Understanding your electricity needs

Electrifying your property is a great way to lower your energy costs and gain access to greener sources of power. However, as you consider switching to electric devices for your home or business, it is important to make sure your electrical set up is designed to safely handle the increase in electricity use. 

When your property uses more electricity than your electrical setup can safely support, your service fuse will operate (commonly referred to as a blown fuse). This causes a power outage, and we’ll need to send our crew to replace the fuse before your power can be restored. 

Using several high-energy appliances at the same time, may be enough to cause a blown fuse. This becomes even more likely if you have an electric vehicle (EV) or battery, particularly if you’re charging them while using other high-energy appliances such as air conditioning or an oven. 

If you have an EV or battery, or you’re thinking about getting one, we recommend arranging for a registered electrician to inspect your electrical wiring. They can determine whether it’s suitable for your current and future electricity needs, or whether you should apply for a supply upgrade. 

 “3-for-free” energy plans that offer free power during the middle of the day are a great way to reduce electricity costs, however you need to ensure your electrical setup can handle the increased electricity demand during this 3-hour window. 

What is a service fuse?

A service fuse is a safety device that protects customers, their electrical installation and the network if electrical faults are detected. A service fuse operates by cutting power off to your property when it detects a problem, or ‘fault’, service limits are exceeded or unsafe conditions emerge.

On older properties, it’s often located near the roofline. On newer or renovated properties, it’s usually inside the switchboard on an external wall.

Why do service fuses blow?

A service fuse may blow if there’s a problem with your property’s wiring or you used more electricity from the network than your electrical setup is designed to handle. The common causes include: 

• Using several high-energy devices or appliances at once – you may be using a large amount of electricity at the same time. For example, charging your EV or battery whilst also running electric heating, your oven or other high-energy equipment.  
• Wear and tear – service fuses can deteriorate when subject to high energy use over time.

Seasonal trends

We observe more fuses being blown in the winter months. Solar generation can offset the amount of electricity you use from the network reducing your risk of blowing a fuse. However, during cooler months, when solar generation is lower, you are more at risk of blowing a fuse when using more electricity from the network to power high-energy equipment. 

Heatwaves can also increase the risk of a blown fuse, as you’re more likely to run air conditioning while using other high-energy equipment, such as an EV charger or battery.  

How to avoid a blown fuse

If you have high-energy equipment, particularly an EV or battery, one way to reduce the risk of a blown fuse is to spread out when you charge or use them throughout the day.

For example, you could schedule your battery to charge at a different time from your EV, or avoid charging while using other high-energy appliances such as your induction cooktop, oven or air conditioner.

It’s also important you have a registered electrician assess your current and future electricity needs. They can determine whether:

• spreading out when you use high-energy equipment throughout the day is a suitable long-term solution 
• your property’s electrical setup is suitable for the amount of electricity you’re using 
• you should apply for a supply upgrade to support your energy needs. 

If you need a supply upgrade

A supply upgrade at your property will allow you to increase the amount of electricity you can safely use. This could involve increasing the size of your fuse or upgrading from a single-phase to three-phase electricity supply (if available in your area).

Your electrician can help you understand what you need and will submit a supply upgrade application with us on your behalf. We charge a fee for a customer supply upgrade as works need to be completed on our electricity network to accommodate the additional electricity use.

Separately, your electrician will also charge a fee for any work needed on your own property to support the supply upgrade.

How to apply

Your electrician needs to submit the application through our online portal, eConnect, along with a Certificate of Electrical Safety.