Service
Small electrical jobs
One outlet, one fixture, one switch. The jobs other electricians will not call back about.
Small electrical jobs are the work most shops quietly filter out, and it is the work people most often cannot get anyone to come and do.
The economics are not complicated. A half hour job carries the same travel, the same paperwork and the same insurance as a half day one, so a large outfit with three crews booked out to October has no reason to take it. That is a rational business decision and it leaves a lot of people stuck with a dead outlet and an unanswered voicemail.
We take it. Not as a favour, as a deliberate choice: the person who needs one receptacle moved this year is the person who needs a panel upgrade in four, and by then they know who to call.
What this covers
Receptacles replaced, relocated or added. Light fixtures swapped, including the ones on a ceiling nobody wants to reach. Switches, dimmers, three way switching that has stopped behaving. GFCI protection added where a bathroom or an outdoor receptacle is missing it. A dedicated circuit for a freezer or a window unit. Wiring hidden for a wall mounted television. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms replaced with interconnected units. Outdoor receptacles, exterior fixtures and motion sensors.
If it is electrical and it is smaller than a project, ask.
Make one visit do the work of three
The single best thing you can do to keep a small job cheap is to write a list before you call. Walk the house once and note everything: the outlet in the spare room, the fixture in the hall, the switch that has always been backwards, the missing GFCI in the bathroom.
One visit that clears eight items costs meaningfully less than eight visits, and most people find they had six things once they went looking rather than the one they were phoning about.
Where small electrical jobs stop being small
Sometimes the fixture is not the problem. A light that will not stay working can be a failing connection upstream. An outlet that has no ground in an older house cannot simply be swapped for a three prong receptacle and called done, because that makes it look protected when it is not. In a 1965 to 1978 house, opening a device sometimes reveals aluminum branch wiring, which is aluminum wiring remediation rather than a swap.
When that happens we tell you on the spot, explain the options, and do not quietly expand the job. If it turns into diagnosis, it is electrical repairs. If it turns out the panel has no capacity left, it is a panel upgrade.
Permits, even on small electrical jobs
Replacing a fixture or a device on an existing circuit generally does not need a permit. A new circuit does, and in this province only a certified electrician can pull one at all, which is the practical reason a handyman cannot legally add you a circuit. The distinction and the process are on the electrical permits and inspections page.
Out of hours
If it cannot wait until Monday, that is emergency electrical service and it is answered around the clock. Most small electrical jobs are not emergencies, and we would rather book you properly on a weekday than charge you emergency rates for a dead receptacle.
What will this cost?
Nobody can price this down the phone, and anyone who does is guessing. What you can find out now is what will decide the number on your house.
Common questions
Is one outlet too small a job?
No. A single outlet, one fixture or one switch is work we take. Say what it is when you call and we will tell you honestly whether it is worth a visit on its own or better bundled with something else.
Can a handyman do this instead?
For some of it, legally, no. In Nova Scotia only a certified electrician can pull an electrical permit, and new circuits need one. Swapping a fixture on an existing circuit is different from adding a circuit, and the line between them matters to your insurer.
Why will nobody call me back about small work?
Because a half hour job costs the same travel and paperwork as a half day one, so a lot of shops filter it out. We would rather do it and be the electrician you already know when something larger happens.
Can you do several small things in one visit?
That is the sensible way to do it. Write a list, send it, and we will work through it in one trip. It is cheaper for you than three separate call-outs and it is a better use of a day for us.