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Electricians in Hawke's BayNapier, Hastings and the Bay, after Gabrielle.

Need an electrician in Hawke's Bay? Tell us the job and your postcode, and we'll match you with one licence-checked local sparky who does that kind of work. A power cut or a line down is a different call: Unison runs the lines around Napier and Hastings, Centralines covers Central Hawke's Bay, and Firstlight covers Wairoa.

Three lines companies across the Bay

Unison: Napier, Hastings, Havelock North, Taradale

For a fallen line, call 111 first, then 0800 2 86476. If the power's off, Unison suggests checking your switchboard for tripped switches, then calling Unison before an electrician, because a sparky can't check Unison's network.

Centralines: Waipukurau, Waipawa and the district

24 hour faultline 0800 667 693 (0800 NO POWER). It needs written consent before anyone works within 4 metres of its lines, digs within 5 metres of a pole, cable or box, or trims trees near lines.

Firstlight Network: Wairoa

Faults, 24/7: 0800 206 207. More on Firstlight on our Tairāwhiti Gisborne page.

What Gabrielle did to the power

In Cyclone Gabrielle, floodwater from the Tutaekuri River swamped Transpower's Redclyffe substation, and Unison says losing it cut supply to all 66,000 of its Hawke's Bay customers. Napier's outages ran longest. The damage also put a ripple control plant out of service, so some Napier homes had power back before their hot water.

Centralines had about 5,600 customers affected, and on 15 February 2023 fewer than 850 households were still off, mostly where slips and flooding blocked access.

If water got into the house

Leave anything that was wet switched off, including the switchboard, low power points and the hot water cylinder, until a licensed electrician has checked it. Burn marks, a strange smell or crackling at the board: don't touch it, and ring your lines company.

Earthquake country, and houses from the 1920s and 30s

Unison calls Hawke's Bay one of the most seismically active regions in New Zealand, with 16 earthquakes above magnitude 6.0 since records began in 1840. After 1931, virtually all of Napier's central business area was rebuilt, mostly in Art Deco style, and the Art Deco Trust calls Marewa's 1930s houses Spanish Deco. Most homes on Napier Hill date from the 1920s, and Hastings' streets around Cornwall Park have 1920s villas and stucco houses.

Houses that age can still have original wiring and old fuses. A rewire or a new switchboard is the usual fix, and with original plaster and timber, it pays to pick an electrician who does older homes regularly.

Building in Central Hawke's Bay

Centralines says residential connections in Waipukurau and Waipawa grew more than 2.5% a year on average over five years, and its Waipukurau substation is approaching its limit. For a new connection there, lodge the form at least 30 working days before you want power, and apply before installing solar.

We have local pages for Napier, Hastings and Havelock North. Repair work follows the same national certificate rules here as anywhere, by risk level (certificates explained).

What we'd do in Hawke's Bay

If your house took water in 2023 and nobody has checked the wiring since, start there. For a 1920s or 1930s home, an electrical inspection tells you whether it needs a rewire or just a new board.

Want a specialist to sort it?

Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.

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Cities and towns in Hawke's Bay

Electricians in NapierUnison's number, hot water that won't heat, Napier Hill's 1920s houses and the 2020 flood.Electricians in HastingsHastings' 1920s villas, rural outages from Cook to Gabrielle, liquefaction and the jobs Hastings homes need.

Questions

Straight answers.

Can I trim a tree near the line to my house?

Unison doesn't issue tree notices for private service lines, but you can ask it for a safety disconnection before trimming near your own. In Central Hawke's Bay, Centralines needs written consent before anyone trims or fells trees near its lines.

Is Wairoa on Unison?

No. Wairoa is on Firstlight Network, the lines company for Tairāwhiti and Wairoa, so faults there go to 0800 206 207.

Related help

Helpful next

Electricians in NapierUnison's number, hot water that won't heat, Napier Hill's 1920s houses and the 2020 flood.Electricians in HastingsHastings' 1920s villas, rural outages from Cook to Gabrielle, liquefaction and the jobs Hastings homes need.Electricians in Havelock NorthOutages, storm checks, solar and safer homes for older residents in Havelock North.House rewiringSigns your wiring is past it, part or full rewires, and the certificates a rewire should come with.Emergency electricians111, the lines company or an electrician? What to do first in an electrical emergency at home.Electrical inspectionsInspections the law requires and safety checks you choose: who does them, and what you get at the end.

Where this information comes from

Rules change, so check with the EWRB, WorkSafe or Tenancy Services if something matters to your job. How we write and check these pages.

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