How to reset a fuse board

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It’s easy to panic when the power suddenly fails in your home. But dramatic though this is, often the cause is very simple. A fuse may have tripped, plunging your place into darkness. But you don’t always need to call an electrician to get the lights going again. There is a good chance you can do this yourself, so here’s our handy “how-to” guide.

First, find your fuse box! Usually it will be in the same place as your electricity meter, possibly in the hallway or in an understairs cupboard. 

Open the cover on the fuse box. Most switches will still be in the “on” position so its easy to spot which one has tripped because it will be showing as “off”. Don’t be nervous, just raise the switch back to the on position. You should notice lights and power coming back on straight away.  

If the switch stays on, the chances are that a faulty light bulb or appliance caused the trip. If it was a light bulb, that will be easy to spot, as it will be burned out and not working any more. Checking for a faulty appliance could be more time consuming. Turn off and unplug all appliances in the area of your home that was affected by the trip, including your immersion heater if you have one. Then plug the appliances in again, one at a time, until the circuit trips again. Now you’ve found the culprit you know which appliance you will have to repair or replace.  

If the fuse box continues to trip, or the fuse board switch will not stay in the “on” position, you will need to call an electrician to investigate.