Underfloor insulation - special care with electrics
Electrical safety is important when checking or installing underfloor insulation. EECA recommends using a professional but, if you do it yourself, special care is needed with underfloor electrics.
Safety advice for checking or installing insulation
Below is some important electrical safety advice for checking or installing underfloor insulation.
Read the insulation installation standard
Appendix B of the national standard for insulation installation has detailed information on electrical safety when installing underfloor insulation.
>> Download Standard NZS 4246:2006 Installing insulation in residential buildings.
Avoid stapling insulation near electric cables
When stapling underfloor insulation, be sure to avoid stapling near or through electrical cables - doing so could result in a serious or fatal electric shock. An accidentally stapled cable, even if it went undetected during installation, can also create a fire risk. Foil insulation is a good electrical conductor, so take special care when installing this type of insulation.
If replacing foil insulation, get a registered electrician to check it first
Existing foil insulation that's fixed with staples can unknowingly be live (even if it was installed a long time ago) if an electrical cable was accidentally stapled during installation. Turning off the mains won't necessarily solve the problem.
If you're replacing underfloor foil, the safest thing to do is get a registered electrician to check whether the foil is live before you touch it.
>> For more detailed information electrical safety when installing underfloor insulation, consult Appendix B of the New Zealand Standard NZS4246:2006 and the Energy Safety website.
Polystyrene insulation and electric cables
If in direct contact with electric cables, polystyrene insulation can cause the coating on the cables to harden and crack, creating a fire or electrical safety risk.
To avoid this, polystyrene insulation must not come into direct contact with any PVC coated cables. They should be separated using self-adhesive paper, polyethylene or polypropylene tape between the PVC and polystyrene, or by installing the cables through conduits.
More information
- Find general information on working safely around electrical wiring on the Energy Safety website.
