Electrical work in Frankston North
Electrical work in Frankston North 3200, the Pines Forest estate: 1960s and 1970s brick veneer homes, switchboards, rewiring, smoke alarms and rental checks.
Frankston North, known locally as the Pines or Pines Forest, is a compact suburb in the City of Frankston, just south of Carrum Downs. Most of it is one estate built by the Housing Commission of Victoria in the 1960s and 1970s, so its houses share a similar age and construction, and they tend to need the same electrical work: switchboard replacement, safety switches, circuit testing and, in some homes, rewiring. Enquiries from Frankston North are referred to independent licensed electricians; the provider who takes the job is the one who quotes and does it.
The Pines Forest estate
The area was a state pine plantation before the Housing Commission was given land in 1956 to build homes, and the first stage was finished in 1957. Frankston City’s community profile dates the main development of Frankston North to the 1960s and 1970s. The houses are mostly single-storey brick veneer with cement tile roofs, with some homes in the older western section built from conite. During the 1990s many of the government-owned homes were sold to the people living in them, and owners have renovated many of them since.
For electrical work that history gives a predictable starting point:
| House feature | What it may mean | Where to read more |
|---|---|---|
| Original 1960s or 1970s board | Rewireable fuses, little or no RCD protection, no spare ways | Switchboard upgrades |
| Wiring more than 50 years old | Insulation may have degraded; testing decides between repair and rewire | Fault finding |
| Single-storey with a pitched tile roof | Roof-space access is usually good, which helps new cable runs | Power points and circuits |
| Built before 1997 | Battery smoke alarms are permitted, though interconnected alarms are recommended | See below |
| Built before 1990 | Likely to contain asbestos somewhere | See below |
Asbestos before any electrical work
According to the Victorian Asbestos Hub, any house put up or renovated before 1990 probably has asbestos somewhere in it, with electrical cupboards on its list of usual spots. Its advice for homeowners and renovators is to check before any work, even drilling a hole, or to assume it is present and take precautions. In a Frankston North home that applies to the meter board and switchboard backing, and to any sheeting the electrician needs to cut through. Removal is a job for a licensed asbestos removalist, not the electrician.
Smoke alarms
Every Frankston North house in the original estate predates 1 August 1997, so the Building and Plumbing Commission’s guide allows battery-powered alarms. The same guide recommends interconnected alarms, and a ten-year lithium battery type if they are not hard-wired, and it says the landlord is responsible for alarms in a rented home. Owners who want hardwired, interconnected alarms can combine them with a switchboard or lighting job, with published Melbourne pricing of $105 to $260 per alarm for each alarm supplied and installed.
Rentals
Rental homes have their own checklist. Energy Safe Victoria’s residential property safety checks page says landlords must have gas and electrical safety checks carried out every two years by licensed or registered tradespeople, keep the records and show them to the tenant on request, and that all switchboards must have RCDs fitted. A Frankston North rental still on its original board will usually need it replaced to meet that.
What jobs usually cost
The What’s The Damage? Melbourne price table (October 2026, GST inclusive) gives $945 to $2,950 for a single-phase switchboard upgrade and $160 to $370 per switch to add a safety switch to a board that can take one. If testing shows the wiring itself has failed, rewiring runs at $1,050 to $3,150 per room per room. Our cost guide sets these against smaller jobs and explains what is usually excluded.
Nearby
Carrum Downs lies directly north, with newer housing, and Seaford to the north-west has a similar mix of older homes.
Ready to go ahead? Send the Frankston North job with a photo of the switchboard and a note of any renovations you know about.
Frequently asked questions
- My Frankston North house still has its original fuse board. Is that legal?
Rented homes have a firm rule: power outlets and lighting circuits in a rental must now be protected by a switchboard-type circuit breaker and RCD. For an owner-occupied house, Energy Safe Victoria's advice is simply that your home should have a safety switch on the switchboard, and an old fuse board without one gives far less protection against shock.
- Will the electrician test for asbestos?
Electricians do not usually test for asbestos themselves. If the board backing or nearby sheeting might contain it, the provider may ask for it to be tested by an asbestos assessor or handled by a licensed removalist before the switchboard work starts.
- Do I have to rewire the whole house?
Not necessarily. Some Pines homes have had partial upgrades over the years. Testing shows which circuits have deteriorated, and the provider can quote a staged or full rewire from there.
- Can battery smoke alarms stay in my Frankston North home?
For houses built before 1 August 1997, battery alarms are allowed. Interconnected alarms are recommended so every alarm sounds together, using either hard-wired units installed by an electrician or ten-year lithium wireless units.
- Is Frankston North the same as Pines Forest?
Yes. Frankston North was originally the Pines Forest Estate and is still widely called the Pines. Use Frankston North 3200 in your enquiry so the location is clear.