FAQ – Electrical Questions Answered

Yes. Queensland law requires all electrical work to be carried out by a licensed electrical contractor or their employees. This covers power points, light fittings, switchboards, ceiling fans, and any other fixed wiring. Unlicensed electrical work is illegal, may void your insurance, and creates genuine safety risks. Crusader Electrical & Air holds Queensland Electrical Contractor Licence 91149.

We charge a service call fee to attend and a labour rate for the time on site. Parts and materials are additional. We provide written quotes before starting work on any job where the scope is known in advance, so you know what you are paying before we start.

Yes. For any job where the scope is clear before we attend, we will quote in writing before work begins. For fault-finding jobs where the cause is unknown, we will assess the issue on site and advise you of the cost before proceeding.

We cover Brisbane, Brisbane’s western suburbs, Ipswich, Springfield, Logan, and surrounding areas. We work Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm, with 24 hour emergency response outside those hours. Call us on 07 3060 9105 to check availability in your area.

Yes. We work across residential homes, commercial tenancies, and light industrial properties. Commercial work includes office and retail fit-outs, data cabling, switchboard upgrades, lighting, and ongoing electrical maintenance.

If a single breaker keeps tripping, the circuit may be overloaded or there may be a fault in the wiring or a connected appliance. Reset the breaker and test appliances one at a time to identify the cause. If the breaker continues to trip, or if you have old ceramic fuses rather than circuit breakers, contact a licensed electrician to assess the situation properly. Do not ignore repeated tripping.

Yes. Renovation electrical work is one of the most common jobs we carry out. This includes new circuits for kitchens, bathrooms, and additions, as well as lighting, power points, switchboard upgrades, and connections for appliances. We work alongside builders and other trades and can quote on the electrical scope from your plans.

A safety switch (RCD or Residual Current Device) monitors the flow of electricity through a circuit and cuts power within milliseconds if it detects a leakage fault. Queensland regulations now require safety switches on all circuits in new and substantially renovated homes. Older homes may have limited coverage or none at all, which is a genuine risk. Adding RCDs to unprotected circuits is a straightforward and worthwhile upgrade.

Queensland has required interconnected photoelectric smoke alarms in all homes sold, leased or substantially renovated since 1 January 2022, so every rental property must already comply. All remaining owner-occupied homes must be upgraded by 1 January 2027. We install and test smoke alarms to the current Queensland standard and can carry out compliance checks for rental properties and property sales.

Yes. We carry out electrical safety inspections for buyers, sellers, and property managers. The inspection covers the switchboard, wiring condition, safety switch coverage, smoke alarms, and any visible faults. We provide a written report of findings. This is a useful step before purchasing an older property or preparing a home for sale or lease.

An RCD test checks that your safety switches respond correctly within the required time when a fault is simulated. Safety switches can fail over time without showing obvious signs. The Electrical Safety Office recommends pressing the test button on your safety switches every three months, and professional RCD trip-time testing is worth booking if a switch fails to trip or your switchboard is getting old. We can carry out RCD testing as part of a general electrical inspection.

Sizing depends on the room’s floor area, insulation, ceiling height, window size and orientation, and how much sun the room receives. As a rough guide: 15 to 20m² suits a 2.5kW unit; 20 to 30m² suits a 3.5kW unit; 30 to 45m² suits a 5.0kW unit; larger spaces or open-plan areas may need 7.1kW or more. An on-site assessment gives you the most accurate recommendation for your specific space.

A standard single split system installation takes around 3 to 4 hours. Multi-head systems and ducted installations take longer depending on the number of indoor units and how accessible the roof space and external walls are. We will give you a realistic time estimate when we quote.

A professional service once every 12 months is a reasonable baseline for residential systems. Servicing covers cleaning the filters and coils, checking refrigerant pressure, inspecting electrical connections, and testing the unit’s operation. Regular servicing extends the lifespan of the unit and keeps running costs lower.

We install Daikin, Mitsubishi Electric, Fujitsu, and other leading brands. We can advise on the right model for your space and budget. We supply the equipment and complete the full electrical installation in a single job.

Yes. We carry out servicing and repairs on most brands of split system and ducted air conditioning, regardless of where the unit was purchased or installed. If you are experiencing a fault or the unit is not cooling or heating effectively, call us to discuss.

Yes. Air conditioning installation involves electrical work on the indoor and outdoor units and the power circuit from your switchboard. This work must be carried out by a licensed electrical contractor. We supply and install both the air conditioning equipment and all associated electrical work.

The main federal incentive is Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs), which reduce the upfront cost of your system based on its size and your location. Queensland also offers a feed-in tariff for excess power exported to the grid, though rates vary by retailer. Queensland also runs the Supercharged Solar for Renters program, which offers rebates for eligible rental properties, and the federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program reduces the cost of adding a battery. Eligibility and funding rounds change, so check the current government program pages before you commit.

Not necessarily. A solar system without a battery will reduce your daytime power bills and generate feed-in tariff credits for excess energy exported to the grid. A battery allows you to store that excess energy for use at night, which makes sense if your household has significant evening consumption or if you want greater independence from the grid. We can help you model both options before making a decision.

Savings depend on your system size, how much power you use during the day, your electricity tariff, and the feed-in tariff rate your retailer pays. A system sized to match your daytime consumption can significantly reduce or eliminate daytime electricity costs. We can discuss realistic expectations based on your usage patterns during the quoting process.

Standard grid-connected solar systems shut down automatically during a power outage as a safety requirement to protect workers restoring the grid. If you want backup power during outages, a battery system with backup capability is required. Not all batteries offer this feature, so it is worth discussing during the planning stage if backup is a priority for you.

Most home EV charging is done at Level 2, using a dedicated 32A circuit and a wall-mounted charging unit. This charges most electric vehicles at 7 to 22kW depending on the vehicle’s onboard charger. Standard domestic power points (Level 1) are too slow for overnight charging of most modern EVs and are not the recommended long-term solution. We can advise on the right setup for your vehicle and home.

It depends on the current capacity and condition of your switchboard. An EV charger draws a consistent load that older switchboards may not be equipped to handle safely. We will assess your switchboard as part of the installation quote and let you know if an upgrade is required before or alongside the charger installation.