The lights go off, the fridge stops humming and the Wi-Fi drops out. Whether it happens during a summer storm or on a quiet weeknight, a power outage is stressful. The good news is that a few simple checks will usually tell you what’s going on, and whether you need an electrician or just need to wait it out.
Here’s the checklist we give our customers in Point Cook and across Melbourne’s west.
1. Make sure everyone is safe
Before anything else, check that nobody is hurt and nothing is burning. If someone has had an electric shock, call 000 straight away. Don’t touch them while they may still be in contact with the power source.
If you can see sparks, smoke or scorch marks, or smell burning, keep everyone away from the area and call us. If a power line is down in the street or on your property, stay well clear, keep others away and call the faults number on your electricity bill or 000. Never try to move a fallen line.
2. Is it just you, or the whole street?
Look outside. Are the streetlights on? Do your neighbours have lights on? A quick message to the person next door can save a lot of guesswork.
- Whole street is dark: it’s most likely a network fault. Your electricity distributor is responsible, not your electrician. Their faults number is on your electricity bill, and most distributors have an online outage map.
- Only your home is out: the problem is probably on your side of the meter, so the next step is your switchboard.
- Only part of your home is out: that’s almost always a tripped safety switch or circuit breaker.
3. Check your switchboard
Most homes in Point Cook, Williams Landing and the newer estates have the switchboard on an outside wall near the meter. Older homes sometimes have it inside, often in a hallway or laundry cupboard.
Open the cover and look for a switch that’s in a different position from the others. Safety switches usually have a Test button on them. If one has tripped, here’s what to do:
- Unplug appliances on the affected part of the house, or switch them off at the wall.
- Push the tripped switch firmly back to the on position.
- If it stays on, plug appliances back in one at a time. If it trips again when a particular appliance goes back in, that appliance is the likely culprit. Leave it unplugged and get it checked.
For a closer look at why this happens, read our guide on why a safety switch keeps tripping.
4. If the switch won’t reset
If a safety switch trips again straight away, even with everything unplugged, there’s likely a fault in the wiring itself. Common causes are water getting into an outdoor power point or light after rain, damaged cable in the roof or walls, or a fault in a fixed appliance like an oven or hot water system.
Don’t keep forcing it back on, and never tape or wedge a switch in the on position. The switch is doing its job by cutting the power. Leave it off and call a licensed electrician to find the fault.
5. If it’s a network outage
When the whole street is out, there isn’t much you can do except wait. A few things help:
- Check your distributor’s outage information for an estimated restore time.
- Keep the fridge and freezer closed. Food stays cold much longer if you don’t open the doors.
- Switch off and unplug sensitive electronics like TVs and computers, so they aren’t hit by a surge when the power comes back.
- Leave one light switched on so you know when power is restored.
- Use torches rather than candles.
If your neighbours’ power comes back and yours doesn’t, go back to step 3. Sometimes a surge on reconnection trips a safety switch or damages something in your home.
6. When to call an electrician
Call us straight away if any of these apply:
- A safety switch won’t reset, or keeps tripping.
- You can smell burning or see scorch marks on the switchboard, a power point or a switch.
- There’s water near the switchboard, power points or light fittings.
- Lights are flickering or dimming across the whole house.
- Your power didn’t come back after a network outage ended.
- Only some of your home has power and you can’t find a tripped switch.
We take emergency calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, across Point Cook, Werribee, Hoppers Crossing, Tarneit and the rest of Melbourne’s west.
Be ready for next time
A little preparation makes the next outage much easier:
- Keep a working torch somewhere you can find it in the dark.
- Know where your switchboard is and how to open it.
- Make sure every circuit on your switchboard is labelled.
- Test your safety switches. Energy Safe Victoria recommends pressing the Test button once a year. If power doesn’t cut when you press it, get the switch checked.
- If your switchboard still has old ceramic fuses, think about an upgrade. Modern boards with safety switches are far safer. See our signs your switchboard needs upgrading.
Power still out? We can help, day or night
We’re a family-owned, licensed electrical business based in Point Cook, with more than 25 years of experience. We work across Williams Landing, Werribee, Hoppers Crossing, Tarneit, Truganina and the rest of Melbourne’s west, and we take emergency calls 24/7. Find out more about our emergency electrician service.
Call us on 0405 418 132, or send a few details and a photo of the job. Every job is quoted before we start.