Electrician in McKinnon: rental safety checks, switchboards and batteries
Need an electrician in McKinnon? Helcro Electrical (REC 35448) sends its own licensed electricians across McKinnon 3204, in the City of Glen Eira, about 5 km north-north-west of our Cheltenham workshop. We fix faults, add power points and lighting, upgrade switchboards, do the electrical half of the two-yearly rental safety check, now required for all rentals, and install home batteries and solar.
Call 1300 201 358 → Get a Quote →
Send the form and we will call you back within 2 business hours. We are open Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm and Saturday 8am to 1pm.
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What our McKinnon electricians charge
These are our own prices, all including GST. Anything bigger is quoted in writing after the site assessment.
| Job | Price |
|---|---|
| Site assessment for a quote | $50 |
| Service call (first 30 minutes, one electrician) | $165 |
| Split system, standard back-to-back install | from $1,618 (Haier 2.5 kW) |
| Home switchboard upgrade | typically $1,250 to $2,500 |
| Zappi EV charger, supplied and installed | $2,200 to $2,500 single-phase, $2,500 to $3,000 three-phase |
| Home solar system, installed, STC discount taken off | about $6,000 (6.6 kW), about $12,000 (10 kW) |
| SigenStor 8 kWh battery, federal discount taken off | from $8,400 single-phase, from $10,900 three-phase (October 2026) |
All prices include GST. Prices, rules and figures on this page checked 21 October 2026.
Electrical work for McKinnon homes and the McKinnon Road shops
Jobs we take on in McKinnon houses and townhouses include tracking down a fault that keeps tripping a safety switch, extra power points for a kitchen or study, LED downlights, hard-wired smoke alarms, an oven or induction cooktop to connect, rewiring, and replacing an old fuse box with a modern switchboard: see our residential electrical services.
For security systems we do the electrical side only: power for CCTV cameras, alarm panels, intercoms and gate motors, and security lighting.
Since 20 August 2026 the McKinnon Road shops form their own heritage precinct (HO275, McKinnon Village Precinct). Lighting, power and fit-outs inside are everyday commercial electrical work; a change to the outside of a heritage place may need a planning permit, so we check first.
Solar installers in McKinnon: the heritage overlay check
The Clean Energy Regulator has recorded 2,740 small-scale solar systems in postcode 3204, which McKinnon shares with Bentleigh, Ormond and Patterson, from 2001 to 30 September 2026. Uptake is still rising, with 185 systems from January to September 2026, already more than the 184 recorded so far for all of 2025. We install home systems from 5 kW to 30 kW; more on solar panel installation.
What changed in August: Amendment C240glen, gazetted on 20 August 2026, introduced Glen Eira's Heritage Overlay to 13 new individual places and two precincts in McKinnon, affecting 54 properties (some were re-listed from an older precinct). The schedule now has 17 Heritage Overlay entries in McKinnon, including the McKinnon Hill Residential Precinct (HO274), and solar controls apply to every one of them.
For those addresses, panels need a planning permit if the system is visible from a street (other than a lane) or public park. For a home, that permit is a VicSmart application: still a permit, but not an automatic no. So "no council approval needed" does not hold for every McKinnon roof; the VicPlan map shows whether your address is in the overlay, and we check the overlay before we quote.
United Energy runs the network in McKinnon: a single-phase home can export up to 5 kW, with the limit for each address set at United Energy's pre-approval. Every solar and battery job carries our workmanship warranty of 10 years from the commissioning date on the Certificate of Electrical Safety, separate from the manufacturers' warranties.
Home batteries in McKinnon
The Clean Energy Regulator recorded at least 466 batteries in postcode 3204 from July 2025 to September 2026, against 282 new solar systems in the same 15 months. Many of those batteries joined solar already on the roof.
The federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program aims at around a 30% discount on the upfront cost, usually taken off the price by your installer when you buy. The rate falls every 1 January and 1 July, set by the date the Certificate of Electrical Safety is issued, and tapers above 14 kWh; our battery rebate guide has the current figures. There is no Victorian battery rebate, and Solar Victoria no longer takes battery loan applications.
Eligibility depends on the exact battery and set-up: the battery and the inverter it connects to must be able to join a virtual power plant, though a separate existing solar inverter need not. We install SigenStor, Tesla Powerwall and Sonnen; more on home battery installation.
Switchboard upgrades for McKinnon's interwar houses and townhouses
The 2021 Census counted 6,878 people and 2,337 occupied private dwellings in McKinnon: 1,376 separate houses (58.9%, against 73.4% across Victoria) and 645 semi-detached, row or terrace houses and townhouses (27.6%, about double Victoria's 13.9%).
Glen Eira's McKinnon Heritage Review (GJM Heritage, June 2023) explains the mix. In the interwar years McKinnon was transformed from farmland, with "a vast number of predominantly freestanding villas and bungalows", and by the 1950s, it says, "McKinnon was largely developed". Since the late twentieth century there has been "replacement of earlier residences with new dwellings, a pattern which continues". So one street can hold two generations of wiring.
Knocking down for townhouses? A new home whose building permit is issued from 1 January 2027 cannot connect to reticulated gas, unless the building surveyor certifies in writing that substantial design progress was made before that date. LPG is outside the rule.
Safety switches (RCDs) became compulsory on power circuits in new wiring in the early 1990s and on lighting circuits from 2001, so a McKinnon house that has never been upgraded may still have none (the full dates).
Buying an older house? For a home built before the 1980s, Energy Safe Victoria says it is imperative the wiring is checked by a licensed electrical inspector or registered electrical contractor before you move in. A switchboard upgrade often comes before a battery, heat pump or EV charger, since each adds a circuit.
Rental electrical safety checks in McKinnon
At the 2021 Census, 762 McKinnon homes (32.6%) were rented, against 28.5% across Victoria. The rental provider (landlord) must arrange the safety check. Three dates apply:
- 29 March 2023: every power outlet and lighting circuit in a rental must connect to a switchboard-type circuit breaker and a switchboard-type RCD.
- 13 October 2026: the two-yearly gas and electrical safety check now applies to every Victorian rental agreement, old or new (the gas part only where there is gas). If a new renter moves in and there has been no check in the last 2 years, it is to be completed as soon as possible.
- 1 March 2027: in a rental, an existing hot water system that fails and cannot be repaired is replaced with a heat pump or electric-boosted solar water heater, and failed fixed heating with efficient fixed electric heating in the main living area. New agreements from that date, including ones that roll to month-to-month, also need energy-efficient fixed cooling with an outlet in the main living area.
We do the electrical half of the rental safety check and leave a report prepared in accordance with section 2 of AS/NZS 3019; a licensed or registered gasfitter does the gas check.
Heat pump hot water and Victoria's gas rules
From 1 March 2027, a mains gas water heater in an existing home that breaks and cannot be repaired, or is replaced for any other reason, must be replaced with an electric alternative; the same applies to gas pool heaters. Existing gas appliances can continue to be used, maintained and repaired as usual, LPG is not impacted, and nothing forces an owner-occupier off a gas cooktop or gas heater. Exemptions: Victoria's gas rules.
The Clean Energy Regulator has recorded 760 air-source heat pump water heaters in postcode 3204 since 2001.
Two discounts can cut the cost: up to $560 through VEU when a heat pump replaces gas, and Solar Victoria's hot water rebate for eligible households, up to $1,000 or up to $1,400 for a locally made product.
Our heat pump hot water systems are iStore, Sanden Eco Plus and Haier, and we apply the VEU discount on our heat pump hot water installations. The iStore 270L is listed in our shop at $2,950 before rebates, and a straight swap is about $3,900 installed, including GST. Our heat pump work is covered by a 5-year workmanship warranty.
On general supply (not controlled load), a heat pump can heat in the free Midday Power Saver window, 11am to 2pm, once you have a smart meter and sign up with your retailer; other rates on that offer can be higher.
EV chargers in McKinnon homes and townhouses
At the 2021 Census, 944 McKinnon dwellings (40.4%, against 36.9% across Victoria) had two registered motor vehicles garaged or parked at or near the home. A charger is a big new load, so we look at the switchboard and supply phase before quoting. In a townhouse, check which meter and switchboard serve your home; if the charger, its cabling or its supply touches common property (the plan of subdivision decides), the owners corporation must approve the work. Prices, charging speeds and brands: EV charger installation.
Air conditioning installation in McKinnon
A split system installed on a standard back-to-back job starts at $1,618 (Haier 2.5 kW, including GST), with no rebate involved. Since 30 September 2026, every ducted system, and any multi-split of 10 kW or more, carries a $3,000 minimum VEU co-payment. See how the VEU discount works and the air conditioning brands we install.
Who does the work, and the registrations behind it
Our own electricians do the work, usually Fedya or Rhys; nothing is subcontracted. Helcro Electrical has worked across Melbourne South East since 2006.
- Registered Electrical Contractor REC 35448, registered with Energy Safe Victoria (check it on the ESV register)
- VEU Accredited Provider A003039
- NETCC Approved Seller for solar and batteries
- Clean Energy Council member
- ARC Refrigerant Trading Authorisation AU50700
- SiGENERGY Certified Installer, Tesla Powerwall Certified Installer and Sonnen Certified Partner
- Team members registered with the Building and Plumbing Commission (formerly the VBA) for air conditioning work
Where we work around McKinnon
McKinnon borders Bentleigh, Ormond, Bentleigh East and Brighton East. We cover the whole suburb: McKinnon station, the McKinnon Road shops, McKinnon Secondary College, and McKinnon Reserve and Allnutt Park on the Bentleigh border, with Tucker Road forming most of the eastern edge. See all the suburbs we cover.
Booking a job, step by step
- Call 1300 201 358, or send the form and we will call you back within 2 business hours.
- A price on the phone where we can. Small jobs often need nothing more; for solar or a battery you get an indicative figure first.
- A $50 site visit for bigger work, followed by a written quote.
- Paperwork when we finish. A Certificate of Electrical Safety wherever the work requires one, and your warranty in writing.
McKinnon electrician questions
Do you take emergency calls?
We are open Monday to Friday 8:00am–6:00pm and Saturday 8:00am–1:00pm. We do not advertise round-the-clock callouts. For an urgent electrical fault, call 1300 201 358 and we will confirm availability directly.
The whole street has lost power: is that you or the network?
The network. Ring United Energy, which runs the poles and wires, on 13 20 99.
Is McKinnon the same postcode as Bentleigh?
Yes. Postcode 3204 covers Bentleigh, McKinnon, Ormond and Patterson.
Get a quote from a McKinnon electrician
A dead power point, a rental check or a battery quote: send us the details and expect a call back within 2 business hours.
Helcro Electrical, 45/148 Chesterville Road, Cheltenham VIC 3192. Phone 1300 201 358.