Loose connections generate heat
A connection that has worked loose arcs and heats every time the circuit is loaded. That is the mechanism behind most electrical fires in domestic property.
NICEIC Approved Contractor · Reg 041430
Emergency electricianin Congleton, speak toMike directly
Power off, a circuit that will not stay on, burning smells or a socket that has stopped working. You call, you get the electrician who will do the work, and the hourly rate is made clear before we attend, with any repair quoted before it starts.
4.8 from 58 Google reviews · NICEIC Approved Contractor 041430 · £5m public liability
Speak to Mike direct
No call centre, no dispatcher
38 years in the trade
Qualified electrician since 1988
Rate clear before we attend
Hourly rate stated when you call
Repairs quoted first
Nothing repaired before you approve the price
The service
What an emergency call-out covers
An emergency call-out is fault-finding: establishing why the installation is not doing what it should, making it safe, and telling you what it will cost to fix before anything is repaired. That covers total loss of power, circuits that trip immediately on reset, dead sockets and lighting circuits, burning smells at a board or accessory, and damage from water ingress or building work.
Fault-finding is charged at an hourly rate, which is made clear before we attend, because nobody can honestly price a fault they have not seen. Once the cause is identified, the repair itself is quoted before the work starts, so you decide with a number in front of you.
You speak to Mike directly when you call. He will ask what happened, what the board is showing and what you have already tried, which often narrows the fault before anyone leaves. If it is something you can safely resolve yourself, he will tell you that on the phone.
Every visit is by a City & Guilds 2391 qualified electrician working to 18th Edition standards, as a NICEIC Approved Contractor with £5,000,000 public liability insurance.
Who it is for
Total loss of power
Everything dead, or a main switch that will not stay in: where the fault could be at the board, in a circuit or upstream at the supply.
A circuit that keeps tripping
One device that will not reset is the protection doing its job. Something on that circuit has a genuine fault that needs locating.
Burning smells and scorching
A hot socket, a discoloured faceplate or a smell of burning at the board is a fire risk and should not wait until Monday.
Water ingress and damage
A leak through a ceiling into a light fitting, or damage during building work, needs the affected circuits isolated and tested before they go back on.
What it costs to leave it
Why electrical faults get worse, not better
Electrical faults are rarely one-off events. Something has changed: insulation has broken down, a connection has loosened, moisture has got in, and that change carries on developing until it is found.
Resetting hides a real fault
Pushing a tripped device back in repeatedly does not clear anything. It re-energises a circuit the protection has already judged unsafe.
Moisture spreads through circuits
Water from a leak or a failed outdoor fitting tracks along cable and into accessories, so what starts as one dead light becomes a whole circuit.
Damage during building work
A screw or nail through a buried cable can leave an installation live and dangerous with no visible sign at all.
Warning signs get normalised
Flickering lights, a socket that only works if you wiggle the plug, a slight buzz at the board: these are symptoms people live with for months.
The failure lands at the worst time
Faults surface under load: the evening, the cold snap, the day you have the house full. Left unfound, they choose their own moment.
Common mistakes we get called out to fix
- Repeatedly resetting a device instead of finding out what is tripping it
- Removing a working RCD or bypassing protection to 'stop the nuisance'
- Fitting a higher-rated fuse or MCB so the circuit stops tripping
- Assuming the whole street is off without checking the board and neighbours
- Using extension leads long-term to work around a dead socket circuit
- Getting the cheapest available person in for a fault they have no way of testing
Our process
How the job runs,
start to certificate
- 01
Call and describe it
You speak to Mike. What is off, what the board shows, what changed just before it happened. The hourly rate is made clear before we attend.
- 02
Make safe first
On arrival, the immediate priority is isolating anything dangerous so the property is safe before diagnosis continues.
- 03
Diagnose properly
Test instruments, not guesswork: circuits are tested to identify whether the fault is earth leakage, a short, an overload or a broken connection, and where on the circuit it sits.
- 04
Explain and quote the repair
You are told what the fault is in plain English, and the repair is quoted before any repair work starts.
- 05
Repair and test
The fault is put right and the circuit tested to 18th Edition standards before it is energised, so it goes back on proven rather than hoped.
- 06
Tell you what caused it
What the underlying cause was and whether it points to something larger: an ageing board, deteriorating circuits or work that should be planned.
What you get
The difference it makes
once the work is done
One person, start to finish
You speak to Mike, and Mike does the work. Nothing is lost between a call handler and the van.
No blank cheque
The hourly rate is stated before we attend and any repair is quoted before it begins.
Found, not guessed
Proper testing locates the actual fault rather than replacing parts until the symptom disappears.
Safe before anything else
Anything dangerous is isolated first, so the property is not left at risk while diagnosis continues.
The cause, not just the symptom
You are told why it happened, so a recurring fault gets resolved rather than reset every few weeks.
Certificated and insured
NICEIC Approved Contractor 041430, City & Guilds 2391, 18th Edition, £5,000,000 public liability.
In detail
Common faults and how they are traced
Almost every domestic electrical emergency comes down to a handful of underlying causes. Knowing which one you have is entirely a matter of testing.
Earth leakage: the RCD tripper
When a residual current device keeps operating, current is finding a path to earth somewhere. Common sources are a failing appliance element, water in an outdoor socket or light, a nail or screw through a cable, or degraded insulation in an older circuit.
Tracing it means splitting the installation down, testing insulation resistance circuit by circuit, and narrowing the leakage to a section, an accessory or an appliance. Guessing which appliance to unplug can work by luck; testing works every time.
- Faulty appliances: kettles, washing machines, immersion heaters
- Water ingress in outdoor sockets and lighting
- Cables damaged by fixings during building or decorating work
- Aged insulation breaking down in older circuits
Short circuits and overloads
An MCB that trips instantly on reset usually indicates a short: two conductors touching, often at a damaged accessory, a light fitting or a crushed cable. An MCB that trips after a while under heavy use points to overload instead: too much demand on one circuit.
The distinction matters because the fixes are completely different. One is a repair; the other is often a case for an additional circuit or a board with more capacity.
Loose and burnt connections
Heat damage at a socket, switch or the consumer unit is one of the more serious things found on a call-out. Repeated heating and cooling loosens terminals, and a loose terminal arcs. Discoloured faceplates, a smell of hot plastic and warmth around an accessory are all signs.
The affected accessory is replaced, but the important part is checking whether the same problem exists elsewhere; loose terminals are rarely a single occurrence in an installation that has never been tested.
Loss of supply and lighting circuits
Where everything is dead, the first job is establishing whether the fault is inside the property at all: a supply interruption, a main fuse or a fault in the installation each look identical from the kitchen. Lighting circuits have their own common causes: failed fittings, loose connections at ceiling roses and switch faults.
What you can safely do before we arrive
Unplug appliances on the affected circuit and try one reset; if it holds, the fault is in one of those appliances. Check whether neighbours also have no power. If you can smell burning or see scorching, switch off at the main switch if it is safe to do so and leave it off.
What not to do: remove or bypass protective devices, fit a larger fuse, or keep resetting a device that will not hold. Those turn a fault into a hazard.
- Unplug appliances on the dead circuit, then try one reset
- Check whether neighbouring properties are affected
- Switch off at the main switch if you smell burning, if it is safe
- Never bypass, remove or up-rate a protective device
When the fault is really an ageing installation
Repeat call-outs on the same installation usually mean the circuits themselves are at the end of their life rather than that one thing keeps breaking. At that point the honest answer is an EICR to establish the overall condition, and often a rewire or a consumer unit upgrade rather than another repair.
Full rewires carry a 10-year electrical installation certificate, and as a NICEIC Approved Contractor the work is covered by NICEIC's 6-year insurance-backed guarantee should Amara ever cease trading.
Domestic and light commercial
The business is mainly domestic. Light commercial fault-finding is undertaken on request; give Mike a call to discuss it.
Areas covered
Call-outs are attended across Congleton and the wider Cheshire area, plus Manchester, Stoke-on-Trent, Stockport, Cheadle, Wilmslow, Altrincham and Crewe.
Where we work
Emergency Electrician across
Cheshire and Manchester
Based in Congleton and covering the surrounding towns. See the full list of areas we cover or get in touch.
Related services
Often booked
alongside this work
- EICR ReportsEICR electrical safety reports for homeowners and landlords in Congleton and across Cheshire. NICEIC approved, fixed price, clear plain-English results.
- Consumer Unit UpgradesConsumer unit and fuse board upgrades in Congleton and across Cheshire. Metal boards, RCBO protection, fitted and certificated by a NICEIC contractor.
- Full House RewiresFull house rewires in Congleton and across Cheshire. NICEIC approved, fixed price agreed in advance, no deposit and a 10-year rewire certificate.
- All services on the homepage
Common questions
Emergency Electrician
questions answered
Anything not covered here, call Mike on 07946 541693.
How much does an emergency electrician cost?+
Fault-finding call-outs are charged at an hourly rate, which is made clear before we attend. Once the fault is found, the repair is quoted before any repair work starts, so you approve the price first.
Why is fault-finding charged hourly rather than fixed price?+
Because nobody can honestly price a fault they have not seen. The hourly rate is stated up front so the basis of the charge is transparent, and the repair itself is quoted as a price before it begins.
How quickly can you get to me?+
Call Mike and he will tell you honestly when he can attend, based on where he is and what is already booked. You will get a straight answer rather than a promise that cannot be kept.
Do I speak to an electrician when I call?+
Yes, you speak to Mike directly, not a call centre. He will often narrow the fault down on the phone and, if it is something you can safely sort yourself, he will tell you.
My RCD keeps tripping: what should I do first?+
Unplug everything on the affected circuit and try one reset. If it holds, one of those appliances is at fault. If it trips again with nothing plugged in, the fault is in the installation and needs testing.
I can smell burning near the fuse board, is that urgent?+
Yes. Switch off at the main switch if it is safe to do so, do not reset anything, and call straight away. Burning smells at a board indicate arcing or overheating connections.
Will you make it safe if you cannot repair it the same day?+
Yes. Anything dangerous is isolated and made safe on the visit, and you are told exactly what remains outstanding and what putting it right involves.
Do I get a certificate for repair work?+
Circuits are tested to 18th Edition standards before being re-energised and appropriate certification is issued for the work carried out. Certain products and components carry a 12-month manufacturer warranty.
The same fault keeps coming back, why?+
Recurring faults usually mean the underlying cause was never found, or that the installation itself is deteriorating. An EICR establishes the overall condition and turns guesswork into a documented plan.
Do you cover commercial premises?+
The business is mainly domestic, but light commercial work is undertaken on request. Give Mike a call to discuss it.
Next step
Something wrong right now? Call Mike and describe it
You will speak to the electrician who will do the work. The hourly rate is made clear before we attend, and any repair is quoted before it starts.
07946 541693- NICEIC Approved Contractor, registration 041430
- £5,000,000 public liability insurance
- Free quotes, no deposit required
- 4.8★ from 58 Google reviews
Mon–Fri 8am–7pm · Sat 9am–3pm
