permanent (usually at the worst possible moment). Immediately if you smell burning, see scorching around a socket, or have an RCD that won't reset.

Why professional matters

Guess-and-check fault finding is expensive, you pay for the wrong parts, then pay again for the actual fix. Proper testing with calibrated instruments isolates the fault the first time. Preventive maintenance is a fraction of the cost of reactive repairs, especially in commercial premises where downtime costs trading revenue.

What Happens If You Leave It

The cost of putting it off.

Every one of these is something we see weekly. None of them get better on their own.

Intermittent faults become permanent, usually at 6am

A circuit that trips once a week becomes one that won't reset. Diagnose it early and the fix is small; leave it and you're paying an emergency call-out.

Scorching and burning smells are pre-fire warnings

Any smell of burning plastic near sockets, switches or the consumer unit is a live fire risk. Isolate the circuit and call immediately.

'Fixed' by unqualified hands, twice as expensive

The most expensive fault finds are the ones where 'someone had a go' first, swapped parts, wrong terminations, and buried problems we then have to unpick before diagnosing.

Missed EICR remedials = unlettable / uninsured

Failing to action C1 / C2 codes from an EICR keeps the property non-compliant. Landlord and buildings insurance can be refused on that basis.

Our Process

How the job actually runs, start to finish.

  1. Step 1

    Phone triage

    We'll ask the right questions on the phone so you're not paying a call-out just to be told what you already suspected.

  2. Step 2

    On-site inspection

    Visual inspection, isolation of suspect circuits, thermal check where relevant.

  3. Step 3

    Instrument testing

    Insulation resistance, earth loop, RCD trip time, polarity, calibrated instruments, logged results.

  4. Step 4

    Isolate & fix

    Once diagnosed, we quote the fix before doing it. No 'while we're here, that'll be another £X' at the end.

  5. Step 5

    Re-test & certify

    Post-repair testing, Minor Works Certificate issued, and a note of what actually caused the fault so it doesn't come back.

Benefits

Why customers stick with us.

Calibrated test kit, not guesswork

Every fault find uses calibrated instruments, results logged so the diagnosis is defensible.

Fixed-price fault find, then fixed-price repair

Diagnosis priced separately from the fix, so you're never paying for time we can't justify.

Same electrician start to finish

The person diagnosing is the person fixing, nothing lost in handover.

Planned maintenance cycles for commercial

Quarterly / annual planned inspection instead of reactive-only.

24/7 line for genuine emergencies

Real out-of-hours response, not an answerphone.

Root cause, not just symptom

We find the actual reason, not just reset the breaker. So it doesn't come back.

In Detail

Everything else worth knowing.

The specific materials, methods and situations that make this job go well, or badly, depending on who's doing it.

Common faults we diagnose weekly

Nuisance-tripping RCDs (usually accumulated small earth-leakage from multiple appliances stacking up over one RCD, or a specific circuit with insulation degradation), dead ring mains (loose terminations at faceplates, thermal damage from historic overload), flickering lights (dimmer / LED incompatibility, loose neutral, or supply-side issues), warm sockets (loose terminals, undersized cabling, chronic overload), and consumer units with a scorched terminal (loose termination running hot for months).

How we actually diagnose

Every fault find follows the same discipline: isolate, visually inspect, then use calibrated instruments. Insulation resistance (megger) testing at 500V DC finds cable and appliance-side insulation faults. Earth fault loop impedance testing verifies protective devices will disconnect within the required time. RCD ramp and trip-time testing verifies protection is working to spec. Thermal imaging (used on request for commercial distribution boards) finds loose terminations before they fail.

Planned maintenance for commercial premises

For commercial and light industrial clients we offer planned inspection cycles, typically quarterly emergency-lighting function testing, annual full-duration testing, PAT testing on a schedule that matches your equipment risk, and periodic thermal imaging of distribution boards on request. Planned cycles are always cheaper than reactive-only maintenance, and they generate the paperwork your insurer wants to see.

Residential vs commercial, where it differs

Domestic fault finding is usually a single isolated fault, one tripping circuit, one dead socket. Commercial fault finding often involves distribution and sub-mains, higher continuous loads, and much lower tolerance for downtime. Both use the same core discipline; commercial jobs are just scheduled differently and documented more heavily.

Common Questions

Maintenance & Fault Finding, answered.

Straight answers to the questions we get on the phone every week. If yours isn't here, call 07351 982452 and ask.

How much does a fault find cost?

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Diagnosis is priced separately from the fix. Our call-out is £80. Once diagnosed, we quote the repair before doing it, you approve, we fix. No open-ended time charging.

How quickly can you come out?

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For genuine emergencies (loss of power, burning smell, exposed conductors) our 24/7 line responds as fast as travel allows. For non-urgent work, usually within a few days.

My RCD keeps tripping, can you find out why?

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Yes, this is one of the jobs we do most often. Almost always diagnosable in a single visit with a proper insulation resistance test.

Do you handle intermittent faults that only happen occasionally?

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Yes, intermittent faults are our bread and butter. We use calibrated testing plus visual and thermal inspection to isolate them rather than guess.

Do you certify the repair?

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Yes, Minor Works Certificate issued after any repair, with a note of the actual cause so it's on file.

Do you offer planned maintenance for commercial premises?

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Yes, planned inspection cycles including emergency lighting testing, PAT testing and thermal imaging on request.

Is there a guarantee on the repair?

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Workmanship is backed by our NAPIT registration; parts carry their manufacturer guarantees.

What's the difference between a fault find and an EICR?

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A fault find diagnoses a specific reported issue. An EICR is a full periodic inspection and test of the whole installation, resulting in a coded report. We do both.

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Next Step

Get a straight quote on your maintenance & fault finding.

Free on-site survey. Fixed price in writing before any work starts. NAPIT-approved, £2m insured, certified and self-notified where required.

Request A Free Estimate Call 07351 982452

Available day or night · 24/7 Emergency Call-Out

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