solid or mixed masonry, partition walls timber-framed with plasterboard. Freeholder or managing-agent consent almost always required for CU work.
Period-flat CU swaps need freeholder consent because the tails run through communal areas — we draft the letter with the quote.
If you own a period flat in Cardiff and need consumer unit upgrades, the right spec is usually not the most expensive one. On this stock the sensible answer is metal-clad 18th Edition CU sized to the sub-main — matched to the wiring generation, not a lift-and-shift from a new-build brochure.
That is the standard we quote to. Fixed price, honest survey, SPD as standard, and paperwork the next EICR won't question.
Period Flat Conversion properties are a distinctive part of the Cardiff housing mix — a mix of Victorian and Edwardian terraces in Cathays and Roath, 1930s semis around Whitchurch, and modern estates in Pontprennau and Pentwyn, particularly around Cardiff Bay & city centre. We work on this stock weekly.
Focus on the hallway, the consumer unit location, and the intended cable route. Usually 15–30 minutes on-site or a short photo set.
Priced against your period flat's specific construction, not a template. Route sketched, materials listed, no line-item surprises.
Diary planned for the access constraint that matters on this stock — freeholder or managing-agent consent almost always required for cu work.
NICEIC certificate, photo evidence of hidden work, Part P where applicable — all emailed the evening the job signs off.
For a period flat usually yes — a 15-minute survey or a set of photos of the hallway and the consumer unit is enough to write a fixed price.
Usually yes, because the tails route through common areas. We send a standard consent letter with the quote you can forward to the managing agent.
metal-clad 18th Edition CU sized to the sub-main; SPD as standard; communal-area emergency lighting where the freeholder brief includes it. All on the written quote.
Two things: sub-main tails routed through communal areas — freeholder consent needed for CU work, and the wiring generation — conversion-era 1990s–2010s. Both go on the quote, not the invoice.
Not unless the quote says so. On period stock in particular we route through floors, lofts and non-original plaster; cornices, dado rails and original panelling stay intact.
Freeholder or managing-agent consent almost always required for CU work. We handle the letter chain if needed.
Wiring generation on this stock is typically conversion-era 1990s–2010s; sub-main from the communal supply, individual metering. On a period flat you should expect us to flag: sub-main tails routed through communal areas — freeholder consent needed for CU work; communal lighting on a separate meter, not always tested with the flat's EICR; old landlord's supply feeding hallway heaters or emergency lighting.
Materials and methods we spec on period flat conversion work: metal-clad 18th Edition CU sized to the sub-main; SPD as standard; communal-area emergency lighting where the freeholder brief includes it. Everything is priced on the quote — nothing added on invoice.
Beyond Cardiff itself, we regularly cover period flat work across Penarth, Caerphilly, Pontypridd on the same fixed-price model — same materials, same certificate format.
"Quick, easy and clear with the process! Would definitely call out again for future work." — Lauren Filby, Sockets & Lights — Two Rooms
Bottom line: period flat conversion owners in Cardiff deserve a quote calibrated to conversion of pre-1940 building construction, not a template. That's what we do, on every job.
Send the address, a photo of the hallway and the consumer unit, and the keep the flat lettable you're working towards. Written fixed quote back inside 24 hours, priced to the actual construction of your period flat.
