No power after a storm in Brisbane? What to check before you call an electrician

If you have no power after a storm and the whole street is dark, it’s an Energex outage: check the Outage Finder or call 13 62 62. If the neighbours have power and you don’t, the problem is at your place. Check the main switch and the safety switches first. A switch that trips again as soon as you reset it has found a fault, and that’s a licensed electrician’s job.

Is it the whole street, or only your house?

Energex’s first step is the same as ours: look out the window, or ask a neighbour. A dark street means the network is out, and Energex restores it. Nothing at your switchboard will bring it back sooner. The Energex Outage Finder shows known outages and the expected restore time, and from mid October 2026 Energex texts the account holder when the power goes out and again when it’s back.

Energex also asks you to switch off the oven and hotplates if you were cooking when the power dropped, unplug TVs and computers, and leave one light on so you know when supply returns.

Check the main switch and the safety switches

Open the switchboard door and look. Two things trip in a storm: the main switch, if the network surged, and the safety switches, which cut a circuit the moment they sense current leaking to earth. Water in an outdoor power point or a garden light is enough to do it. If you’re not sure which switches are which, our guide on how to test a safety switch shows what to look for.

1. Main switchIf it’s sitting at off, turn it back on. If it won’t stay on, stop there and call us.
2. Safety switchesFind the switches with a “T” or “TEST” button. Flick any that are off back to on, one at a time.
3. Walk the houseNote which lights and power points came back. Whatever is still dead is on a circuit with a problem.

When a safety switch won’t stay on

A safety switch that trips the moment you reset it has found a leak to earth. After a storm the usual suspects are outside: the pool pump, garden lights, an outdoor power point, the shed. The Electrical Safety Office puts repeated trips down to an overloaded circuit, a faulty appliance or faulty wiring, and says to call an electrician if the switch won’t stay on.

1. Unplug every appliance on that circuit, including anything outside and in the garage.
2. Reset the switch once. If it holds, plug things back in one at a time until it trips again. That appliance is the fault, so keep it unplugged.
3. If it trips with everything unplugged, the fault is in the wiring or a fitting. Leave the switch off and call a licensed electrician.

Don’t keep pushing it back up. Each trip is the switch doing its job, and a circuit that trips with nothing plugged in has water or damage somewhere you can’t see.

Water in the meter box or switchboard

Driving rain and floodwater get into meter boxes, switchboards and underground pits. Energex is blunt about it: wet wiring and switchboards can give life threatening shocks, and water can damage wiring and appliances so they stay dangerous even after they dry.

If your home has flooded and the power is still connected, Energex asks you to contact them straight away so they can disconnect it. Before the power comes back, a licensed electrical contractor has to inspect the wiring and every water affected fitting. The Electrical Safety Office calls this a verification test, and the certificate of test it produces is what lets Energex reconnect a damaged property.

• The switchboard, the safety switches and the main switch are tested and the trip times recorded.
• Wet power points, light fittings and junction boxes are opened, tested and replaced where water has been inside.
• Every affected circuit is tested for insulation damage before it’s switched back on.
• You get the certificate of test for Energex, and a written list of anything that failed.

What an electrician costs after a storm

Those are the starting prices on our pricing page for an emergency electrician in Brisbane and an emergency electrician in Logan. You get a fixed price in writing before any work starts, and the quoted price is the invoiced price. If the fault turns into a bigger job, we ring you before we go on. We cover Logan, Brisbane southside, Ipswich, Springfield Lakes and the northern Gold Coast under QLD Electrical Contractor Licence 90552.

After a storm the usual fixes are a failed safety switch, a wet fitting that needs replacing, or switchboard damage from the surge. Adding a safety switch to an existing board starts from $385 with our safety switch installation service. What counts as an emergency, and what can wait until the morning rate, is in our guide to after hours electrician prices in Brisbane.

Call 07 4428 2766 Book a $50 quote visit online

Before the next storm

The Electrical Safety Office’s storm checklist is short, and most of it costs nothing.

• Have a safety switch installed, and press its test button every three months.
• Know where to turn off your power, gas and water in an emergency.
• Pack away electrical gear that isn’t in use, and unplug outside TVs and non fixed aerials.
• When a storm approaches, switch off and unplug electrical equipment. Energex names computers, stereos and TVs, aerial included.
• Keep your mobile charged. Energex points out that the nbn, landline phones and most medical alarms stop working in a blackout.

If your switchboard has no safety switches, or only one covering the power points, the Electrical Safety Office suggests protection on all circuits, including lights, air conditioning, hot water and the pool. A full switchboard upgrade starts from $1,850 and replaces old fuses with circuit breakers and safety switches. On a board that’s already modern, a switchboard thermal imaging check from $185 finds hot joints and loose connections before the season’s load gets to them.

Common questions after a storm

Can lightning damage appliances even if the power stayed on?

Yes. Energex says lightning strikes on the network send surges down the powerlines and into homes, and those surges can damage appliances or cause shocks. That’s why both Energex and the Electrical Safety Office say to unplug equipment when a storm approaches. Energex also suggests surge protection devices for sensitive electronics.

The power is back, but some power points still don’t work

A safety switch or circuit breaker on that circuit is still off, or the surge has damaged a fitting on it. Reset the switch once. If nothing changes, or it trips again, it’s a fault for an electrician to find.

Is it safe to run a generator during an outage?

Outside only, well away from open windows, with a battery powered carbon monoxide alarm running. Energex and the Electrical Safety Office both warn that generators produce carbon monoxide you can’t see or smell, and that it can reach deadly levels indoors. A generator that feeds the house wiring needs a licensed electrician to connect it.

Who fixes the line from the street to my house?

Report a fallen or damaged line to Energex on 13 62 62, or 13 19 62 if it’s dangerous, and Energex repairs its network. If the damage is to the wiring on your property, a licensed electrical contractor repairs it and issues the certificate of test, and you then tell Energex so the power can be reconnected.

Prices current as of 31 October 2026. Sources: Electrical Safety Office (WorkSafe Queensland), “Electrical safety during storms”, “Safety switches” and “Generators”; Energex, “When power goes out”, “Power outage safety” and “Keeping safe in severe weather”. This article is general information. It is not advice about your home’s wiring.

Related guides

How much does it cost to install a power point in Brisbane? (2026 prices)How Much to Rewire a House? Australian Cost Guide 2026How to Reset a Tripped Circuit Breaker: A Safe Step-by-Step Guide

• What Is a Switchboard Upgrade? Australian Home Guide
• 10 Signs You Need to Rewire Your House

All guides: electrical and air conditioning guides.

Written by the Faze Electrical & Airconditioning team, Woodridge

Licensed electricians and ARCtick refrigeration technicians, Queensland Electrical Contractor Licence 90552 and ARCtick L181564. We install and service split systems and do the electrical across Logan, Brisbane southside, Ipswich and the northern Gold Coast.

About Faze | Call 07 4428 2766 | Text 0489 275 747