No power — grid, building, or your installation fault? Check in 3 steps

Step 1: Look around – is it the whole neighbourhood?

Look out the window. If the streetlights are off, neighbouring buildings are dark, or the traffic lights aren't working – it's almost certainly a fault or planned outage on the part of the grid operator. In our area, this is Tauron Dystrybucja.

• Check for outages at your address – our power outage checker shows planned and emergency Tauron outages and can notify you by SMS before the power goes out;
• Report a grid fault – the emergency number for the power emergency service is 991;
• in such a situation, an electrician cannot speed anything up – a grid-side fault can only be rectified by the operator.

Step 2: Common areas – staircase, lift, basement

If there is power in the flat, but the staircase lighting, lift, or intercom are not working – this is the responsibility of the building manager or administration. Similarly, if there is no power in several units on one riser: the cause may be a pre-meter fuse or an internal supply line, to which the tenant does not have (and should not have) access.

In communal properties, reports are directed to the asset manager – for example, in Wałbrzych, MZB operates its own technical emergency service for administered buildings. Honestly: if you live in such a property, this is often the correct and free path – there's no point in ordering a paid visit where the repair is the administration's responsibility. However, we provide comprehensive services to housing communities and managers – details on the electrical services for buildings page.

Step 3: Problem only in your unit

Neighbours have power, the staircase works, but it's dark at your place? Look at the fuse box:

• if any lever is down – you can try to raise it once; if it trips again immediately, do not repeat attempts "by force";
• if part of the flat is not working (e.g., only kitchen sockets or "half the house") – this is a typical symptom of a single circuit fault or a loss of one phase;
• if you smell burning, a socket or switch is hot, or you hear buzzing – switch off that circuit in the box and do not use it until it has been checked.

What not to do: do not replace fuses with "stronger" ones, do not open the distribution board beyond the levers and buttons, do not look for a fault "on trial" with wet hands or in the dark on a ladder. A fuse that trips is doing its job – the problem is elsewhere.

What to prepare before calling an electrician

• address and floor, and building type (tenement, block of flats, house);
• what exactly is not working – the whole, one circuit, a single socket;
• what happened before: storm, renovation, new appliance, flooding;
• if you can – a photo of the fuse box.

With such a description, we will immediately assess the scope more accurately and provide a diagnosis price before the visit. We accept reports 24/7 – an assistant answers the phone, and we confirm the visit time with a specific hour. You can also book a visit online, without creating an account.