House Rewiring in Salisbury: 2026 Costs & Process

Salisbury gives us some of the oldest wiring we see anywhere in Wessex. Victorian terraces off Fisherton Street, 1930s semis in Harnham and Bishopdown, post-war homes around Bemerton Heath. A lot of them are still running on cable installed when the fuse box was a bank of rewirable fuses and nobody owned more than one television. If that sounds like your house, this guide covers what a rewire actually involves, what we charge in 2026, and how we keep the disruption liveable.

Quick context first: Complete Builds is a Dorset-based building firm working across Wiltshire, Dorset and Hampshire, and rewires and consumer unit upgrades are among the jobs we're asked about most. Everything below reflects how we actually price and run the work, not a vague national average.

Signs your wiring is past it

Age is the big one. If the house hasn't been rewired since the 1980s, the installation is due a proper inspection even if everything seems fine. Beyond that, there are warning signs we ask about on every survey:

• An old fuse box with rewirable fuses or a wooden backboard, and no RCD protection

• Sockets that feel warm, scorch marks around faceplates, or a faint fishy smell near outlets

• Lights that flicker when appliances start up, or circuits that trip regularly

• Rubber, fabric or lead-sheathed cable anywhere in the house, and round two-pin sockets

Any one of those justifies an electrical installation condition report (EICR). We charge £150 to £360 depending on the size of the property, and it tells you definitively whether you need a full rewire or just targeted repairs. If you let the property out, an EICR is a legal requirement every five years anyway, and plenty of the rewires we do start life as a failed landlord report.

What a full rewire costs in Salisbury in 2026

These are our current prices, checked against the going rate across the south coast this month. They include a new metal consumer unit with RCBO protection on every circuit, new cabling throughout, sockets and switches, testing and certification:

• Two-bed terrace: £4,800 to £6,600, typically four to six working days

• Three-bed semi: £6,600 to £10,200, usually five to ten working days

• Four-bed detached: £9,600 to £13,200, often two to three weeks

• Consumer unit replacement on its own, where the wiring tests healthy: £850 to £1,450

The spread comes down to spec and fabric. Lath and plaster walls in older Salisbury terraces take longer to chase and make good than modern plasterboard. Socket count matters more than people expect too: a modern rewire often fits double the outlets the house had before, plus downlights, outdoor power and hardwired smoke alarms. We price all of that from a survey, never over the phone.

How the job actually runs

A rewire happens in two stages. First fix is the messy part: lifting floorboards, chasing walls, running new cable to every point in the house. Second fix is faceplates, light fittings and the new consumer unit, followed by dead and live testing on every circuit. The work is notifiable under Part P of the Building Regulations, and you get an Electrical Installation Certificate at the end, which your solicitor will ask for when you sell.

One aside from jobs around the city: properties near the Cathedral Close and in conservation areas sometimes need surface-run cabling in ornate rooms where chasing isn't appropriate, and listed buildings need a gentler approach entirely. We've worked in both. It changes the method more than the price.

Living in the house while it happens

You can stay in, and most of our customers do. We work room by room, keep power on overnight to the areas you're using, and sheet everything off. It does slow the job and adds cost, because the team is working around furniture and re-energising circuits every evening. An empty house rewires roughly 15 to 25% cheaper, so if you're between tenants or about to move in, that's the moment to do it.

Budget for making good as well. Chasing leaves scars, and replastering typically adds £600 to £1,200 on a three-bed home. Because we're a building firm rather than a standalone electrical outfit, our own plasterers and decorators handle that under the same roof, which is exactly why customers pick us for this job.

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Start with a survey

If your Salisbury home still has its original wiring, don't wait for a burning smell to make the decision for you. We always survey before quoting, so the price you're given is the price you pay. Book an electrical survey with Complete Builds and we'll tell you straight whether you need a full rewire, a partial, or just a new consumer unit.