Power cut: is it your fuse board or the grid?
Quick answer
If the whole street is dark, it is a network fault: call 105, the free national power cut line. If only your home is off, check your fuse board for a tripped switch and reset it once. If it will not stay on, only part of the house has power, or you smell burning, call an emergency electrician on 07703 295654.
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Are your neighbours’ lights off too?
Look out of the window before you touch anything. If the street lights are out or the houses opposite are dark, the fault is on the network, not in your home. Call 105. It is free, works from any phone and puts you through to your local network operator. In Greater Manchester that is Electricity North West.
If everyone else has power and you do not, the problem is almost certainly inside your property, so carry on.
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Check the fuse board
Find your consumer unit and look for any switch pointing the opposite way to the others. Flip it firmly back on once.
If it stays on, something on that circuit tripped it, often an appliance. Unplug what was running when the power went and see if it holds.
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When it is an electrician’s job
Call us if the switch will not stay on, if only part of the house has power, if the board buzzes or smells hot, or if nothing has tripped but the power is still off.
Do not keep forcing a switch that trips. Each reset pushes energy into a fault, and the fault is telling you something is wrong.
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What we do when we arrive
We test the board, trace the faulty circuit and make the installation safe first. Most homes are left with power to everything except the faulty circuit, and a fixed quote for the repair before any work starts.
Related questions
What number do I call for a power cut in Manchester?
Call 105. It is free from any phone and connects you to Electricity North West, the network operator for Greater Manchester. They deal with faults on the cables up to your meter.
Why is only half my house without power?
One circuit or one RCD has tripped, or a fault is holding it off. Check the board for a switch in the off position and reset it once. If it trips again, leave it off and call us.
Nothing on the fuse board has tripped but I have no power. What now?
Check your neighbours first. If they have power, the fault may be at your meter, main fuse or supply cable. Do not touch the meter or the sealed main fuse. Call 105 and us: we can tell you on the phone which side of the meter the fault is likely to be.