Electrician Armstrong Creek
Lighting, extra power points and EV chargers for newer Armstrong Creek homes, by CabledIN
Armstrong Creek households call CabledIN, their local electrician, to add to a newer home: more lighting, extra power points, safety switches, TV points and EV chargers. We have done more than 20 jobs in the suburb, and we are a licensed Registered Electrical Contractor (REC 30925) based in North Geelong.
Most jobs here are one visit, such as a few downlights or a double power point. A new circuit takes longer if the switchboard has no spare room. The price depends on what is being added and what the board can take, so we quote once we have seen it.
- Jobs in Armstrong Creek
- More than 20
- Most common job
- Lighting
- Council
- City of Greater Geelong
- Licence
- REC 30925
Electrician Armstrong Creek: what our job records show
Armstrong Creek has given us more than 20 jobs, and the pattern is clear: owners and renters of newer homes adding to what came with the house. In order of how often each appears:
- Lighting. About half of our Armstrong Creek jobs include lighting, mostly LED downlights in the two common cut-out sizes, plus new switches.
- Power points and safety switches. Equal second. Extra double and four-outlet power points, with each new circuit protected by a combined circuit breaker and safety switch.
- Switchboards and smoke alarms. Board work to make room for new circuits, and smoke alarms replaced or added.
- TV points, CCTV and fault finding. TVs mounted on the wall with antenna points behind them, security cameras, and tracking down circuits that trip.
- Exhaust fans, outdoor power, ceiling fans and EV chargers. Each has come up more than once.
Why a newer home still needs an electrician
Armstrong Creek only became an official suburb in 2012, carved out of farmland that had been part of Mount Duneed and Connewarre. At the 2021 Census it had 11,247 residents in 3,982 private dwellings. Separate houses made up 95.1 per cent of homes, the median age was 30, and only 10.9 per cent of homes were owned outright. The council's plan for the wider Armstrong Creek growth area allows for about 22,000 homes, so building is far from finished.
New wiring is rarely the problem. The issue is that a home's electrical layout is settled before anyone has lived in it. Then a household moves in and finds:
- too few power points in the kitchen, bedrooms and garage
- living areas lit by one or two fittings, with dark corners
- no power point or antenna point where the TV is meant to go on the wall
- nothing outside for lights, garden tools or a car charger
Those gaps are behind most of the jobs listed above.
Talk to a licensed Geelong electrician (REC 30925).
When the switchboard is full, and how that affects the price
Every new circuit, whether for garage power, outdoor lights or an EV charger, needs a space on the switchboard. Each one we add gets its own combined circuit breaker and safety switch. Some new boards have spare spaces; others are full from the day the house is finished.
When a board is full there are two answers, and the electrician will tell you which one suits:
- A sub-board. A small second board, fed from the main one, that holds the new circuits.
- A larger main switchboard. More work, and treated more strictly. Replacing a main switchboard is prescribed work in Victoria, so an independent licensed electrical inspector must inspect it before the power goes back on, and every final circuit on the new board must have safety switch (RCD) protection.
Both can come up in a suburb like Armstrong Creek. Which one you need is the biggest single factor in the price of adding circuits to a newer home. Our switchboard upgrades page explains the process.
Lighting, TV points and fans
Lighting is the most common job we do in Armstrong Creek. Most of it is LED downlights added to rooms that came with too few fittings, and new or extra switches.
TV work is a steady second in this group. We mount the TV on the wall, fit a power point and antenna point behind it, and run the cables inside the wall where the construction allows, so nothing hangs below the screen. See our TV wall mounting page.
Bathroom and laundry exhaust fans are the other regular request, replaced or added, along with ceiling fans in bedrooms and living areas.
EV chargers and outdoor power
EV chargers are a smaller share of our Armstrong Creek work so far, including one on a three-phase supply. Each one is a full installation: a new circuit from the switchboard, a weatherproof isolating switch where it is needed, the charger itself, and testing.
Before quoting, the electrician checks two things: whether the switchboard has room, and whether the home's supply can carry the extra load. Powercor, the electricity distributor for the Geelong region, lists EV chargers as a common reason to upgrade a home's supply. If yours needs one, we lodge the request with Powercor for you. See EV charger installation.
Outdoors, the requests are weatherproof power points for the yard and garage, and outdoor lights.
Not sure what you need? Tell us what is happening and we will talk it through.
Smoke alarm dates, and checks for rented homes
Because Armstrong Creek only dates from 2012, most of its homes were built after both of the dates in Victoria's smoke alarm rules:
- homes built after 1 August 1997 must have 240 V mains-powered alarms with a backup battery
- homes built or substantially renovated after 1 May 2014 that need more than one alarm must have them interconnected, so they all sound together
Every alarm should be replaced every 10 years, so homes from the suburb's first years are reaching the point where their original alarms are due. By law, only a licensed electrician can replace a hard-wired alarm.
About a third of Armstrong Creek homes were rented at the 2021 Census (34.4 per cent). Newer wiring is no reason to skip a check on a rented home. Owners and property managers book us here for electrical safety checks and smoke alarm checks, and the alarm check is a good moment to read the dates on alarms from the suburb's first years.
Electrical services available in Armstrong Creek
Every home service we offer across Geelong is available in Armstrong Creek. The ones owners here book most are lighting installation, power point installation, safety switches, switchboard work and smoke alarms. We also fit TV and antenna points, security cameras, exhaust and ceiling fans, outdoor lights, data points and EV chargers, and we find and fix faults, with 24/7 emergency call-outs on 1300 025 555.
Booking an electrician in Armstrong Creek
- Call 1300 025 555 and tell us what you want added, or what has stopped working. A photo of the switchboard helps.
- We agree a time. Most Armstrong Creek jobs are planned work, booked for a day that suits you.
- On site, the electrician checks the switchboard first, because that decides whether a new circuit will fit.
- You get the price before any work starts.
- The work is tested before it is switched on.
- You get your Certificate of Electrical Safety. Victoria requires one for all electrical installation work, however small. For lights and power points, your copy is due within 30 days.
Armstrong Creek's neighbours
Armstrong Creek borders Mount Duneed, where new subdivisions have also gone in, as well as Charlemont, Connewarre and Moolap. Beyond Mount Duneed we work down to Torquay on the Surf Coast. For the rest of the region, see our residential electrician Geelong page.
Recent electrical jobs in Armstrong Creek
Frequently asked questions
Do you take small jobs in Armstrong Creek, like two downlights?
Yes. Most of our Armstrong Creek work is small: a few downlights, a double power point, a smoke alarm or an exhaust fan. These are usually one visit.
My Armstrong Creek home is new. Why would the switchboard need work?
Usually because there is no spare space for a new circuit. A board can be full on the day you move in. The fix is a sub-board or a larger main switchboard.
Can more power points be added to a finished house?
Yes. In a single-storey house the cable can usually be run through the roof space and down inside the wall, so the plaster only needs a cut-out for the new power point. Two-storey homes take more planning.
Can you install an EV charger in an Armstrong Creek garage?
Yes. We check the switchboard and the home's supply first, then run a new circuit to the charger. If the supply needs upgrading we lodge the request with Powercor, which says most supply alterations take 3 to 8 weeks.
Are smoke alarms in Armstrong Creek homes due for replacement yet?
Some are. Every smoke alarm should be replaced every 10 years, and homes from the suburb's first years are reaching that point. Check the date printed on each alarm, and remember that hard-wired alarms must be replaced by a licensed electrician.
I rent out a house in Armstrong Creek. Can you check it?
Yes. We check the switchboard, wiring and fittings, test the safety switches and smoke alarms, and send you or your property manager a written report. Access is arranged with the household, and any repairs are quoted first.
Can you mount a TV on the wall and hide the cables?
Yes. We fit the bracket, a power point and an antenna point behind the screen, and run the cables inside the wall where the construction allows. TV wall mounting is one of our regular Armstrong Creek jobs.
Why does a circuit in my new home keep tripping?
A safety switch trips when it detects electricity leaking, which can come from a faulty appliance, power point or wiring. Unplug everything on that circuit and reset the switch. If it trips again with nothing plugged in, or will not reset, call a licensed electrician.
Can you install security cameras at an Armstrong Creek home?
Yes. CCTV is a regular request in Armstrong Creek. We mount the cameras and run the cabling back to the recorder.
Still have a question? Ask the CabledIN team.