Apartments and units have their own electrical rhythm. Smaller jobs, tighter access, and a clear boundary at the main switch where your electrician's scope ends and the owners corporation's begins. Add the catch that older apartment buildings rarely had their switchboards touched since the original 1970s or 80s build — fuse boards, no RCD protection, battery-only smoke alarms — and you've got a category of electrical work that needs an electrician who reads the boundary correctly. Millar Electrics services apartments and units across Melbourne's eastern suburbs, from a single-GPO add-on to full kitchen-renovation electrical and basement EV charging.
In-apartment scope
Power points and switches; lighting and dimmer upgrades; downlight conversions; smoke alarm replacement to current Wiring Rules (hardwired and interconnected); kitchen and bathroom circuits separated for proper RCD protection; rangehood, induction cooktop, oven and dishwasher circuits; switchboard upgrades inside the unit. The work happens with a brief riser-side isolation (5–10 minutes, OC manager notified) and we re-energise once the new board is tested. The Certificate of Electrical Safety covers the in-apartment work.
EV charging in basement bays
The most common cross-boundary job we run. The charger sits in your bay; the cable feeding it usually crosses common property and may need a load-management system to keep the building's supply within rating. Each apartment building handles this differently — some have a building-wide approved scheme, some let owners connect direct to their meter, some require a sub-meter installed by the OC. We work the OC's scheme, get the sign-off in writing, and run the cable to whatever standard the OC has approved. After-hours installation is standard so we're not blocking the basement during business hours.
Working with your owners corporation
For any job that touches common property — basement, riser, foyer, exterior — we coordinate with the OC manager and the building's nominated electrician. We provide the scope in writing, attend any committee meeting needed for sign-off, and work in the access window the OC approves. For purely in-apartment work we keep the OC informed but don't hold up the job waiting for committee process — the boundary is clear.