As a tenant, home or business owner, it’s important that you’re aware of the colours used in UK standard wiring for both your own safety and that of those around you.
This article will help you get to grips with the basics of British wiring, as we explore:
- What the current UK electrical wiring colours are
- Why there are different colours for electrical wiring
- What the old UK electrical wiring colours were
- How much it will cost to rewire your home and much more
Whether you’re considering hiring an electrician to rewire your property, or if you are thinking about doing a spot of DIY, legal guidelines state that anybody working with electricity should have a working knowledge of how electricity works.
What Are the Current Electrical Wiring Colours in the UK?
Any electrical wiring in a UK home features three colours of wiring, which are used for three different functions.
Since 2006, the wiring colours are:
- Brown = live
- Blue = neutral
- Green and yellow = earth
British law now dictates that the colours mentioned above must be used in all new electricity installations.
The blue wire is known as the neutral wire, and its job is to take electricity away from an appliance, and back to the power supply.
The brown cable – known as the live wire – delivers electricity from the power supply to your appliance. Together, the neutral and live wires form a complete electric circuit.
The green and yellow cable is known as the earth wire, and it serves an important safety role.
When travelling around your home, electricity will always take the path of least resistance to the earth. This means that, if the live or neutral wires develop a fault causing any exposed metal to become live, there is a risk of electrocution as electricity can attempt to find its way to earth via the human body.
The green and yellow cable prevent this from happening by ‘earthing’ an electrical appliance.
In addition to household wiring, all plugs in the UK feature the three colours of wire we mention above. The primary purpose for doing this is to make the wiring consistent across appliances, as well as the electrical wiring used in sockets and lights including their corresponding circuits and mains.
What Were the Old Wiring Colours?
Before 2006, different colours of cables were used in UK domestic electrical wiring and appliances for the neutral and live wires.
The old colours were:
- Red = live
- Black = neutral
- Green and yellow = earth
The old electrical colours were phased out in 2006, but as you can imagine, old wiring still exists in many houses and appliances.
The old system of colouring was phased out in an attempt for UK standards to match European wiring standards. The new colours are sometimes referred to as the ‘harmonised’ system, and this is why: changing the colouring to match other countries’ schemes creates harmony across the board.
If your home has old wiring, it is worth getting it checked by a qualified electrician to make sure it is in safe working order, as it is not always necessary to rewire your house by replacing old wiring, providing your existing wiring is properly inspected.
How Do I Find and Hire an Electrician?
Finding the right electrician can be challenging. At HouseholdQuotes, we can connect you to electricians in your area.
Click the button below to tell us more about your project, and we’ll help you find someone quickly and easily:
Click To Get QuotesIf you need a qualified electrician to carry out the work in a timely and affordable fashion or if you’re simply looking for more advice on electrical wiring and safety in your home, then hiring a qualified electrician is the best way to go to ensure safety for you and those around you.
In the first instance, if you know of any friends or family who has had electrical work done on their home or commercial property recently, get in touch with them to see if they’d recommend their supplier. This is a great way to sidestep any cowboy traders and get someone reputable to work for you.
What’s the Easiest Way to Remember Which Wire Is Live?
If you live in a home built before 2006, you may encounter old wiring, so this rhyme will help to distinguish the live wires in both pre-and post-2006 wiring schemes.
‘Touch red and you’ll be dead; touch brown and you’ll go down.’
How Much Does It Cost to Rewire a House?
Are you ready to have your home re-wired? HouseholdQuotes can help you find the right electrician.
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Click To Get QuotesRewiring your entire home, as you would imagine, isn’t a quick job. For instance, rewiring a three bedroom house costs between £2,500 to £4,500, and typically takes between six to 10 days.
The length of time the job will take will be in direct comparison with how big your home is, as well as the condition of your old wiring system. The price will vary based on your geographical location, with homes in large cities like London costing more on average than those based in the North of England.
For full guidance on rewiring your home, take a look at our guide to walk you through the key components from deciding whether or not your home needs rewiring in the first place, all the way down to choosing your ideal electrical contractor for the job.
How Do I Know if I Need to Rewire My House?
UK homes contain two types of wiring circuits known as ring mains and spurs. When inspecting your property, an electrician will check to see whether or not your circuits are safe, and whether one or more of them need to be replaced.
Don’t be surprised if an electrician recommends replacing all of the circuits in your home – even if only some of them are deemed unsafe. This is because if they were installed at the same time, the likelihood is that any circuits currently working will likely also fail at some point in the near future.
And, of course, getting them all fixed at the same time will be less costly in the long run.
It’s worth keeping an eye on the condition of the electrical wiring in your building to prevent dangers such as electrocution and electrical fires.
There are some tell-tale signs that the wiring in your house may need replacing, including:
- If you spot sparks or black marks and scorching around sockets, power points, light switches and fittings, your wiring likely needs replacing
- If you notice the smell of burning, the insulation protecting your wiring is likely wearing out, and in need of a replacement
- If you’re changing a plug, and you notice the wires are red and black, then your wiring is old. In these cases, it’s worth rewiring your appliances to bring them up to modern safety standards
- If you notice wiring which is beginning to crack or it has already cracked, this is a sign that your insulation is failing, and in need of rewiring
- If you’re using several electrical devices and your power keeps tripping, you’re likely overloading the circuit, which could lead to overheating and electrical fire. In these cases, it might be worth hiring a qualified electrician to fit additional sockets so the power is more evenly distributed across your home
What Are Some Warning Signs That the Wiring in My House Could Be Dangerous?
Electricity can be extremely dangerous – and potentially lethal – if not handled correctly. Ideally, any work involving electricity should be handled by a qualified electrician to avoid any damage to yourself and your home.
However, if you’re considering doing some DIY in your home – even if it’s something as simple as changing a plug, or even fitting a new lightbulb – then it’s important to make sure you recognise any danger signs such as:
- If you smell burning, see sparks or any black or burnt-looking patches on any light switches, turn them off immediately both at the wall and on your fuse box
- If you’re removing the cover from a light switch to replace it or fit something such as a dimmer switch, make sure you turn the switches off and on your fuse box
- If you plan on rewiring an electrical plug, make sure that the appliance is turned off, and that the plug has been taken out of the wall. You should also ensure that the three colour-coded wires are placed correctly into the appropriate pegs
Ensuring the Professional Is the Right Fit
Whether or not your contractor is coming to you via a recommendation or not, you must ask the same set of questions.
Getting a written quote is an important part of any home renovation job, as it gives you the stability of written word to fall back on if ever there is a dispute about what’s included in your job.
Depending on the scope of your work – whether it’s an entire rewire or just fitting a few new plug sockets – you’ll want to make sure that the experience of your chosen contractor fits your needs. If they have no experience in whole-house rewiring, it’s best to keep searching until you find someone who does.
Finally, seeing some proof of their references and their insurance is a vital last step before agreeing to work with a contractor. Proof of insurance will verify that they aren’t rogue traders, and verbatim references will help to safeguard you from a bad experience with an untrustworthy contractor.
Final Checklist
When working with electricity in the home or at work, it’s best to enlist the help of a professional who knows exactly what they’re doing. Here’s what we suggest:
- Find a contractor by speaking to neighbours, friends, or searching online
- Agree on the scope of work: do you need your whole home rewiring, or would some extra outlets help to spread the flow of electricity around your home?
- Get a written quote, and make sure both sides agree to it before work starts
- Try to get as much work done in one go as it will save you money in the long run
Use HouseholdQuotes to find local electricians and potentially save money on your wiring project.
Click To Get QuotesFrequently Asked Questions
What Does the Live Wire Do?
The live wire carries current into an electrical appliance.
What Does the Neutral Wire Do?
The neutral wire carries current away from your electrical appliance to prevent it from overloading and acts as the conclusion of an electrical circuit after it has flowed around the live and earth wires.
Can the Neutral Wire Give Me an Electric Shock?
If wired correctly, the neutral wire shouldn’t give you a shock.
What Does the Earth Wire Do?
This wire is a safety device, named earth because it connects the metal that surrounds your electrical appliance with the ground, and prevents the live wire from feeding current straight onto the casing of the appliance.
What Is a Single-Phase Power Supply?
A single-phase power supply is the type of power found in most UK homes.
When you use electricity in your home, the electrical current alternates between the live wire and the neutral wire. This process happens extremely quickly, about 50 times per second.
Single-phase power supplies are different from three-phase power supplies, which have three live wires, and are mainly used in industrial settings.
How Much Do Electricians Charge?
The typical hourly rate for an electrician is between £30 to £45, depending on their qualification level and their location, with daily rates commonly being between £250 to £320. These costs are for pre-booked, planned call-outs – for emergency call-outs, the hourly rate can rise to anywhere from £80 per hour and beyond, depending on your location.
For full information, take a look at our dedicated electrician cost guide, which features costs for various household jobs.
How Much Does It Cost to Wire a Ceiling Light?
To install a standard ceiling light, you can expect supply costs of between £25 to £100 each, depending on the size you choose. The labour costs for this fitting will be generally between £35 to £50, giving a total estimated cost of between £60 to £150.
For full information, take a look at our dedicated ceiling light guide.
What Are the Current British Electrical Standards and Regulations?
The best way of finding the current British Electrical Standards and Regulations is to look at the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) website for a full list of codes and their details.
This is especially important if you’re completing vast renovation work, and need to hit certain regulations to have your structure approved.
What Is the Competent Person Electrical Scheme?
The Competent Person Electrical Scheme is a collection of electricians who are registered to work in households, as well as registered electrical inspectors. While it is important to have a qualified individual complete any aspect of your home renovation, electrical work is especially important, and checking that your chosen supplier is on the Registered Competent Person register can be a great way of ensuring this.
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