Kitchen renovation electrical in Melbourne: what to plan before the cabinets go in

We have been doing electrical for a long time, and kitchen renovations across Melbourne are a big part of it. This guide covers what we look at first, what a modern kitchen usually needs, what changes when you go from gas to induction, and how to time the electrical work around your builder or kitchen company.

Start at the switchboard, not the cabinets

The first question on any kitchen job is whether the existing board can carry the new kitchen. Plenty of Melbourne homes still have a board that was set up when the kitchen had a gas cooktop, one oven circuit and a couple of double power points. A renovated kitchen often adds an induction cooktop, a second oven or steam oven, a dishwasher, a plumbed fridge, a bigger rangehood and more bench power.

We check three things:

• Spare room on the board. New circuits need somewhere to go. Older boards are often full.
• Safety switches (RCDs). New circuits need safety switch protection under the current wiring rules. If the board has no safety switches, or only one covering everything, the new kitchen circuits are usually the point where that gets fixed.
• What the supply can carry. We look at the main switch, the size of the main cables and the total load the house will run once the new kitchen is in. Swapping gas for induction, adding a heat pump or adding electric heating all push the total up.

Sometimes the answer is a few new circuit breakers and a safety switch. Sometimes it is a board upgrade. Our post on when to upgrade a switchboard goes through the signs, and the details of that work are on our switchboard upgrades page. Either way, you know before the kitchen is ordered, not on the day the cooktop arrives.

The circuits a modern kitchen usually needs

Every kitchen is different, and the appliance installation manuals have the final say on what each one needs. As a guide, these are the circuits we plan for most often:

• Cooktop. Induction and electric cooktops are fixed-wired on their own circuit. Induction in particular usually needs a heavier circuit than the old electric cooktop or the gas kitchen ever had.
• Oven. A single wall oven is normally on its own circuit. A second oven, a steam oven or a combination microwave often needs its own as well, depending on what the manuals ask for.
• Dishwasher. Commonly on its own circuit or a dedicated point, so it does not share with the kettle and toaster.
• Fridge. A dedicated point, ideally not on a circuit that trips every time something else on the bench faults. Nobody wants to find a defrosted freezer after a weekend away.
• Rangehood. A point or fixed connection inside the cabinet above the cooktop, placed so the duct and the hood fit around it.
• Bench power. Spread across more than one circuit, so a kettle, toaster, coffee machine and air fryer running at once do not all load the same breaker.
• Lighting. Downlights, pendants and under-cabinet strip lights, each on switching that makes sense for how you use the room.

Bring us the appliance model numbers or spec sheets if you have them. That one step answers most of the cable size and circuit questions before anyone cuts a hole in the wall.

Going from gas to induction

A lot of Melbourne kitchens we see now are swapping a gas cooktop for induction. It is a good change, but it is the one that most often catches people out on the electrical side, because the cooktop is usually the biggest single load in the house.

• The cooktop needs a new, correctly sized circuit run from the switchboard to the cooktop position. The old gas cooktop may have had nothing more than a power point for the ignition.
• The board needs space and safety switch protection for that circuit, and the supply needs to carry it alongside everything else in the house.
• The gas side has to be capped or removed by a licensed gasfitter. We can work alongside your plumber so the cut-over happens in one visit where possible.
• Check the cooktop's cut-out size and the installation manual before the stone benchtop is cut. Changing the cooktop later can mean a different cut-out and a different circuit.

If the board needs work to take induction, it is usually cheaper and quicker to do it as part of the kitchen job than to come back for it afterwards. You get a price for both before any work starts.

Power points: where you actually need them

Walk through how you use the kitchen and mark it on the plan. The common regrets we hear are "not enough points on the island" and "the coffee machine lead does not reach". Things to think about:

• Bench runs. Double power points spaced along every bench you will use, including either side of the cooktop zone where you will plate up or use a mixer.
• The island. Island points need cabling run through the floor or from below before the island goes in. Pop-up or under-bench points are an option if you want a clean top.
• Appliance cupboards and pantries. A point inside a walk-in or appliance cupboard lets the toaster and coffee machine live behind a door.
• Integrated appliances. A built-in fridge, dishwasher or oven still needs a way to be switched off for service. We set out where the isolating switch or point goes so it can be reached without pulling the appliance out.
• USB and charging. Power points with USB outlets at the end of a bench or the desk nook keep phones off the cooking area.
• Clearances near water and heat. There are rules on how points sit in relation to the sink and the cooktop. We set those out on site against your cabinet drawings, so the joiner can work around them.

Lighting the kitchen properly

Good kitchen lighting is usually three layers. General light from LED downlights across the room. Task light over the bench, which is where under-cabinet LED strips and pendants earn their keep, because downlights behind you throw your shadow straight onto the chopping board. Then a softer layer, on a dimmer, for the evening.

A few practical points: LED strip lights need their drivers somewhere you can get to later, not sealed behind a fixed panel. Dimmers need to match the LED fittings, or you get flicker and buzzing. Pendants over an island need their positions marked off the island drawing, not guessed off the ceiling. Our lighting page covers layouts and LED changeovers in more detail.

Timing the electrical with your builder or kitchen company

Kitchen electrical work happens in two stages, and the timing matters more than anything else on the job.

1. Plan. Before cabinets are ordered, we check the board and go through the appliance list and cabinet drawings with you.
2. Rough-in (first fix). Once the old kitchen is out and before plaster goes back up, we run the new cables, set the circuits at the board and put in the brackets for points and lights. This is the stage where moving a point is easy.
3. Fit-off (second fix). After the cabinets, splashback and benchtops are in, we fit the power points, switches, lights and connect the cooktop, oven, rangehood and dishwasher.
4. Test and handover. Every circuit is tested, including the safety switches. A Certificate of Electrical Safety is issued when the job needs one, and all our work carries a 2-year workmanship warranty.

The most common delay we see is the electrician being booked after the plasterer. Get us in the schedule early and tell us when demolition is happening. If you are also doing a bathroom or the floors are up, our renovations page covers under-tile heating and rewires that often go in at the same time.

Kitchens in commercial spaces

Much of our renovation work is in commercial spaces: staff kitchens in offices, café and food prep fit-outs, and clinics with a kitchenette. The same planning applies, with a few differences. Commercial cooking and refrigeration equipment can need three-phase power or higher-rated circuits. Shared boards in a building need the new circuits clearly labelled. Work often has to happen after hours or around trading. Send the equipment list early, and we will check the board and the supply before the fit-out is locked in. Larger jobs sit under new builds and fit-outs.

What to send us for a price

To get a useful quote quickly, send us:

• Your suburb and roughly when the old kitchen is coming out.
• A photo of the switchboard with the door open.
• The kitchen plan or cabinet drawings, even a rough sketch.
• The appliance list, especially the cooktop and ovens.

You can attach photos through our quote form. We look at the board, the existing wiring and what the new layout needs, and you get a clear price before any work starts. We work across Melbourne, with regular jobs through the south-east, and Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula are among our service areas.

Quick answers

Do I need a switchboard upgrade for a kitchen renovation? Not always. Many kitchens only need new circuits and safety switch protection. An upgrade is needed when the board has no room, no safety switches, old ceramic fuses, or cannot carry the new load, which is common when switching to induction. We check the board first and price before work.

Can I go from a gas cooktop to induction without new wiring? Usually not. An induction cooktop needs its own correctly sized circuit from the board, and a gas kitchen rarely has one in place. A licensed gasfitter caps or removes the gas side.

When should the electrician come in during a kitchen renovation? Twice. Rough-in after demolition and before plaster, then fit-off once the cabinets and benchtops are in. Book the planning visit before the cabinets are ordered.

Can my kitchen company or builder do the electrical? Electrical work in Victoria must be done by a licensed electrician. Many kitchen companies bring their own or ask you to engage one. We work alongside builders, kitchen companies, plumbers and tilers so the site is not waiting on power.